An N64 take on the Midway arcade board. Futuristic powerboat racing on spectacular water courses, thirteen boats and twelve tracks loaded with shortcuts and boost. Not the prettiest version, but the arcade punch and immediacy make it a great vent for quick evenings.
Your verdict
Category
Racing1 player3+
Split screen
Description
Futuristic speedboat racing game on spectacular aquatic circuits, ported from the arcade. Published by Midway, released in 2000 in Europe and North America. Thirteen boats with distinct handling, twelve circuits across three difficulty tiers, nitro boosts, and pure arcade gameplay.
Hydro Thunder review
3/5
Art direction
★★★★★
"Polished"
3/5
Music
★★★★★
"Memorable"
1/5
Story
★★★★★
"Anecdotal"
Gameplay
"Excellent"
Fun
"From the very first seconds"
Piloting an overpowered speedboat through rapids, triggering boost pickups and leaping over the waves: the sense of speed on water delivers a big thrill. Finding hidden shortcuts rewards daring and reshapes every race. Spectacular and immediate, this aquatic racer bets everything on adrenaline.
Specific French pressing of Hydro Thunder, distributed locally by Midway France for the video rental chains. This variant inherits the PAL code but carries a Midway France sticker on the cover and a French-only printed manual, without the other standard PAL languages. Its rarity rests on a confidential regional run aimed primarily at rental outlets, a niche document for Midway France collectors.
Is Hydro Thunder still worth playing in 2026?
A N64 adaptation of Midway's arcade unit, Hydro Thunder delivers futuristic powerboat racing across spectacular aquatic circuits. Thirteen varied boats, twelve tracks packed with hidden shortcuts and a turbo system that rewards aggression form an effective arcade thrill. The N64 version is not the prettiest on the market and the frame rate shows its limits, but the arcade punch and instant pick-up appeal still work. For fans of pure retro racing and short multiplayer evenings, a friendly catalogue addition worth a few late-night runs.
