Xbox takes up Chase in Japan

Microsoft's Japanese Xbox division has been briefing domestic journalists about Maximum Chase, an Xbox-exclusive driving and light gun action title set for release on September 26th in Japan. It seems to want to be a Hollywood cop film, right down to the English names of the main character (Rick Summer) and heroine (Catherine Stanfield), who set out to fight crime, alternating between pursuit driving and light gun levels, with a single player campaign punctuated by live action cutscenes of the duo and their contemporaries. Screenshots demonstrate that both sides of the game are coming along pretty well. Vehicles are shiny and curvaceous, explosions are detailed, the obligatory cracked-screen effect used during the light gun sections is satisfactory, and although the scenery is a bit frugal for an Xbox title, on the whole it's a dish you wouldn't turn your nose up at. Some would remark that it's odd for Microsoft to combat a lack of Japanese games by getting a Japanese developer (Genki) to create a Western game, but the aim is probably to emulate popular Western action films rather than anything else. As Die Hard Trilogy proved on the PlayStation One, it is possible to mix and match your game styles effectively; it just takes an enlightened developer. Microsoft Games Japan will be hoping that Maximum Chase can drive Xbox sales in the Far East, where the console has settled back into a pattern of diminishing returns after a successful price reduction campaign. More details are available on the flashy official website, although the bulk of the text is in Japanese. Related Feature - Maximum Chase screenshots