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Virtua Racing is a Formula 1 racing arcade game developed by Sega-AM2 released in August 1992 headed by Yu Suzuki. It was one of the first of its kind to use fully polygonal racers and environments, on the new 3DCG board "Model 1". It was later ported to Mega Drive/Genesis in 1994. It is also one of the first arcade games to have a 9 mode (later dropped in Virtua Formula).
The game had three levels, designated into difficulties. Beginner was "Big Forest", intermediate was "Bay Bridge" and expert was "Acropolis". Each level had its own special feature, for example the amusement park in "Big Forest", or the "Bay Bridge" itself, or the tight hairpin of "Acropolis".
An upgraded version (Virtua Formula) was released one year later and was unveiled at the opening of Segas second arcade amusement park Joypolis, a whole room was dedicated to the game with 32 machines. The number of simultaneous players rose from 2 to 8. It used an extra Model 1 board to power an extra screen, used for a virtual commentator ("Virt McPolygon").
Timeline of releases
- 1992: Original Arcade release.
- 1993: Virtua Formula (Multiplayer) Arcade release.
- 1994: Sega Genesis/Sega Mega Drive release
- 1994: 32X release
- 1996: Sega Saturn release (by Time Warner Interactive)
- 2003: Sega AGES Remake for PlayStation 2 released
- 2006: Sega AGES Remake finally published in Europe as part of the Sega Classics Collection
Home console versions
Due to the complexity of the Model 1 board, a home console version seemed unlikely, until 1994 when a cartridge design incorporating the Sega Virtua Processor was created to enable a version on the Sega Genesis/Sega Mega Drive. While technically impressive, it was highly expensive to buy (initially retailed at $100.00) and suffered from choppiness and low polycount. Because of that, this is the only game that uses this chip.
The semi-sequel was Virtua Racing Deluxe, also released in 1994 for the Sega 32X. This was an upgraded version of the Sega Genesis/Sega Mega Drive original which performed much closer to the original arcade, and included two more cars than the regular F1 car. These were the "Stock" and the "Prototype". As well as this it included two more tracks, "Highland" and "Sand Park". Due to the poor sales of the 32X the game was not as popular as the Sega Genesis predecessor.
A Sega Saturn version was released in 1996 by Time Warner Interactive. This version was criticized for not being close to the original arcade, as well as lacking playability.
An improved remake was released for the Sony Playstation 2 in Japan in 2004, and later to the USA, and finally Europe in March 2006 as part of the Sega Arcade Classics collection, a compilation comprised of a selection of the individual Japanese releases.
External links
- System16 - Sega Model 1 Hardware
- Arcade version referenced and shown within this 2002 video piece on the history of Polygon Graphics
1992 arcade games | 1994 computer and video games | Arcade games | PlayStation 2 games | Racing computer games | Sega Mega Drive/Sega Genesis games | Sega Saturn games | Virtua games
"Virtua Racing"