The Los Angeles Times from Los Angeles, California • Page 36

C4 MONDAY, JUNE 14, 1999 LOS ANGELES TIMES IKAININb FOR FULL OR PART TIME BROKERS Hit the 'Ridge' Running or Catch the Racing Bug can 1-888-358-6466 IntfiPPlPet TRAINING INSTITUTE for the class nearest you. Classes offered in three convenient locations for series 7 63 Securities licenses HEAL ESTATE LOANS THE EASY QUALIFIER 10 rxocessingwvenficatjon -( ol employment ID processing or verification of deposits ID income (kwjmentation required HU established credit required MORTGAGE CORP.) (810)986-1000 A loi Angeles NriSirti I News Sports Calendar Livel I Business Essentials R4: Ridge Racer Type 4 Platform: Sony PlayStation Publisher: Namco ESRB rating: Everyone Price: $39.95 Bottom line: A little too slick Beetle Adventure Racing Platform: Nintendo 64 Publisher: Electronic Arts ESRB rating: Everyone Price: $59.95 Bottom line: Wheel 3 Xtreme Platform: Sony PlayStation Publisher: 989 Studios ESRB rating: Everyone Price: $39.95 Bottom line: All-out racing lode Runner 3-D Platform: Nintendo 64 Publisher: Infogrames ESRB rating: Everyone Price: $59.95 Bottom line: Better than ever Entertainment Software Ratings Board Firm's Software Melds Content and Chatting Internet: The free 'Gooey' program will allow Web surfers to hold conversations while viewing the same site. By JOSEPH MENN TIMES STAFF WRITER SAN FRANCISCO-A 5-month-old Israeli company today will launch what it says is the first software that allows Internet surfers to chat with each other while viewing any Web site. Hypernix, which is based in Tel Aviv, is giving away the "Gooey" software at its Web site, http: www.getgooey.com. The model is part of a growing convergence of content and community.

"The Web didn't fulfill its promise. It's about computers being connected, not people," said Yaron Zilberman, chief financial officer of the closely held company. The way the software works, anyone who has it running will see two windows appear on whatever Web site he visits. One window will list the nicknames of other Gooey users who are at the site at the same time. Another window is a running chat room for Gooey members.

Hypernix's founders said they were inspired after visiting an online art exhibition and were frustrated in their attempts to talk to other attendees about what they were watching. "Until now, the Web has been either about content or about chatting," Zilberman said. "It's like having to leave a restaurant in order to have a conversation, or having to go to a bar alone." The move follows last month's release of similar software by an unrelated company, Redwood City, Third Voice Inc. That software provides a message board rather than a chat room, allowing users to leave comments at any Web site that are then visible to future visitors who also have Third Voice software. Third Voice "conversations" are more lasting, but static.

Gooey users could travel together to other sites and continue private, one-on-one or group chats as they go. Please see CHAT, C7 GAMERS' CORNER AARON CURT1SS I'm a superego kind of guy. I don't smoke or gamble. I always say please and thank you. I don't use my car horn to express displeasure and I always signal when changing lanes.

At home, though, I hand my id the keys and let it go. And go it does: Laying down rubber at 90 mph as we whip around tight turns and then opening it up to 180 mph on the straightaways. In spite of or perhaps because of all the driving I do every day along congested freeways, racing titles remain my favorite genre of video game, a chance to see the world at unholy speeds from behind the dashboards of some very holy cars. When Sony PlayStation debuted in 1995 with just two titles, I was content because one of them was Namco's heavenly "Ridge Racer." Three incarnations later, "Ridge Racer" has been reborn yet again as "R4: Ridge Racer Type 4." "R4" deserves a prominent place in the game library of any serious racing fan. Not as much a revolution as a sophisticated evolution, "R4" retains all the best characteristics of the franchise slithering tracks, tight control and enhances them with more variety and technical details.

New cars and tracks become available as players race through the game, but the technical and managerial aspects of the game don't matcrrthose of "Gran Turis-mo." That's cool, though, because this is a different sort of game. "R4" is for people who like to go fast. The tracks melt into view without a glitch, and other cars slip gracefully by- The soundtrack not bad for game music thumps right along as players scream down the' highway. Control and driving physics are dead-on and the tracks demand constant attention to avoid plowing into guardrails or worse, rock walls. That said, "R4" is not for people who like to tinker with the differential or adjust the gear-box ratio.

There are very few mechanical aspects to the game, which keeps with its long PlayStation history. While that doesn't bother me much, I can see how gear heads might find it a little disappointing. Beetle Adventure Racing My first set of wheels was a 1964 Volkswagen Beetle. And even though I did some crazy stuff in that little bug, none of it comes close to the craziness of "Beetle Adventure Racing" for Nintendo 64. "Beetle" capitalizes on the fascination with Volkswagen's reissued version of the Bug but lets players do things no sane owner would even consider.

Jumps, for instance. The six tracks that make up "Beetle Adventure Racing" are among the largest and most complex I think I've ever seen in a video game. This is no simple racer. Shortcuts and not-so-shortcuts line the marked courses and the only way to win is to know the tracks better than the other guy. Players can choose traditional racing or the much more fun "Beetle Battle" in which racers hunt for ladybugs along the course.

The first to collect six and then find the finish line wins. It's a mad scramble, especially against human foes. Control is fine, and the graphics are great. The music tends to wear thin quickly, though, and it's wise to turn it off and crank up the radio instead. In all, though, "Beetle Adventure Racing" is as much fun as the car looks.

3 Xtreme Players looking for something a little different from the standard behind-the-wheel racer might do well to rent "3 Xtreme," a game that combines elements of sports titles, fighters and racers. The game focuses on extreme sports such as high-speed skateboarding, inline skating and mountain biking. The original extreme-games titles were among the first for PlayStation, and, aside from dolled-up graphics and a few new tracks, it's tough to see where the growth has occurred. Players who have played one extreme title have played them all as far as I'm concerned. Roll down the hill.

Do some cool jumps. Slug the guy coming up on the right. Over and over and over. It might be fun for some and it's definitely worth novices' time to rent it for a night but "3 Xtreme" falls short. Lode Runner 3-0 Parents worried that their kids might be learning the wrong skills and values from video games ought The latest news and information are just a click away.

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One of the original hits on the computer, "Lode Runner" was fun because it was simple. Navigate walkways and blast tiles to clear the way as players collect gold. That simplicity remains in this graphically enhanced version for Nintendo 64. The worlds are in three dimensions now, but they are as deceptively simple as ever. Beating the game requires thought, patience and strategy.

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