18 Wheeler (arcade game)

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18 Wheeler is a 1999 arcade game that placed players behind a life sized steering wheel of an 18 wheeler. The premise of the game was to travel across the country transporting your cargo through various traffic situations, while trying to be faster than a computer controlled rivalling truck.

After finishing a level, the player had to park the truck in a special area during a bonus game. Here points are awarded for leftover time, and how many objects were not hit by the player while maneuvering the rig.

The true-to-life steering ratio combined with the very realistic handling of a heavy rig make the gameplay both difficult and entertaining at the same time. For example, it is possible to "slipstream" behind other large vehicles to gain speed.

Two versions are available, one being the full-sized sit-down version equipped with large screen, and the smaller version which is a stand-up console. The game ran on Sega's Naomi Hardware, similar to the Dreamcast home console.

The game was ported under the name 18 Wheeler: American Pro Trucker to several consoles, including Sega's Dreamcast, Sony's PlayStation, and Nintendo's GameCube.