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Jet Grind Radio (2000)

Smilebit

Expanded Game of Jet Set Radio

Dreamcast

3.71 from 645 ratings

3980 members have it in their collection · 43 playing now · 2313 backlogged · 223 wish listed

How long? Main story 17h · with extras 7h (from 5 logged playthroughs)

The government is attempting to silence the kids of Tokyo, but with their Overdrive Magnetic-Motor Skating Shoes, the cops will have to catch 'em first. The Jet Grind Radio program keeps the kids unified and inspired to fight for their rights of expression, which includes graffiti art. Grab your spray cans and design your own piece on one of the … Read more
The government is attempting to silence the kids of Tokyo, but with their Overdrive Magnetic-Motor Skating Shoes, the cops will have to catch 'em first. The Jet Grind Radio program keeps the kids unified and inspired to fight for their rights of expression, which includes graffiti art. Grab your spray cans and design your own piece on one of the immense walls in the 3D, interactive city. The Western release of Jet Set Radio, titled Jet Grind Radio in North America due to a trademark dispute, expands the game from its original Japanese release, featuring two new characters and a whole new story chapter set in Grind City. The game would also add new music tracks to the North American and European versions of the game that were thought to appeal to each regions taste, including songs by Jurassic 5, Mix Master Mike, Rob Zombie (North America only) and O.B. One (Europe only), among others. This version would later get its own release in Japan featuring all the new content and bug fixes along with the new licensed music from the European release, as De La Jet Set Radio. Read less
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Details

Developers
Smilebit
Publishers
Sega
Genres
Adventure, Platform, Sport
Themes
Action
Series
Jet Set Radio
Steam
View on Steam

Release dates

  • Oct 30, 2000 (Full Release) (North_America) Dreamcast
  • Nov 24, 2000 (Full Release) (Europe) Dreamcast
  • Dec 22, 2000 (Full Release) (Australia) Dreamcast
  • Jan 01, 2001 (Full Release) (Japan) Dreamcast

Also available on

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Featured in lists

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Childhood by tylerisrandom · 92 games · 0

Rating distribution

5 stars
149
4 stars
240
3 stars
191
2 stars
46
1 star
18
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Community All Reviews Statuses

trayson

Status trayson Sep 4, 2025

not nearly as good as the internet led me to believe it'd be. after about 3 hours i still fumble with the unforgivingly awkward physics. spamming left trigger when next to something to spray seems to be what the game expects of me to keep the flow going, but that also cuts the camera directly behind me which breaks my …

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not nearly as good as the internet led me to believe it'd be. after about 3 hours i still fumble with the unforgivingly awkward physics. spamming left trigger when next to something to spray seems to be what the game expects of me to keep the flow going, but that also cuts the camera directly behind me which breaks my flow. and regardless usually it just won't register that im right next to the object or person to spray.

the style and music is obviously great, and im amused by the unquestioned escalation in police (and straight up military) resistance. i love how getting shot with multiple bullets just results in some coughing -- like it's the smoke that's affecting me, nothing else. cartoon logic

but yeah I'll try to finish this cuz it's fun enough i guess. i am starting to reach points where the game's difficulty is growing way faster than my skill level. (and the game is so janky that im not sure if I'll even get better, or just win by trial and error brute force)

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3 Comment Permalink
BMO

Status BMO Dec 7, 2023

Whoa, Sega is working on a new Jet Set Radio, Crazy Taxi, Golden Axe and Street of Rage!

5 Comment Permalink
HolyField

Review HolyField 2/5 · Dec 8, 2021

Too Much Wobble

This experience in Tokyo-To feels more like a dysfunctional tour than a genuine adventure. You first see the amazing backdrops and palpable culture that the game's design and demanding controls can offer, but you don't feel like you're the one it was made for and everyone there is waiting for you to leave.

Personally, I may just not be the …

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This experience in Tokyo-To feels more like a dysfunctional tour than a genuine adventure. You first see the amazing backdrops and palpable culture that the game's design and demanding controls can offer, but you don't feel like you're the one it was made for and everyone there is waiting for you to leave.

Personally, I may just not be the same person who was sold on it a decade ago.

Nothing the game experience meshes with the smoothness shown off by the NPC grinders. Every mechanic includes a quirky reductivity or meticulousness. Races are 'solved' by dashing and jumping repeatedly, combat requires busy work by circling around corners or tanking damage, spraying is too involved for a secondary mechanic, and progression is just every combination of mechanic and limited levels.

Above all, though, Jet Set Radio is Genuine. Its place in Dreamcast history aside, the art is allowed to run wild and it sells no compromises. The flyer did not lie, rocket powered teenagers evading snipers and tanks, it's just not that fun.

Arcade game in spirit, the fun increases with investment. No snapping to grind rails affects a veteran less than a squid and memorized routes hypothetically settles the tumultuous relationship with speed. The music is simply tremendous and the environment and enemy readability could not possibly be better given the discordance and color blasted out of the screen.

