Back in the years when Screamer was released, its most serious rival was Need for Speed 1. When you launched the latter, you could tell by the intro and menu that it looked much more beautiful, an impression which confirmed in-game. It sounded better as well with fantastic engine sounds.
Screamer seemed like a typical console game in the derogatory sense of the word. Its unsophisticated guitar soundtrack instantly set the tone. Screamer did not even have the rights to use the true names of the easily recognizable exotic cars it featured.
But as regards car handling and the driving experience in general, the difference was enormous and I found Screamer incredibly more fun to play. It is a highly addicting fast-paced arcade-oriented racer. To go on with the comparison, NFS1 felt like a good-looking and realistic yet rapidly boring simulator.
At the time, Screamer offered an excellent sensation of speed which made it both exciting and exhausting. What I reproach Screamer is the same as NFS4, too much powerslide to negotiate the turns.
Tracks are varied and will let you drive the cars to their limits. It is fun how many clichés you can see surrounding the tracks: jumbo jet, cableway... which is typical of arcade games.
The game is quite hard to finish, and I suggest using a cheat to unlock the awesome bonus car.