Author Topic: Racing, driving, and racedriving (Read 1152 times)

esteban · « **Reply #15 on:** April 02, 2006, 07:02:11 PM »

Quote

Motor Roader II is good.. Futuristic setting almost like F-Zero but in top down view. Nice presentation too but personally I find it too samey to the first game..

Rock on, I think I'm gonna like MR2. I'd be happy just to play new tracks and here some new tunes

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Quote from: "Black_Tiger"

My non-Turbo loving friends and I used to play Motoroader to death every lunch hour in high school until we got sucked into Bomberman.

Although it seems nowadays that Motoroader gets a bum rap online, its still one of my favorite games.

I am so glad to hear this from you (and Keranu), fellow MotoRoader fans! I used to recommend this game (on forums) and it never got any respect! People thought I was smoking crack (or worse)

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Keranu · « **Reply #16 on:** April 02, 2006, 07:43:24 PM »

I was playing MR2 via emulation recently and it's definitely cool, it has a lot more to it than the original.

In MR2, you can choose between a car, a hover craft, and a tank! Each vehicle has three faces to choose from, so this adds more variety to the mix (even though you had a lot more faces to choose from in the original, however that was only for a car). There are also more items to choose from in this game!

The graphics are updated and include some hot anime chicks on various screens and the courses look more detailed and colorful. The game is a lot more futuristic than the first one too, which is cool because the first one was supposed to be futuristic, but really didn't look like it

.

In this game, you can't change the control scheme and so you have to use the default controls which require using the left and right buttons for turning. This isn't bad at all though since this control scheme seemed to be the easiest one to use in the first Moto Roader

. Another update in the gameplay is when a racer falls behind the screen. In the original, it quickly pushed the racer up ahead in first, which takes up a certain amount of gas. In MR2, your vehicle expands some wings and you actually get to control it flying over the cars and land whenever you want to, however the longer you stay up, the more gas it eats. This is definitely cooler looking and adds a little more fun, however I'm not sure if I like this as much as the original's method.

One of the coolest parts about MR2 though is the awesome soundtrack! The soundtrack is extremely unique, it's kind of "wavy" but has such an original rythem to it - I think it would be best explained as the 80's concept of "futuristc sound"

. It sounds great none the less and while the first one had some cool rock-kind of tunes, this soundtrack is an improvement in my opinion.

I'll have to buy this game some day and play it with my bros, because I'm not sure if I like it more even though it has it's improvements. I have to play with my bros to understand how well it is because playing together is what counts

.

And Steve, I've really been wanting to play Moto Roader MC! It looks a little expensive with it being $30-40, but I definitely think it would be worth me getting to try it out

.

Digi.k · « **Reply #17 on:** April 03, 2006, 01:03:18 AM »

Motor Roader 2 has great intro music.

S.C.I. well I think that coulda been better and I not too keen on all the obstructions on the tracks and the road could move a bit smoother..

Also theres Power Drift by Asmik. hmm... To be honest this isn't bad.. has some the sampled voices from the arcade, it does play almost like the arcade.. but it lacks the speed, excitement and the big frills visually of its arcade daddy..and sound and effects are a bit weak too but I blame Asmik for this XD.

nodtveidt · « **Reply #18 on:** April 03, 2006, 02:47:00 AM »

Quote from: "vestcoat"

Fortunately i'm sure it's just a matter of time before some homebrew developers make a bunch of Arcade card racing games that are compatible with the Super Grafx and totally kick ass....*sigh*

Frozen Utopia currently has no plans of developing any racing games, and neither Bt nor Fragmare at Mindrec have expressed any interest either. I don't know if there are any other serious developers, aside from the occasional one-man-army (like Dave Shadoff).

vestcoat · « **Reply #19 on:** April 03, 2006, 06:34:55 AM »

Quote from: "nodtveidt"

Quote from: "vestcoat"
Fortunately i'm sure it's just a matter of time before some homebrew developers make a bunch of Arcade card racing games that are compatible with the Super Grafx and totally kick ass....*sigh*

Frozen Utopia currently has no plans of developing any racing games, and neither Bt nor Fragmare at Mindrec have expressed any interest either. I don't know if there are any other serious developers, aside from the occasional one-man-army (like Dave Shadoff).

yeah, i know. don't mind my wishfull thinking.

esteban · « **Reply #20 on:** April 03, 2006, 07:23:14 AM »

Quote from: "Keranu"

I was playing MR2 via emulation recently and it's definitely cool, it has a lot more to it than the original. ...

And Steve, I've really been wanting to play Moto Roader MC! It looks a little expensive with it being $30-40, but I definitely think it would be worth me getting to try it out .

Thanks for the scoop. Now MR2 its sounding friggin' great! In MR1, the left-right steering is the only way I could play, I never knew anyone who liked to push U, D, L, R to steer.

As for MR MC -- it is a big departure from the previous games, but I'm liking it. I can't say that it's worth paying too much for it, however. I was lucky and got it for $15-20. For that price, it is worth it. Still, I haven't played it enough to form an overall opinion. Once I get further in the game (or beat it!), I'll feel better about passing judgement.

