Jet Moto (series)

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Jet Moto (Jet Rider in Europe) is a series of futuristic racing games for the PlayStation video game console. The gameplay differs from that of a traditional racing game with cars, as players instead control hoverbikes which hover close above the ground and can be driven over both land and water. Most of the courses in the games are designed to take advantage of this ability. Bikes are adorned with logos of products such as Mountain Dew and Butterfinger, similar to real-life sponsored racing.

The Jet Moto series utilizes a system called the Magnetic Grapple. Pressing an assigned button creates a magnetic attraction between the player's bike and red energy poles that are placed strategically throughout the courses. This enables the bike to swing around tight turns without slowing down, and also to swing over large gaps and chasms otherwise too large to drive over. If executed properly, bikes can also be propelled out of tight turns at a faster speed than when entered.

Jet Moto (1996) and Jet Moto 2 (1997) were developed by SingleTrac, known mostly for Twisted Metal and Twisted Metal 2. SingleTrac then left Sony, the publisher of the series, and Jet Moto 3 (1999) was developed by Pacific Coast Power & Light in their absence. Former employees of SingleTrac later left to form Incognito Entertainment and signed again with Sony, sparking rumors of a fourth Jet Moto game being developed by Incognito because of this. However, such a game has yet to surface.

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[edit] Jet Moto

Jet Moto

Developer(s) SingleTrac
Publisher(s) Sony Computer Entertainment
Series Jet Moto
Platform(s) PlayStation, Playstation Network
Release date PlayStation
JP August 7, 1997
NA October 31, 1996
EU February 1997
Windows
NA November 30, 1997
Genre(s) Racing
Mode(s) Single-player, multiplayer
Rating(s) ESRB: Kids to Adults
Media 1 CD
Input methods Controller, Dual Analog Controller, Dual Shock Controller

The original Jet Moto was released for PlayStation video game console and the PC (1997), and a download for the PSP and PS3 from the Playstation Store (2007) following much later. Twenty Characters and three tracks are available at the beginning of the game, with seven more tracks unlockable by winning tournaments. The first Jet Moto is notable for introducing suicide courses. Instead of being a continuous loop, these tracks have a point A and point B; racers start at point A, race to point B, turn around, then race back to point A while facing oncoming racers. Traditional tracks are also included, and typical courses range from beaches with debris-littered water, ice covered mountains, and even a floating track set above a city.

[edit] Jet Moto Trivia

[1]

  • The name of the mountain level, "Willpower," was actually a joke and reference to the lead artist / modeler, Will Dougherty, who designed the level.
  • Some of the Jet Moto characters were named after SingleTrac employees. These characters are as follows:
    • Harris was named after Polly Harris, a programmer and former testing manager of SingleTrac. Just like her portrait, the real Polly was a skydiver; she was the camerawoman that wore the camcorder on her helmet during a jump.
    • Another racer was named after Michael Makarczyk, an artist at SingleTrac. His character's portrait shows the racer swimming, and Michael himself was an avid swimmer. He has also said that he raced motorcycles, not motocross, however.
  • John Olsen, who also worked on Void War, worked on the PC port of Jet Moto as his first task at SingleTrac. Although he had some help from various teammates at the company while working on their pieces, he handled the port to a large degree as a solo programmer.
  • Not everyone has the same number of stat points. The ones with the most are Wild Ride and Gunner.

[edit] List of Characters

Jet Moto has twenty selectable characters split up evenly through four teams sponsored by name brands (Mountain Dew,K2,Axiom,Butterfinger).


[edit] Team K2

  1. Chien
  2. Gunner
  3. Harris
  4. Quick Jessie
  5. The Max

[edit] Team Aixom

  1. Blackjack
  2. Shirow
  3. Stone
  4. Technician
  5. Tetsujin

[edit] Team Butterfinger

  1. Arroyo
  2. Bomber
  3. Mace
  4. Masala
  5. Rhyno

[edit] List of Stages

There are 10 stages total in this game, stated below by difficulty:

  1. Joyride
  2. Black Water Falls
  3. Suicide Swamp
  4. Ice Crusher
  5. Cliffdiver
  6. Hammerhead
  7. Cypress Run
  8. Willpower
  9. Snow Blind
  10. Nightmare

[edit] Jet Moto 2

Jet Moto 2

Developer(s) SingleTrac
Publisher(s) Sony Computer Entertainment
Series Jet Moto
Platform(s) PlayStation, Playstation Network
Release date JP August 6, 1998
NA October 31, 1997
PAL April 1998
Genre(s) Racing
Mode(s) Single player, multiplayer
Rating(s) ESRB: Kids to Adults
Media 1 CD
Input methods Controller, Dual Analog Controller, Dual Shock Controller

