Retro Review #1: Road Rash.

Name: Road Rash
Genre: Arcade Racing
Released: 1991
Developer: Electronic Arts
Publisher: Electronic Arts
System: Sega Genesis/Megadrive (although was ported to several systems over the years and spawned a sequel).


I couldn't kick off this series with mentioning a game that still keeps me addicted to this day. A game that's simple yet offers a clearly defined and exciting experience that still, in my opinion, is more fun to play than the majority of motorcycle games on the market today.

It was first introduced to me at a friends house, where I was instantly captivated by the breakneck speeds and the ability to punch your opponents off their bikes (I'm Human, we all have violent tendencies). I never actually owned a copy but borrowed it a number of times. I do own a copy of the Game Boy port, which isn't that much different to be perfectly honest.




The game is made up of five tracks, each more challenging than the other. As you progress through the various levels (racing all five tracks on each level) each track get's longer and the opponents get tougher - having names like Slasher or Rude Boy which are, amusingly, supposed to be intimidating. Yet the tough guy of the first level is a 'gentleman' named Biff. Although he claims to be civilised it doesn't stop him whipping out a baton to whack you with in the later stages. For illegal street racers, however, the charcters are hardly 'hardcore'.



This brings me to combat. Each biker has his or her own health bar which, once depleted, knocks them flying onto the unwelcome surface of pure hard tarmac. The player also has their own which, when empty, an ambulance turns up to amusingly take your bike instead of you, which is probably trying to say that street racing is bad (or maybe not seeing as video games weren't as scrutinised as those 'violent' ones today are). You can show your opponents the dirt by punching them as you ride up beside them. Be warned though, they do punch back and, as mentioned before, some have weapons which you can grab if you time it right (indeed, my sole aim was to grab a baton and use it to knock most riders off their bikes in one or two blows).

You get money for completing a race, which you can then use to repair any damages made to your bike or save it up to eventually buy a new and faster bike. In fact, the aim of the game was to win races in order to buy a faster bike, although you could just cheat by repeatedly racing the same track so you could get a much faster bike to take on the tougher opponents of the next level.



Don't think for one second that fellow racers are your only problem though. Cows, cars, road blocks and trees etc can all send you trying out your latest attempt to fly, no matter how cool it might look. Plus, the police are out on their own bikes to try to nab you speeding down the roads. The frustrating thing here is they only go after you, ignoring the other racers as they attempt to block your path and force you to slow down.

Graphics wise the game looks as good as possible for it's time. The colourful landscapes dotted with a variety of obstacles meant you didn't get bored of looking at the same tracks. How could you get bored when you were constantly locked in some battle anyway? I remember being amazed about the fact you had rear view mirrors showing the track behind you. At that age I didn't notice that they didn't reflect trees and other obstacles off the road, plus didn't give an exact representation of the bends. It was an amazing feat to do this though, and since there wasn't anything better you were constantly in awe.

The music of the game still sparks recognition in me today. Although game music was more or less constant and unchanging in those days (which, come to think of it, is probably why we remember them so well) they were designed in a way that have stood the test of time and inject people with a feeling of retro goodness every time they hear one, such as Mario. For some reason though, banging into the back of a bike sounded like someone firing a gun, leaving me half expecting some deranged farmer to run on the screen with a rifle and blow Biff's stupid smiling face to pieces...ok...maybe that's just the modern day me talking but I had to get those ideas from somewhere.

I think the most disappointing thing is the fact that Road Rash didn't have a two player mode, something me and my brother constantly wished was there so we could punch each other off our bikes every day. Still, people crowding around everytime you played the game more than made up for it in one way or another.

Road Rash is still amazingly fun today and when I loaded it up earlier I couldn't help but smile as I raced along frantically trying to keep control of my bike as the landscape rushed by. It reminded me of a retro Burnout, but with Bikes. Whereas most racing games, or most games for that matter, didn't have a storyline in those days, Road Rash at least attempted dialogue, even if they were pussies. Still, they remain as clear in my head as they did back then and everytime I hear Biff I think of kicking his ass and racing across the finishing line, eager to continue like the CPU riders did, constantly moving in an endless yet fun-filled race.

Final Thought: Biff was so doing Natasha.

Retro Rating: 8/10 (Missed this the first time).

Next Week: Theme Park


Categories: Retro, Retro Review, Review, Video Games