Considering how great the conversion of Enduro Racer was on the Speccy, I thought Outrun on the Spectrum would have been much better. Instead it was slow and didn't give much feeling of movement.
I'm a fairly emphatic "no" on this one. For starters, I don't think the arcade game is that great; it's just elevated into a bit more of an experience by the fancy cab and graphics that were well above par for its time.
I mostly agree with you. To me, Outrun in the arcades wasn't a great game, it was just atmospheric, and had (for the time) fantastic graphics and sound. Playing it was OK, but nothing special. It was a case of the whole being more than the sum of the parts, but it was lacking in playability, I thought.
I'm not a fan of Chase HQ (or any racing game, really), but yes, I totally agree with you. Chase HQ on the Spectrum was a great conversion, the opposite of the Spectrum's Outrun.
Mind you, haven't there been occasions on other machines when a commercial game has been remade by fans to correct the faults of the official game, such as R-Type on the Amstrad CPC (and also Bubble Bobble on the CPC, I think)? Perhaps someone, or some team, will remake Outrun and the version they create will actually not feel like you're driving through superglue.
It's not a great game really, but it could have been much worse, and I did give it a little more attention than it possibly deserved when I got my +3, and it was a disc copy of the game not a cassette, so no loading times really.
Much like I've said about my disc copy of Space Harrier 2 in the past, if my Outrun had've been a tape I'd probably have hated it?
Back in the day it was brill; now you can understand why people would much prefer other games.
Back in the day, you didn't expect arcade conversions. You had your summer hols at the seaside for a week (or two if you were dead lucky) and in that time you got to play as many of the new arcade games as possible.
When you got back home, all you wanted was something to remind you of those short periods of heaven back in the arcades. As long as it looked similar, and didn't play like a complete dog then you were happy. The great thing about Outrun is that you got graphics that were as good as one could reasonably expect, and the bonus was that you got a recording of the music, so not only did it look like Outrun, it sounded like it too.
Sure, it wasn't the fastest game, but it wasn't slow enough to make it unplayable, and (at least with the 128k version) was free of multi-loads. The odd arcade version was brill - sometimes even better than the arcade version itself. Hypersports, Green Beret, Commando, Bombjack, Enduro Racer etc were all superb conversions, but then again they weren't THAT dificult to copy.
Whereas with the likes of Space Harrier, Dragons Lair, Outrun etc were so advanced that the Speccy couldn't hope to emulate them, so something that reminded you of your time in the arcade was all you could hope for; and this they delivered.
It is a big NO for me but I loved the arcade original so much I was deeply let down by the spectrum version when I played it. I can't believe how finely balanced the poll is at the moment though, 30 vs. 31.
the first rule of a racer is that you should be going fast.
Outrun in the arcade was so well liked because the developers made a fast game with beautiful sunshine graphics and sound
Knowing it was impossible to even try to replicate the graphics and sound of the original, the developers should have scaled everything back until it was fast enough to feel like Outrun: a twitchy reaction racer.
ZX Outrun failed miserably on the first and most important rule. It was sloooooow. Not outrun. Not a racer.
Unlike Dwayne, back in the day I thought ZX Outrun was rubbish, utterly disappointed with it. It was worse than I feared it could have been. (as opposed to Enduro Racer, which most people agree was superb)
I've never been keen on Outrun in any form it comes in. It just never made a satisfying driving game to me. (For driving games on the Speccy, Chequered Flag has it beat. On driving games for any 8 bit, then Geoff Crammond's Revs has them all beat!)
That's a no for me, just look at Wec Le Mans or chase HQ, these are examples of how to do it on the spectrum IMO. :-)
And here's maybe how it should have looked. Smaller cars similar to Chase H.Q... Might not have looked as nice in a screen shot compared to the released version but I think that the impression of speed is what the game was missing most of all.
the first rule of a racer is that you should be going fast.
Outrun in the arcade was so well liked because the developers made a fast game with beautiful sunshine graphics and sound
I never liked the speed of the arcade version. It moved way too fast to be considered realistic. I was very happy that the Speccy version was more tuned-in, and you could, with those fantastic Speccy graphics, imagine whatever speed you liked. The bridges are a pain to get through, as the graphics really crawl there, but I never noticed it back in the '80s.
