Stunt car racer

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Stunt car racer
Studio Microstyle
Creative Assembly
Publisher Microstyle
Senior Developer Geoff Crammond
platform Amiga , Amstrad CPC , Atari ST , Commodore 64 , DOS , ZX Spectrum
genre Computer racing game
Game mode Single player
multiplayer
control Joystick , keyboard
medium 3½ " diskette , 5¼" diskette, cassette
language English

Stunt Car Racer [ stʌnt kɑːr ˈreɪsər ] (also published under the name Stunt Track Racer ) is a computer racing game developed by Geoff Crammond from 1989. The (for the time) excellent physics engine and multiplayer functionality are remarkable . The game was published by MicroStyle, the British label of the US publisher MicroProse .

Gameplay

The game differs from other racing games as the races take place on an elevated track and nothing protects the player from accidentally straying sideways from the track. Most of the racetracks in the game have jumps or gaps in the lane, which makes it easier to fall off the track. If that happens, the player's vehicle is lifted back onto the track by a crane , which, however, costs valuable time. During the race you can activate a kind of turbo to accelerate the vehicle even more. This turbo mode is limited or limited in time.

The single player mode consists of a league system which consists of four individual leagues with three drivers each (a total of twelve drivers, including the player). There are two different routes in each league, so the game consists of eight different routes. The degree of difficulty of these courses increases from league to league, in the first playable league (league 4) the routes are the easiest to drive. The aim of the game is to become the winner of the highest league. In a season, the player must complete four races, each of which runs over three laps and is only driven against one opponent at a time ( duel mode or 1vs1). The winner of a race receives two points, the driver on the fastest lap receives one. At the end of the season, the league leader moves up a league, while the last one is downgraded a league. If you win League 1 too, you move up to the Super League. This league system consists of the same routes as the "normal" league system, but the opponents and the vehicle engines are much stronger.

The player's vehicle is damaged if, after jumping, the landing on the track is too hard, the vehicle goes off the track, or you drive into the opponent's vehicle. If the damage to the vehicle (represented by an increasing crack in the upper vehicle frame) has become too great, the player immediately loses the current race due to a total write-off. Particularly severe damage (e.g. hitting a wall or falling off the track) also causes holes in the vehicle frame. These holes accelerate the occurrence of a total write-off and stay in the vehicle for the remainder of a season, while the crack disappears after each race.

In the multiplayer mode of the Atari ST and Amiga versions, you can drive against another player. Two computers must be connected with a null modem cable . This even works across systems, so that you can connect an Amiga to an Atari ST.

The Amiga and Atari ST versions had the best graphic display of all versions at that time, while the PC version only offered EGA graphics that were common at the time .

stretch

4th league

  • The Little Ramp (The small ramp)
  • The Hump Back (The Hump)

3rd league

  • The Stepping Stones (The springboards)
  • The Big Ramp (The large ramp)

2nd league

  • The High Jump (The high jump)
  • The Roller Coaster (The roller coaster)

1st League

  • The Ski Jump ( The Ski Jump )
  • The Draw Bridge (The Drawbridge)

development

  • The ZX Spectrum and Amstrad CPC versions of Stunt Car Racer were programmed by Pete Cooke.
  • The version for the Commodore 64 was later adapted to be able to use the game without a keyboard. This version was released together with other games as a module for the C64 game system .
  • From the C64 version an unofficial one was developed for the Atari 130XE , the use of QR codes for highscore transmission is remarkable .
  • An adapted version of the Amiga version called Stunt Car Racer - TNT (The New Tracks) was created using reverse engineering . This modification differs from the original, besides minor adjustments, mainly through different routes.

reception

successor

A long-awaited sequel, Stunt Car Racer Pro , was announced in 2003 but never released.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ http://a8.fandal.cz/detail.php?files_id=7541
  2. ↑ http://xxl.atari.pl/hsc/hsc-stunt-car-racer/
  3. ↑ Geoff Crammond is working on Stunt Car Racer Pro . In: Golem.de . May 5, 2003. Retrieved May 30, 2018.