Game Details
| Size | 101 MB |
| Region | USA |
| Genre | Action, |
| Format | 7z / BIN |
| Year | January 1998 |
| Console | PSX |
Auto Destruct (1998) is a hidden gem of the late-90s 3D vehicular combat craze on the PlayStation 1. Developed by the Swedish studio Neurostone and published by Electronic Arts, it arrived alongside iconic car-based titles like Twisted Metal and Vigilante 8.
However, rather than focusing on an arena-based demolition derby, Auto Destruct sets itself apart by dropping players into fully 3D, freely roamable city environments to complete high-stakes tactical combat operations.
Story & Premise: Vengeance on Four Wheels
The game follows a grim, cinematic revenge narrative. You take on the role of Booth, a former professional racing driver whose life is instantly shattered when a chaotic, apocalyptic terrorist cult known as the Lazarus Cult murders his wife and daughter in a senseless attack.
An Underground Alliance: Consumed by grief and a burning desire for retribution, Booth is recruited by a mysterious, highly funded underground organization that wants to wipe out the cultists. They supply Booth with a heavily armored, high-tech sports car equipped with a staggering array of heavy military weaponry. Operating as a vigilante clean-up crew, Booth must take to the city streets to systematically hunting down every last member of the cult.
Back Cover Description
CRUSH THE CULT FROM BEHIND THE WHEEL!
Your family was murdered by a nihilistic cult. Driven by revenge, you join a mysterious underground order to even the score. Your mission: fire up your killer ride, load up on devastating weapons, and drive the cultists out of town!
- Non-Stop Action: Battle through highly detailed, fully 3D interactive cities filled with traffic, pedestrians, and ruthless targets!
- Massive Weapon Arsenal: Outfit your vehicle with guided missiles, heavy machine guns, oil slicks, and devastating plasma cannons.
- Dynamic Multi-Task Missions: Engage in intense search-and-destroy, escort, and high-speed delivery operations against a relentless enemy!
Key Gameplay Features
- Open 3D City Environments: The game engine was highly impressive for 1998, featuring fully detailed 3D cities—including London, Tokyo, and San Francisco—that players can freely navigate without being locked onto rigid paths.
- Multi-Stage Mission Architecture: Missions are highly dynamic and rarely stay the same from start to finish. You might begin an operation tracking down a rogue van, only to receive a live update mid-mission forcing you to intercept a bomb threat, escort a local politician, or scramble to a repair station before a timer expires.
- Resource Management HUD: Success requires balancing more than just health. Players must keep a close eye on their Fuel Gauge and Ammunition Stocks. Defeating cultist cars drops resource pickups, but players must also locate hidden service stations scattered throughout the maps to refuel and rearm during lengthy skirmishes.
- Full Audio Briefings: To elevate its spy-thriller atmosphere, every single level opens with a fully voiced audio briefing. Additionally, your operator continuously updates you with live voice commands through the radio as situational threats change on the fly.
Short Review: High-Octane Urban Warfare
The Good
- Fantastic Mission Variety: Moving past simple “kill everything on screen” gameplay loops, the varied objectives—such as tailing targets, defusing active traps, and running timed deliveries—keep the campaign consistently engaging.
- Gratifying Car Physics: The vehicle models maintain an excellent weight distribution. Sliding around sharp urban street corners while trading machine-gun fire with cultists feels fluid and satisfying.
The Bad
Severe Late-Game Difficulty Spikes: Later stages introduce suicidal cult vehicles that aggressively ram your car, rapidly draining your defensive shields and fuel reserves if you aren’t perfectly executing your evasive maneuvers.
Punishing Navigation Friction: Because the HUD tracking radar is highly primitive, navigating unfamiliar city grids under tight time constraints can occasionally result in getting turned around or lost down dead-ends.
Screenshots
