Article 18535 of rec.games.video: Path: uwm.edu!linac!att!ucbvax!cory.Berkeley.EDU!hlee From: hlee@cory.Berkeley.EDU (Han J. Lee) Newsgroups: rec.games.video Subject: Review of Out Run for Sega Genesis (short) Message-ID: <42893@ucbvax.BERKELEY.EDU> Date: 10 Aug 91 03:32:49 GMT Sender: nobody@ucbvax.BERKELEY.EDU Reply-To: hlee@cory.Berkeley.EDU (Han J. Lee) Lines: 52 Well, the release date for this game is August 9th in Japan, but I was lucky enough to get my copy on the 7th! Since just about everyone knows a lot about this game in the arcades, I won't mention any of its mechanics and plays. Instead, I'll give my thoughts on how the Genesis version compares to the arcade's. Out Run for the Genesis is by far the best home version of the arcade Out Run. As soon as you start the game, you'll notice the huge size of the cars, and all of the other objects (such as trees, houses, billboards) passing by. I was really glad that Sega made the trees full- screen tall. But the most impressive feature I found in this game is the field of flowers, desert sand mounds and ocean waves passing along the side. Unlike previous racing games that tried to imitate this feature with some background tricks, the terrains in the MD Out Run are all laid out with sprites. Gateways and canyon walls are also faithfully duplicated in the MD Out Run, and this time, they are also done with sprites, with surprsingly fast speed and smooth "scaling." Most of the "scalings" in the MD Out Runs are surprisingly smooth considering they're predefined images. In fact, you can tell the choppiness only when you're going on a low speed. Another nice touch is that the backgrounds scroll in parallax, so you see the farther mountains move slower than the closer ones. Sega also didn't forget to include other tidbits such as the island in the center of the road in some stages. With all these positive comments about the graphics, I must say that I'm fairly impressed by the graphics. However, the MD Out Run is a big loser in the sound depart- ment. I was sorely dissapointed by the absence of the engine sound. In fact, there're so few sound effects in this game, the sound test shows only 7 of them or so. When your car skids, it makes an annoying white-noise. There's a Dopler's effect when you pass other cars, but it too goes away when your car's making the skidding noise at the same time. Both effects seem to be generated from MD's white noise generator. So this makes one think that all the FM channels and a PCM channel in the MD are reserved for the music. However, it is not! The music sound quality in MD Out Run is only average. They do have rich bass sound, but the samplings aren't too clear as what I expect from an 8 Mega cartridge. In conclusion, I like the Genesis version of Out Run a lot, and it plays great just like the arcade's. But I think it could have been much better if the sound effects were better. Oh, I forgot to say that Sega added one more BGM, called "Step on Beat," so you have 4 BGMs to choose from. ___ Han J. Lee /| /|| |/\ hlee@cory.Berkeley.EDU (Internet) / |/ || |>-| /_____||_|_/ BTW, my copy of Out Run is the Mega Drive version. Sega of America hasn't yet scheduled to release the game here in the States until late this year. (Now I know why Mega Play stated "the sound in this game is spectacular -- it is just a bit shy of CD quality..." or something like that) Article 18640 of rec.games.video: Path: uwm.edu!zazen!uakari.primate.wisc.edu!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!cis.ohio-state.edu!ucbvax!cory.Berkeley.EDU!hlee From: hlee@cory.Berkeley.EDU (Han J. Lee) Newsgroups: rec.games.video Subject: Out Run (Genesis) Message-ID: <42936@ucbvax.BERKELEY.EDU> Date: 13 Aug 91 23:31:49 GMT Sender: nobody@ucbvax.BERKELEY.EDU Reply-To: hlee@cory.Berkeley.EDU (Han J. Lee) Lines: 16 In Out Run for the Genesis, if you make it to the 3rd stage in less than 2 minutes, the spaceship in Galaxy Force II flies above you. BTW, the more I play this game, the more I like it! "Super" and "pro" mode are especially very challenging. Also, the musics are excellent (although the sampling quality could've been better) even though I'm spoiled by the S.S.T. Band version on CD. If you can't get the S.S.T Band version, Genny Out Run's musics are the best thing you can get next to the arcade's. ___ Han J. Lee /| /|| |/\ hlee@cory.Berkeley.EDU (Internet) / |/ || |>-| /_____||_|_/ Article 22157 of rec.games.video: Path: uwm.edu!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!wupost!uunet!iWarp.intel.com|ichips!inews!cygnus!achiang From: achiang@cygnus.intel.com (Albert Chiang) Newsgroups: rec.games.video Subject: Genesis Game Review Message-ID: <7282@inews.intel.com> Date: 7 Nov 91 21:50:32 GMT Sender: news@inews.intel.com Distribution: usa Lines: 11 Game : Out Run, by Sega, for Genesis. Graphics : mediocre, Super Monaco GP is better. Sound : cute background music, but that's it (not even an engine roar). Control : mediocre. Game Play: drive through different desert/tropical/beach scenes and reach check points before time expires; map shows progress after game over. Comments : rented, played for one hour, then boredom killed it. Not worth buying at any price. Not even worth renting. Blah! Albert Chiang | Hate is