One thing I can say is that racing tiny cars on a one-screen course (a la Super Sprint) is not always as exhilerating as the perspective used in MR1 (since you couldn't see too far ahead in MR1, although some folks might not like this aspect of the gameplay). But MR1 can drag as you complete laps, while completing laps in MR MC seems less tedious. ALSO, some of MR MC's tracks have very creative themes/imagery to make things more interesting visually (i.e. cyborg stage, cute girl stage, etc). I haven't seen all the different stages (I've barely seen any of them!), but I look forward to seeing what the upcoming levels will look like. Kinda like Buster Bros. or Tetris or Klax: all featured a wide variety of different "skins" or backgrounds as you progressed.

STATUS: I find myself drawn to other games, however, and I don't know if this is because MR MC is lacking long-term appeal or if I'm simply distracted.

Keranu · « **Reply #21 on:** April 03, 2006, 09:22:36 AM »

Thanks for the info, Steve. I'll be keeping my eye out for a good deal on it and whenever I play it someday, I'll let you know my thoughts

.

We don't have any racing games planned at Frozen Utopia, however recently we were discussing how it might be cool to make another racing RPG like Final Lap Twin. In my head I am always thinking of how cool it would be to make a racing game with the Arcade Card, but just never get around to coming up with ideas and writing them down.

esteban · « **Reply #22 on:** April 03, 2006, 01:06:08 PM »

Quote from: "Keranu"

... we were discussing how it might be cool to make another racing RPG like Final Lap Twin....

This must be done. I don't think I'm speaking just for myself when I say that cloning Final Lap Twins racing is all that is necessary for the racing game. Improving the RPG quest is where you could really make some headway. FLT had a very basic RPG with very basic graphics and limited text / story. Simply upgrading the graphics and providing a bit more meat to the story / in-game text would make me very happy.

You don't have to create a new formula: Final Lap Twin Turbo can just improve upon the old game. I know that it is not always viable to recycle existing game code, but I'd love it if a guerilla development team took FLT's existing code and tweaked it.

GUTS · « **Reply #23 on:** April 03, 2006, 07:34:23 PM »

Racing games aren't like other genres, they really didn't hit their stride until 3D graphics were the mainstream. All those old 2D racers are just so outdated and primitive I dont see how anyone can have fun playing them anymore.

esteban · « **Reply #24 on:** April 03, 2006, 09:28:00 PM »

Quote from: "GUTS"

Racing games aren't like other genres, they really didn't hit their stride until 3D graphics were the mainstream. All those old 2D racers are just so outdated and primitive I dont see how anyone can have fun playing them anymore.

Ha! I can't always tell when you're joking, but I fear that you were serious when you said this

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I'll never understand this sort of thinking: In what sense are 2D racing games invalidated? Twitch-steering, shifting gears, and strategies for navigating courses in 3D games are NOT fundamentally different than those in 2D games. Arcade-racers have gotten photo-realistic. As for the more technical racing games that try to simulate realism at all costs: they tout fancy physics models, but the end result is that they are simply more nuanced than older games -- yet the fundamental game mechanics of any contemporary game you name are still rooted in the older games.

Are 3D racing games more nuanced and photo-realistic? Yes, undoubtedly. Have 3D racing games expanded and evolved since 2D racing? Yes, of course. But are 2D racing games invalidated and no longer fun? No way!

Rad Racer is still a blast to play, dammit! I guess I'm a dinosaur...

nodtveidt · « **Reply #25 on:** April 04, 2006, 05:14:02 AM »

I still play Final Lap Twin from time to time...I actually dislike most modern driving games as they tend to be VERY boring and offer virtually NO replay value at all. I'd rather play Outrun than some of the newer games...

sunteam_paul · « **Reply #26 on:** April 04, 2006, 05:56:10 AM »

Quote from: "GUTS"

Racing games aren't like other genres, they really didn't hit their stride until 3D graphics were the mainstream. All those old 2D racers are just so outdated and primitive I dont see how anyone can have fun playing them anymore.

Out Run is still King.

motdelbuort · « **Reply #27 on:** April 04, 2006, 06:52:08 AM »

I'm obsessed with the PCE version of Outrun. I like it better than the MAME version and the Sega Classics remake (haven't played any newer versions). When I usually get bored is when you have to buy a bunch of stuff for your car, and that's in old and new racing games.

Most people probably agree that they are obsolete, but I actually like old racing games more now than I did when they came out. Then there's top down racers, which I haven't really played on the Duo, but don't rely on graphics in the same way at all.

GUTS · « **Reply #28 on:** April 04, 2006, 07:12:06 AM »

Ha well I was being kinda harsh, but I was trying to make the point that old racers were probably the only genre that was completely limited by the technology of the time. None of them were even remotely realistic, they all used the exact same type of fake scaling or overhead graphics, and you couldn't even turn your car around in the "3d" view ones. You barely got to upgrade anything, the whole "gameplay" was just know when to let off the gas so your car didn't slide into a tree or sign on the side of the course, and with the exception of the arcade Outrun, the graphics were always terrible and choppy.

I hated racing games with a passion up until I played Virtua Racing and later Daytona USA, then it was like a whole new world opened up, I was totally addicted to Sega racing games. 3D was just made for racing games, I think it's about the only genre that completely works on all levels and fits it like a glove.

Keranu · « **Reply #29 on:** April 04, 2006, 04:02:51 PM »

2d racers rule. The thing I don't like about 3d racers is they can really try to be too realistic. I don't want it to be so realisitc, I would just drive a real car if that was the case.