August 26, 2007 - Sega Rally Revo is one of PAX 07's hidden gems, stashed in the non-descript Sega booth, which is itself stashed inside the PAX 07 exhibition hall. The long-awaited sequel to Sega Rally 2 on the Dreamcast (there are enough residual Sega fans to qualify this as long-awaited, yes?) was wedged between Bleach and Universe at War, but almost always busy every time we walked past the small Sega booth.

There's a reason it was always attended to by a PAX show-goer: It feels like a perfect throwback to the original arcade and Saturn releases, but gussied up with some fresh current-gen visuals and some really tough tracks. The game very much still feels like a total arcade racer, rewarding the player that sticks with each of the 24 tracks long enough to achieve complete mastery. A newcomer will have fun with the easier Tropical and Safari tracks, maybe even score a second-place win here and there, but Sega Rally Revo is really built with the "perfectionist racer" in mind. You know, that guy you never want to play Ridge Racer with.

The game is a constant balancing act. Tracks aren't just strips of mud or pavement. Most tracks combine a variety of surfaces. You'll tear across a stretch of deteriorated pavement before sliding out into a corner painted with thick mud. The cars ahead of you cut grooves through the mud which you feel through the vibration of the controller. These grooves are persistent, too. Deep ribbons in the mud made on the first lap are there in the third lap, unless enough cars have plowed across them on the second to drastically move the mud. This makes each trip through these patches different. If you manage to race through a heavily trafficked patch of mud, you'll have far different traction that if you manage to find a lane of drier or less disturbed mud. Little things like thing guarantee that victory in Sega Rally Revo will not be linked to 100-percent memorization and mastery of a course -- maybe just 90-percent.

The build at PAX 07 had a variety of unlocked tracks. The scenery is not nearly as exaggerated as those found in Out Run 2, but there is still no shortage of fun architecture and great roadside attractions.

Naturally, many players will look at Sega Rally Revo and compare it to the recently released Dirt or Motorstorm. Don't -- or you're setting up some false expectations. As mentioned, this is arcade fare, not any sort of die-hard sim, even if it does include a garage full of licensed cars and some car customization options. This is about the smirk that creeps across your face when you slide through perfect hairpin, gaining three places on the pack. And there should certainly be room for both kinds of rally games.