Jet Moto 2 (known as Jet Moto '98 [1] in Japan) was released exclusively for the PlayStation video game console in 1997.The game became downloadable from the Playstation Network in January, 2008. The selectable amount of characters for this game was halved in comparison to the first game, with ten characters available at the beginning of the game and one unlockable character. Track amounts were greatly increased, however, with ten new tracks, and unlockable tracks from the original game. Tracks are more varied this time with each level containing a unique theme rather than the shared themes of the original game. The courses range from earthquake-damaged cities, desert Canyons, ice-covered mountains, roller Coasters, and several others. The difficulty was higher in this game; the developers used gameplay recordings in place of fully developed racer AI, so most racers had a perfect run and any mistakes made by the player would result in a quick loss of top racing positions.[2] Dual Analog Controller's were supported for the first game, but DualShock Controllers were not supported for Jet Moto 2. The greatest hits version was labeled within the game as "Championship Edition" with all the original tracks unlocked.

[edit] List of Characters

Jet Moto has 10 selectable characters, one of which is unlockable. A few favorite racers from the original return along with some new ones.

  1. Lil' Dave
  2. Wild Ride
  3. Blade
  4. Technician
  5. The Max
  6. Vampeera
  7. Gadget
  8. Steele
  9. The Hun
  10. Bomber
  11. Enigma

[edit] List of Stages

There are 20 stages total, ten of which are new, listed below by game and difficulty:

Jet Moto 2 Tracks

  1. Slickrock Gorge
  2. Meltdown
  3. Aftershock
  4. Arctic Blast
  5. Hot Shot
  6. The Shaft
  7. Rollercide
  8. Ka-Ma-Te
  9. Mach Schnell
  10. Nebulous

Original Jet Moto Tracks

  1. Joyride
  2. Black Water Falls
  3. Suicide Swamp
  4. Ice Crusher
  5. Cliffdiver
  6. Hammerhead
  7. Cypress Run
  8. Willpower
  9. Snow Blind
  10. Nightmare

[edit] Jet Moto 3

Jet Moto 3

Developer(s) Pacific Coast Power & Light
Publisher(s) 989 Sports
Series Jet Moto
Platform(s) PlayStation, Playstation Network
Release date NA August 31, 1999
Genre(s) Racing
Mode(s) Single-player, multiplayer
Rating(s) ESRB: Everyone
Media 1 CD
Input methods Controller, Dual Analog Controller, Dual Shock Controller

Jet Moto 3 was released exclusively for the PlayStation video game console in 1999. Ten characters are available from the beginning of the game and two characters are unlockable. This Jet Moto is notable for the inclusion of new stunt tracks. The objective of these tracks is to perform stunts to gain higher points and to collect coins scattered throughout the track. Another notable inclusion is the "hop" button, which is used to boost your player above the ground to avoid obstacles. The physics also were given an overhaul. Many times your bike travels so fast that you will be stuck riding on walls. Graphics were also considerably smoother as the game was released two years after the original games. Track themes vary greatly, with tracks taking places in volcanic islands, underground catacombs, the heights of Machu Pichu, and a thick Sequoia forest. DualShock Controller support was added to this installment.

[edit] List of Characters

Jet Moto 3 had a total of twelve characters. They are listed below in order of appearance.

  1. The Max
  2. Wild Ride
  3. Technician
  4. Bomber
  5. Vampeera
  6. Raven
  7. Spirit
  8. Convict
  9. Angel
  10. Tetsujin
  11. Captain Ballad
  12. Granny

[edit] List of Stages

There are 17 stages total, stated below by difficulty:

Standard Tracks

  1. Devil's Canyon
  2. Khumbu Ice Falls
  3. Volcano Island
  4. Lost City
  5. Urban Subway
  6. Shipwreck Cove
  7. Catacombs
  8. Sequoia Forest
  9. Machu Picchu
  10. Skypark
  11. Ytic Tsol (Lost City course raced in reverse)
  12. Uhccip Uhcam (Machu Picchu course raced in reverse)
  13. Krapyks (Skypark course raced in reverse)
  14. Planet X

Stadium/Trick

  1. Olympic Park
  2. Circus Park
  3. Ramp Park

[edit] Sources

  1. ^ a  Jet Moto 1 trivia obtained from The Rampant Coyote's Blog

[edit] References

  1. ^ Game data. GameFAQs. Retrieved on 2008-03-27.
  2. ^ Tales of the Rampant Coyote: Jet Moto Memories