I played it loads because it's all I had in them days - that and a hoop and a stick. I'd played the arcade version and loved the bright colours, the speed and the soundtrack - all of which were completely absent on the Spectrum but somehow, it was still outrun, as much as Dragon's lair was still Dragon's lair, regardless of no cartoon action and/or laser discs. Also, on my +3, taking this to another level, when you'd multi-loaded in all five stages and completed it, you could do those five stages again without having to multi-load - meaning I actually played it over and over taking the same route to the end. And STILL I played it ad infinitum.
the first rule of a racer is that you should be going fast.
Outrun in the arcade was so well liked because the developers made a fast game with beautiful sunshine graphics and sound
Knowing it was impossible to even try to replicate the graphics and sound of the original, the developers should have scaled everything back until it was fast enough to feel like Outrun: a twitchy reaction racer.
ZX Outrun failed miserably on the first and most important rule. It was sloooooow. Not outrun. Not a racer.
Absolutely right. Speed is a million times more important than looks in a racer, especially since if the game is good then you're too engrossed in the gameplay to look at the game than think "Hmmm, could do with more shading on the left side of that car to give the illusion of shadow". Plus by the time Spectrum Outrun came out, anyone bothered about graphics was slavering over the Amiga/Atari ST screenshots and wishing they had the cash for a 16 bit machine. Us loyal Speccy fans aren't exactly over demanding where graphics are concerned, but we do expect gameplay.
I've never been keen on Outrun in any form it comes in. It just never made a satisfying driving game to me. (For driving games on the Speccy, Chequered Flag has it beat. On driving games for any 8 bit, then Geoff Crammond's Revs has them all beat!)
I've never played Revs, though I played Mr Crammond's Stunt Car Racer and F1GP, both on the ST (both fantastic, I also played SCR on the Spectrum, but it's not nearly as good, as it's another game that doesn't run as fast as I've like, despite being ported by the usually brilliant Pete Cooke), but I have heard of Revs, and everyone who mentions it loved it. What is so good about it, and which is the best version, the C64 or BBC version (or other, if one exists)?
I really should download a BBC emulator, and play Revs, Exile, Repton, etc, and find out if the BBC version of Chuckie Egg is different to/better than the Spectrum version.
This is really depressing; 34 people have voted that they liked Speccy Outrun! Granted only two of them meant to, the other thirty-two misunderstood the question (for example, karingal thought his carer was asking him if wanted a run out in the country), but it doesn't bode well for the future of WOS, does it?
Comments
I mostly agree with you. To me, Outrun in the arcades wasn't a great game, it was just atmospheric, and had (for the time) fantastic graphics and sound. Playing it was OK, but nothing special. It was a case of the whole being more than the sum of the parts, but it was lacking in playability, I thought.
I'm not a fan of Chase HQ (or any racing game, really), but yes, I totally agree with you. Chase HQ on the Spectrum was a great conversion, the opposite of the Spectrum's Outrun.
Mind you, haven't there been occasions on other machines when a commercial game has been remade by fans to correct the faults of the official game, such as R-Type on the Amstrad CPC (and also Bubble Bobble on the CPC, I think)? Perhaps someone, or some team, will remake Outrun and the version they create will actually not feel like you're driving through superglue.
The best bit is the music. The speccy version is ok, but like all versions it doesn't really feel like you're racing, more sliding about on rails.
I'm not a fan of racing games anyhow so my opinion counts for little (no change there then - Ed)
It's not a great game really, but it could have been much worse, and I did give it a little more attention than it possibly deserved when I got my +3, and it was a disc copy of the game not a cassette, so no loading times really.
Much like I've said about my disc copy of Space Harrier 2 in the past, if my Outrun had've been a tape I'd probably have hated it?
In fact when I just played it again.
... the PC version though. Not the Spectrum one.
Coast to Coast is really brilliant, except for the loading times, mind. :p
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Back in the day, you didn't expect arcade conversions. You had your summer hols at the seaside for a week (or two if you were dead lucky) and in that time you got to play as many of the new arcade games as possible.