Contagious.... | achiang@hermes.intel.com | So is a Smile :) | Article 22306 of rec.games.video: Newsgroups: rec.games.video Path: uwm.edu!rpi!batcomputer!cornell!uw-beaver!fluke!fleming From: fleming@tc.fluke.COM (Christopher Fleming) Subject: Genesis: Arcus Odyssey, Outrun Message-ID: <1991Nov12.013141.3141@tc.fluke.COM> Keywords: genesis Organization: John Fluke Mfg. Co., Inc., Everett, WA Distribution: usa Date: Tue, 12 Nov 1991 01:31:41 GMT Lines: 82 After a long run of not purchasing any new games for any of my systems, I finally broke down and bought two new ones: Arcus Odyssey, and Outrun. The following is a brief (hopefully) summary of my impressions for these two games for the Sega Genesis. Arcus Odyssey: -------------- This is a 3/4 view, fantasy shooter/adventure along the lines of Gauntlet. For all of you TG-16 fans, Arcus Odyssey is *very* similar in gameplay to Dungeon Explorer. This is a one or two player game. You can pick one of four different characters with differing attack strengths and magic skills. Along the way, you can also pick up a companion who follows your character around and fires their weapon when you do. There are several different objects you can pick up, including such things as the "doll of life" granting you new life when you die, and the "ring of fire" which creates three balls of fire surrounding you, and do significant damage to enemy creatures. There are 8 levels, some of which are quite long. A password system allows you to save your game at the beginning of a level. There seems to be an infinite number of continues as well. And now for some opinions: The graphics and sound are extremely well done. There is a very entertaining cinematic intro, with a reasonable explanation of the story's background. This game makes good use of multiple scrolling backgrounds, and bright colors. The sound? Well, all I can say is plug it into the stereo and crank it up. This game is *very* fun to play. Again, if you liked Dungeon Explorer for the TG-16, you'll love this one. However, it is way too easy. I finished it in an afternoon, and for $69, that isn't much play for value. It really bothers me to be so critical of the game because it is so easy to finish, and yet it is a fantastic game. You probably should rent this one, or borrow it from a friend before you decide to shell out the cash. Outrun: ------- (Obviously) A port from the arcade (I know I'll get some flames here) classic (there, I said it) Outrun. This is the same game from the arcades, although it seems to have some differences in a few of the road paths. Yes, you and your Testarossa and your babe are cruising in a race against time to get to one of 8 different goals. There are the same porches, trucks, and volkswagons to dodge, along with some very nice scenery to look at (if you can remove your eyes from the road). A level select feature allows many different choices from "super easy" to "pro", varying such elements as the time to beat per checkpoint, and the number of opposing cars on the road. The opinion section: The graphics are pretty good. They are not nearly as detailed as the arcade version, but there is no doubt that this is Outrun. Most of the roadways seem to be identical to the arcade version, and the variation in landscape, and road elevations is really wonderful. Hitting an obstacle makes your Testerossa do cartwheels in the air leaving you and your girl sitting out on the road, just like the arcade version. You can also do 360's without crashing and burning if you only sideswipe other cars or obstacles. Amazing how that red Ferrari never gets a dent! The sound? Well, the names of the background soundtracks are the same (as the arcade version) but somehow, they don't sound all that terrific. 'Passing Breeze' is by far the best soundtrack to listen to. There is also no noise from your engine. That really disturbed me when I started playing. This game *really* needs real progressive controls (ie a steering wheel, and a progressive gas pedal), more so than any other racing game, because it doesn't seem possible to regulate your speed or steering by 'pulsing' the controls. Your Ferrari does not respond to road conditions either. It drives equally well over the sand on the road as the asphalt. I also found this game to be way too easy. Only the 'pro' level gave me a decent amount of challenge. An occasional flickering problem sometimes wipes out the cars in front of you, often producing a fair amount of trepidation when you know there is *supposed* to be a truck in front of you!! However, all my gripes aside, this is still a fun game, one that I will play over and over, because I love how Outrun makes the land seem so 3-dimensional, and flying by those ancient rock pillars at 180mph is really a thrill. This is just one of those games which really needs a bit more graphics power (and another couple of sound channels) to really produce well (hint-hint Sega!!). Again, you'll probably want to rent or borrow this one first before deciding to buy it. I still like it, because I'll play Outrun no matter what the cost!! (can you tell, I'm a die-hard Outrun fan?). As always, any comments, questions or complaints are gladly accepted. And the opinions here are strictly my own. -->Chris<--