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Cel Damage Overdrive for PlayStation 2
Cel Damage Overdrive for PlayStation 2 turns vehicle combat into an interactive cartoon. You choose a driver with a personal vehicle and race through twelve open arenas filled with ramps, tunnels and hazards. Along the way you collect outrageous weapons, including a giant axe, boxing gloves, rockets and a chainsaw. Cars bend, twist and fall apart like animated characters rather than real machines.
Smack Attack awards points for solid hits and makes weapon choice more important than the finish line. Gate Relay uses the same vehicles for a race through checkpoints. In Flag Rally you collect flags and take them to a drop-off point while opponents can steal your haul. Each arena therefore develops a different rhythm: sometimes you seek a shortcut, while at other times you wait by a powerful weapon or cut off a fleeing rival.
You can play alone against computer-controlled drivers or locally with up to four participants in split screen. Three or four players require a PlayStation 2 Multitap and enough DualShock 2 controllers. Winning matches unlocks additional characters, arenas and vehicles. Overdrive is the European PS2 release of Cel Damage; the later Cel Damage HD re-release has revised presentation and is not part of this disc. No online connection is required.
Region and language
Our PlayStation 2 games are PAL editions and come with a Dutch or English box, unless stated otherwise. By default, you receive the version for the European market. We note it in the product details if the region is different or the box is in another language. In almost all cases, the game is playable at least in English, and often in the other five common European languages too.
Cel Damage Overdrive supports up to four local players in split screen. Three or four participants require a PlayStation 2 Multitap and enough DualShock 2 controllers. These accessories are included only when the product explicitly says so.
Manual
Cel Damage Overdrive for PlayStation 2 includes the manual unless the product title states otherwise. If the booklet is missing, the title says “No Manual”. This lets you see before ordering whether the game comes with a manual.
The manuals included with our games usually contain at least English and often around six European languages. The exact languages vary by edition, so Dutch is not always included. The booklet explains the controls and the main rules. You can use it to check how to control the game, which actions are available and how its different features work.
The history of Cel Damage Overdrive
Toronto-based Pseudo Interactive developed Cel Damage around a driving and collision engine the studio had worked on since 1997. Electronic Arts released the original Xbox and GameCube editions. Cel Damage Overdrive appeared for PlayStation 2 in Europe in late 2002 under the Play It label. It retained the same cartoon vehicle combat, characters, weapons and three match types, adapted for Sony’s console.
During development the project was called Cartoon Mayhem. The studio wanted vehicles to visibly deform and collisions to play as physical jokes. The black outlines and flat colours are therefore more than a graphical filter: axes, hammers and explosions make the cars behave like props from a chaotic animated series. The three rule sets reuse the arenas but keep changing what makes a route or attack effective.
The Overdrive name distinguishes this European PS2 version from the original title on Xbox and GameCube. Years later Cel Damage HD appeared for newer systems, based on Overdrive but with higher resolution and technical changes. Those features are not attributed to this PS2 disc. The physical release preserves twelve arenas, local matches and unlockable content without depending on a modern store or server.
Similar games for PlayStation 2
Twisted Metal: Black also uses armed vehicles in open arenas, but tells dark stories about broken drivers and heavy metal machines. Cel Damage Overdrive chooses bright cartoon colours, flexible cars and weapon gags. Both involve driving, aiming and collecting items; alongside attacks, Cel Damage also adds checkpoint races and flag collecting.
Mashed views armed races from above and keeps every vehicle close together on narrow tracks. Cel Damage Overdrive uses a camera behind the car and allows free driving through open arenas. Both support four local participants and encourage sabotage, but Cel Damage switches between three objectives while Mashed remains more focused on the track and elimination.
Hardware Online Arena combines tanks and jeeps with rockets, mines and arenas, originally with a strong emphasis on network combat. Cel Damage Overdrive is fully playable locally and uses cartoon weapons and deformable vehicles. Both reward knowledge of weapon locations and routes; Hardware feels more military, while Cel Damage is faster and more comic with flag and checkpoint contests.
Motor Mayhem places futuristic vehicles in enclosed arenas where weapons and armour determine the winner. Cel Damage Overdrive shares the vehicle combat but frames it as a television cartoon and offers Flag Rally and Gate Relay alongside direct attacks. Motor Mayhem focuses more strongly on eliminating rivals; Cel Damage varies the match objective.
Buzz Junior: Jungle Party and Cel Damage Overdrive can both be played locally by four players, but require different accessories and skills. Jungle Party uses special Buzz controllers for short colour and timing tasks. Cel Damage uses DualShock 2 controllers, split screen and driveable cars. Both are comic, while Cel Damage offers longer arena matches and direct sabotage.