When you got back home, all you wanted was something to remind you of those short periods of heaven back in the arcades. As long as it looked similar, and didn't play like a complete dog then you were happy. The great thing about Outrun is that you got graphics that were as good as one could reasonably expect, and the bonus was that you got a recording of the music, so not only did it look like Outrun, it sounded like it too.
Sure, it wasn't the fastest game, but it wasn't slow enough to make it unplayable, and (at least with the 128k version) was free of multi-loads. The odd arcade version was brill - sometimes even better than the arcade version itself. Hypersports, Green Beret, Commando, Bombjack, Enduro Racer etc were all superb conversions, but then again they weren't THAT dificult to copy.
Whereas with the likes of Space Harrier, Dragons Lair, Outrun etc were so advanced that the Speccy couldn't hope to emulate them, so something that reminded you of your time in the arcade was all you could hope for; and this they delivered.
Outrun in the arcade was so well liked because the developers made a fast game with beautiful sunshine graphics and sound
Knowing it was impossible to even try to replicate the graphics and sound of the original, the developers should have scaled everything back until it was fast enough to feel like Outrun: a twitchy reaction racer.
ZX Outrun failed miserably on the first and most important rule. It was sloooooow. Not outrun. Not a racer.
Unlike Dwayne, back in the day I thought ZX Outrun was rubbish, utterly disappointed with it. It was worse than I feared it could have been. (as opposed to Enduro Racer, which most people agree was superb)
http://www.assemblergames.com/forums/showthread.php?43088-Cannonball-Enhanced-OutRun-Engine-Released
http://reassembler.blogspot.co.uk/p/cannonball-open-source-outrun-engine.html
I've not tried it, so I don't know how it is.
And here's maybe how it should have looked. Smaller cars similar to Chase H.Q... Might not have looked as nice in a screen shot compared to the released version but I think that the impression of speed is what the game was missing most of all.
I never liked the speed of the arcade version. It moved way too fast to be considered realistic. I was very happy that the Speccy version was more tuned-in, and you could, with those fantastic Speccy graphics, imagine whatever speed you liked. The bridges are a pain to get through, as the graphics really crawl there, but I never noticed it back in the '80s.
Still a top-notch driving game.
I played it loads because it's all I had in them days - that and a hoop and a stick. I'd played the arcade version and loved the bright colours, the speed and the soundtrack - all of which were completely absent on the Spectrum but somehow, it was still outrun, as much as Dragon's lair was still Dragon's lair, regardless of no cartoon action and/or laser discs. Also, on my +3, taking this to another level, when you'd multi-loaded in all five stages and completed it, you could do those five stages again without having to multi-load - meaning I actually played it over and over taking the same route to the end. And STILL I played it ad infinitum.
There's clearly something wrong with me.
People either love it or hate it. Personally, I love it. :smile:
Absolutely right. Speed is a million times more important than looks in a racer, especially since if the game is good then you're too engrossed in the gameplay to look at the game than think "Hmmm, could do with more shading on the left side of that car to give the illusion of shadow". Plus by the time Spectrum Outrun came out, anyone bothered about graphics was slavering over the Amiga/Atari ST screenshots and wishing they had the cash for a 16 bit machine. Us loyal Speccy fans aren't exactly over demanding where graphics are concerned, but we do expect gameplay.
I've never played Revs, though I played Mr Crammond's Stunt Car Racer and F1GP, both on the ST (both fantastic, I also played SCR on the Spectrum, but it's not nearly as good, as it's another game that doesn't run as fast as I've like, despite being ported by the usually brilliant Pete Cooke), but I have heard of Revs, and everyone who mentions it loved it. What is so good about it, and which is the best version, the C64 or BBC version (or other, if one exists)?
I really should download a BBC emulator, and play Revs, Exile, Repton, etc, and find out if the BBC version of Chuckie Egg is different to/better than the Spectrum version.
realistic?
it was ultra-stlyised - wasn't suppposed to be realistic!
No, that's only four, Alessandro. You need more than that for thirty-four.
Speccy Outrun fans, they can't get anything right ;)