Formula One World Championship: Beyond the Limit
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Formula One World Championship: Beyond the Limit is a racing game ever released for the defunct Sega CD. As the name implies, the game places you in the seat of a Formula One car complete with multiple teams and opponents, and all the licensed tracks of the series.
Beyond the Limit, as it came to be known, made heavy use of Mode 7 graphics, one of the key features missing from the Sega Genesis/Mega Drive console before the release of the Sega CD. Its main rival, the Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES), made use of the same graphical effects in highly acclaimed games such as the classics F-Zero and Mario Kart and the cult classic Pilotwings. Sega, on the other hand, unable to deliver the same graphical effect on its 16-bit console, made sure the Sega-CD add-on could actually display Mode 7 effects and included it and various titles, such as Sonic CD and B.C Racers.
In Japan, Formula One World Championship: Beyond the Limit was named Heavenly Symphony, a title that for most does not represent the actual game. In fact, the Japanese title for the game was due to the sound of the cars, recorded from actual Formula One machines. One of the programmers, in awe with the results and with the beauty of the engines' sounds, stated that he was listening to a symphony from heaven, thus the name of the game.
[edit] Gameplay
Beyond the Limit was a very complex game for its time, despite sharing some similarities with Sega's own Super Monaco GP series. You started in a test track with a generic car, aiming for a top time in order to receive contract offers from Formula One teams. After accepting an offer, all the races on the season had to be completed and depending on your performance, bigger and better teams would offer you their cars. Race bad, though, and you could even get fired.
The game was very similar in gameplay to F1 Roc: Race of Champions, by Jaleco for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System, which is saying it was very fun and as realistic as it got back then. The full use of the Sega CD capabilities, though, came through the superb sound and music of the game, streamed straight from the CD, and the complex scheme of progressing to better teams and cars.
[edit] Conclusion
As of today, Formula One World Championship: Beyond the Limit stands as a very popular racing game for the Sega CD and one title fondly remembered by enthusiasts of the genre. It made great use of the graphical capabilities of the Sega CD. In the small library of Sega CD games, Formula One World Championship: Beyond the Limit certainly deserves a high pedestal.
