Tag Archives: Hiroshi Kawaguchi

Arcade, Sega, Sega AM1

OutRunners, Arcade

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OutRunners is the 1993 sequel to the classic driving game, Out Run. It is specifically designed for two player head-to-head gameplay, which is why the game renders two screens – side by side – by default. For the purposes of this article, though, I’m showing just a single screen, because it looks better.

With enough machines, OutRunners could accommodate up to eight players racing against each other at the same time. An online version of the game was also released, allowing players to race each other over the internet, which was revolutionary for the time.

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Arcade, Konami

Crypt Killer, Arcade

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Crypt Killer is a three-player, horror-themed lightgun shooter that was first distributed into arcades by Konami in 1995. It uses 3D polygonal graphics for the backgrounds and 2D scaled sprites for the enemies and objects. In some respects it is Konami‘s attempt at producing a House of the Dead-style shooter, although in my humble opinion it isn’t as good as Sega‘s famous horror shooter series.

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Arcade, Sega

Turbo Out Run, Arcade

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Turbo Out Run (sometimes stylised as “Turbo OutRun“) is the sequel to the classic Sega arcade game, Out Run, and was first released in 1989. The game could be purchased as both a dedicated cabinet and also as an upgrade kit for existing Out Run machines.

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Megadrive/Genesis, Sega, Sunsoft

Super Fantasy Zone, Megadrive/Genesis

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Super Fantasy Zone is a conversion of the 1986 Sega arcade game, Fantasy Zone, re-programmed by Sunsoft and published by Sega in 1992. The game was initially only released in Japan and Europe, but North America did finally receive an official release of the game via Virtual Console in 2008. The game is also included on the Sega Genesis Mini.

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Arcade, Sega

Enduro Racer, Arcade

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Yu Suzuki‘s 1986 arcade game, Enduro Racer, is seen by many as the dirt bike equivalent of Hang-On, because it uses similar technology and graphical techniques.

The Enduro Racer arcade cabinet came in two variations. One was a stand-up cabinet , with motorbike handlebars, and the other was a full-size dirt bike that you could sit on.

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Arcade, Sega

Fantasy Zone, Arcade

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Fantasy Zone is a colourful scrolling shooter from 1986. It was created by Sega and it looks simple and cartoony, but is in fact very challenging.

The main character, Opa-Opa, is sometimes referred to as “Sega‘s first mascot” and is very similar to the one seen in the earlier TwinBee. Both TwinBee and this game have been credited with the creation of the “cute ’em up” genre, and that is probably not too far from the truth.

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Arcade, Sega

SegaSonic the Hedgehog, Arcade

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SegaSonic the Hedgehog is an arcade game from 1993 starring Sega‘s famous blue mascot, Sonic the Hedgehog. It features beautiful isometric graphics and trackball-based multiplayer gameplay.

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Arcade, Sega

Power Drift, Arcade

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Power Drift is a superfast racing game designed by Yu Suzuki and first released into arcades by Sega in 1988.

The game uses high speed scaling effects (similar to After Burner and Out Run) to generate the tracks and the cars on the road, and the speed at which you race is pretty startling.

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Arcade, Sega

Out Run, Arcade

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Sega‘s single-player arcade classic race game – Out Run. Played and enjoyed by millions of people throughout the world.

Out Run was first released in 1986 and took video game arcades by storm with its superfast, colourful graphics, jaunty music, gripping gameplay, and cabinet steering wheel.

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