I am truly glad this game exists, but the charming vistas lose the fight against distraction. The problems run deeper than just timers and score requirements, but maybe it'll be more fun the next time.

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2 Comment
killerstar

Review killerstar 3/5 · Feb 20, 2021

Love the style and concept, but it controls like shit. I had to bail out during a tutorial that asked me to jump from rail to rail and it was impossible to control mu character not to fall to the water below.

0 Comment
Fugazi57

Status Fugazi57 Feb 5, 2021

Wish there was a mod to make movement more tight.

Does anyone know if jsrf feels better to play?

1 Comment Permalink
killerstar

Status killerstar Nov 29, 2020

I really want to like this game but the controls are really fighting me on it. Jumping is too floaty and completely imprecise. I'm grinding on a rail and want to jump to another, but it's impossible to predict where my character is going to go or land after I press the A button.

0 Comment Permalink
DirtyMidnighter

Review DirtyMidnighter 5/5 · Apr 3, 2020

Video Games Can Totally Define Your Music Taste And Also Not Be Zelda OR Final Fantasy

You probably already heard, but yes, Jet Set Radio is one of the best games of all time. First, because what you're doing in the game (rollerblading around Tokyo, spraying graffiti and battling rival gangs and the police) is the single coolest activity featured in any video game. Secondly, it's visually stunning, full of colorful characters and features the best …

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You probably already heard, but yes, Jet Set Radio is one of the best games of all time. First, because what you're doing in the game (rollerblading around Tokyo, spraying graffiti and battling rival gangs and the police) is the single coolest activity featured in any video game. Secondly, it's visually stunning, full of colorful characters and features the best implementation of cel shading ever. Finally, the music (a frothy medley of outsider rock, pop, hip-hop and EDM) feels like true punk anarchy, laced with the ethos of 90's anime. This game was a true original: Too weird to live, too cool to die.

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2 Comment
MyChaos

Status MyChaos Jan 14, 2020

[Dropped] The first game I played of the series was JSF for XBOX and I loved it. Unfortunately the JSR - although I knew it would be a bit inferior - he couldn't conquer me. Stopwatch games are something I never liked, but worst of all apparently this game has no option to record when the player is in the …

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[Dropped] The first game I played of the series was JSF for XBOX and I loved it. Unfortunately the JSR - although I knew it would be a bit inferior - he couldn't conquer me. Stopwatch games are something I never liked, but worst of all apparently this game has no option to record when the player is in the garage, and for this fail I will not continue playing this game.

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0 Comment Permalink
filmbeats

Status filmbeats Sep 2, 2019

I played the remastered version on PC. Managed to get to one of the last levels but didn't beat it. That part of the game where it seems everybody and everything is shooting at you is really frustrating. The distinct cell shaded graphics and music are super cool. Extremely colorful and stylish. The camera isn't too great and the controls …

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I played the remastered version on PC. Managed to get to one of the last levels but didn't beat it. That part of the game where it seems everybody and everything is shooting at you is really frustrating. The distinct cell shaded graphics and music are super cool. Extremely colorful and stylish. The camera isn't too great and the controls do take a bit getting used to. This is a game that needed the remake treatment for at least the camera. Still I did have fun with it but it was a bit hard to get into at first and when I did get into it, the later levels got too annoying which took me out of the game. As far as names go I prefer Jet Set Radio simply because the acronym JSR rolls off the tongue better than JGR.

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1 Comment Permalink
tylerisrandom

Review tylerisrandom 4/5 · Aug 10, 2019

Hawt Mess

Portrait of Beat, the protagonist of Jet Set Radio

I love Jet Set Radio. Its visuals are so stylish, cool and influential... its mixture of skating, action and graffiti is unmatched... its character designs still feel fresh and unique... and it may have my favorite game soundtrack of all time.

I also hate Jet Set Ratio. The characters accelerate like molasses and control bizarrely, the time limits are too …

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Portrait of Beat, the protagonist of Jet Set Radio

I love Jet Set Radio. Its visuals are so stylish, cool and influential... its mixture of skating, action and graffiti is unmatched... its character designs still feel fresh and unique... and it may have my favorite game soundtrack of all time.

I also hate Jet Set Ratio. The characters accelerate like molasses and control bizarrely, the time limits are too aggressive for how little opportunity you have to explore without something killing you, and tags are sometimes cruelly hidden in locations that are inscrutable from your map.

Both of these sentiments are true, and have been since I first played the game on Dreamcast. The parts I love always pull me back, even though I've only ever finished the game with cheats that disable the time limits. 😅

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8 Comment
TsugaruMJS

Status TsugaruMJS Jun 6, 2019

Honestly I think this game is super cool, but the controls/camera are so awkward by today's standard and it's really frustrating.

3 Comment Permalink
poisongirlss

Review poisongirlss 2/5 · Feb 25, 2019

The Steam port is diabolical and plays like you're swimming in treacle. I'm not sure if this is genuinely what the original game felt like but it renders it nearly unplayable. Get the infinitely better sequel, Jet Set Radio Future, if you need a JSR fix.

3 Comment