Reception
According to Atari, Club Drive sold 13,994 copies by April 1995.[44] The game received generally unfavorable reviews.[45][46][47][48]
GamesMaster's Les Ellis found the game very frustrating, criticizing its audiovisual department and unrealistic car handling, stating that "if it wasn't for the two player mode this would be a complete waste of time".[32] Super Game Power commended its multiplayer mode, but noted that the graphics were not the game's strongest aspect.[36] Game Informer stated that "This game will provide entertainment, particularly in the two-player split-screen mode".[30]
GameFan praised the ability to drive and explore anywhere within the different environments, but faulted the game's limited play mechanics, blocky graphics, and controls.[49] MAN!ACs Martin Gaksch considered Club Drive to be moderately innovative due to the ability to drive in any direction, but felt that the Jaguar had more to offer graphically.[34] GamePros Quick-Draw McGraw described Club Drive as an "unusual experience" compared to other contemporary racing simulators, but faulted its repetitive gameplay and "unfulfilled potential".[50] An editor for German publication ST-Computer said the game is fun to play but criticized the visuals.[41] Digital Press' Edward Villalpando said its gameplay was more fun than Checkered Flag on the Jaguar, but commented that the polygonal graphics looked unfinished and the controls were touchy.[39]
Computer and Video Games Edward Lawrence and Mark Patterson commended its graphical department, but criticized its jerky framerate and vacuous gameplay.[29] Ultimate Future Games commended its ideas and polygon visuals, but criticized the dull gameplay and sound.[42] Atari Gaming Headquarters Keita Iida liked the flat-shaded polygonal visuals, but panned its choppy framerate, sluggish controls, and overall execution of the two-player mode.[38] Joypad's Nini Nourdine found the vehicle easy to control, but noted the limited split-screen view in multiplayer.[33]
Game Players lambasted the poor polygonal visuals and stated that the split-screen two-player mode further exacerbated the issue.[31] Video Games Wolfgang Schaedle noted the sensitive controls and faulted its gameplay.[37] VideoGames panned its chunky graphics and frustrating controls.[43] Play Times Stephan Girlich panned the game's low-detail graphics and poor audio.[40] Next Generation was outright critical, lambasting its sluggish framerate, cumbersome physics, and tepid gameplay.[35] VideoGames later named it one of the worst games of the year.[51]
Retrospective coverage
In retrospectives, Club Drive has been listed among the worst games of all time by Electronic Gaming Monthly, writer Seanbaby, and GamesRadar.[52][53][54] In 2002, neXGam also called it "perhaps the worst Jaguar game ever".[55] That same year, Game Informer regarded it as "a pathetic attempt at using polygons to convey realism in a driving game".[56] The Atari Times Jess LaFleur found the game entertaining at times, but criticized its graphics, sound, and music.[57] Author Andy Slaven labelled it as an "awful" racing game.[58]
