Virtua Racing

Written by Adam Woolcott  on July 12, 2006

Rewind Review: Viiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiirtua Racing doesn't have the same vibe as Riiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiidge Racer

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The Virtua Racing series went under some serious overhauls in the mid 1990's. The arcade racing classic, which was the first racer (I believe) to have polygons instead of sprites, was originally ported to the Sega Genesis, complete with a special chip built into the cartridge to help show off the at the time awesome graphics (not even blast processing could save the Genesis here!), all for the low, low price of $100. And you kids think $50 is expensive! Later, the game was again released, for the aborted 32X - this version actually was outstanding with great graphics and all the gameplay rolled into one $60 cart. The trilogy was completed here, with the only version released for the Sega Saturn - though this is no mere arcade port. Published by Time Warner (why, I don't know - Sega was afraid to publish one of their own games?), Virtua Racing for Saturn is more than just an arcade game - the large set of tracks and races (for 1995, anyway) makes for an involving racer that can last quite a while.

If you so choose, you can leap right into the arcade game, and take control of one of the F1 cars and race, checkpoint style, through an assortment of difficult tracks, on your way to the arcade championship. Once you can defeat this (no small task, as it's very tough), you can move on to the much more involving Grand Prix. The GP consists of 5 racing classes - starting as a lowly go-cart driver, you start off going 90 miles an hour around generic, circular tracks against equally slow computer opponents. Once you earn enough points, you'll be asked if you want to "graduate" to the next class. By the time you're done, you can race viciously fast F1 cars, learning the fine art of driving really, really fast. Each class is tougher and requires more points to advance, meaning you have to start racing some of the more difficult tracks. All the arcade tracks are included (such as Big Forest - the one with the ferris wheel at by the starting line), along with a handful of new tracks created for the GP. It's possible to blast through it all in a day, but it'll be a long, long day until you get good enough to win constantly. If you just want to race, you can just practice, letting you set up tracks, cars, amount of laps, even mix in some AI drivers (known as drones) to practice against.

Virtua Racing is tough. Very tough. As you progress into the more difficult stages and classes (or just play the arcade mode), you encounter smart AI cars that don't make a whole lot of errors, and even slow cars that can really cause you a headache if you accidentally ram into them. Along with the brutal track design, filled with fast chicanes and tough curves that actually require braking, you get a very challenging game that is pretty easy to learn, but very hard to master. It's amazing that such a simple game can be such a challenge, especially in these days where racing games in particular tend to get so complex with pitting, car overhauling, customizing, and all that. Virtua Racing is definitely old-school in every way.

As always for Sega's arcade racers, the cars control very well once you get a handle on them. The real art of the control is mastering each turn - with practice (which can also read: screwing up a lot) you'll know exactly how to enter a turn, how much you should brake, or even whether you just find the racing line and blow through without taking your finger off the C button. Once you do figure it out, the game suddenly changes, and you can march on to victory, long as you don't get entangled with other AI cars, who can really ruin your day if they get in your way, hey hey hey, I'm rhymin' today. Virtua Racing is incredibly deceptive, in nearly every possible category.

Of course, back in the old days, VR's graphics were a huge selling point. Today...well...they kinda suck. It's amazing how something that looked "realistic" in 1994-95 looks so hideous today. Anyway, VR's graphics aren't really Saturn quality (seriously, this is not an oxymoron), but more of an arcade perfect port that wasn't enhanced much. As such, you get the blocky polygons and crude designs of the tracks that don't display a whole lot of colors. It's also these graphics that can make the tracks tough - the jagged edges and overall look of the game can throw off turns or play tricks on your mind, leading to mistakes. Just another thing to overcome in VR. On the bright side, the sense of speed is awesome, especially when taking fast corners - it actually feels like you just might lose control if you don't slow down a bit. Other than that, stuff just whizzes by, and even the 90 MPH cart races feel super-fast. Compromise, anyone? Ugly graphics vs. sense of speed; dunno about you, but I'll take the speed. That's why we play racing games, after all.

VR is rounded out with the classic sounds. Though very reserved and only coming along when you reach a checkpoint, the music is all there from the arcade game - all the classic tunes, playable in about 5 second format, are great. Other than that, the game is subdued with just the engines purring and the sound of your tires screeching around turns when you hit the brakes. As a bonus though, you can pop your VR disc into either a CD player or your Saturn after turning it on, and listen to redbook audio of VR's classic tunes. 'Twas a pleasant surprise when I came across that recently.