Uchuu Race: Astro Go! Go!
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| Uchuu Race: Astro Go! Go! | |
|---|---|
 Title screen |
|
| Developer(s) | Meldac |
| Publisher(s) | KAZe |
| Platform(s) | Super Famicom |
| Release date | JP February 25, 1994 [1] |
| Genre(s) | Futuristic Racing |
| Mode(s) | Single Player only[2] |
| Rating(s) | CERO: n/a (not rated) |
| Media | 8-megabit Cartridge[3] |
| Input methods | Super Famicom controller |
Uchuu Race: Astro Go! Go! (宇宙レース アストロゴー！ゴー！?)[4] is a racing game for the Super Famicom that is exclusive to Japan.
Players who are beginning to learn this game should expect the action to be a combination of traditional Saturday morning cartoons, the Care Bears and the classic Super NES game F-Zero. The game was almost released in North America as Freeway Flyboys by the Seika company; but was eventually cancelled. If the North American port would have been released as scheduled on Nintendo Power, it would have received simple localization because most of the game was already in English. Although the game is in 3D, there is no rotation in the game; giving the feel that the player is racing in a single line rather than a circuit (like in Cruis'n USA). Speeds up to 800 kilometres per hour can be achieved with the speed booster.[5]
Unlike F-Zero, losing the race due to death (falling in pits, running out of energy, etc.) is impossible because the rescue vehicle is always available to rescue players. The services of the rescue vehicle are used when the player is stuck in an unrecoverable situation or when the player falls into the bottomless pit. Around the same year that Uchuu Race: Astro Go! Go! was released, Mortal Kombat II and Mutant League Hockey would lure the majority of gamers away from video games without blood and violence. Players have a choice between a time trial mode and a Grand Prix mode. In the Grand Prix mode, the player is given five chances to get third place or better. Losing five times will ask the player to cheer up, but the sixth loss will lead to game over.
The player's top five total times and the player's fastest lap are stored in the game's internal battery. All 15 courses can be played from the time trial mode, even those that have never been raced on Grand Prix mode. However, the game is single player only because the game couldn't operate on a split-screen multiplayer mode without massive levels of slowdown. Players wanting to learn the controls of the game must either teach themselves through trial and error, learn from other people, or pay a handsome price to have the actual game and an instruction manual (in the Japanese language) sent to them through either eBay or other Internet auction sites.
One of the conditions is that the seller has to permit international deliveries and not restricts his sales to customers who are Japanese residents. Another condition is that the buyer must accept the original game along with the instruction manual as it is unprofitable to send an instruction manual without the actual game. If the merchant disallows international shipping, the only other way to get an instruction manual would be through a Japanese credit card and a valid Japanese address.
[edit] References
- ^ Release date. Game FAQs. Retrieved on 2008-05-09.
- ^ RVGFANATIC. RVGFANATIC. Retrieved on 2008-05-09.
- ^ Super Famicom Central. Tiscali. Retrieved on 2008-05-09.
- ^ Japanese title. JPSnes. Retrieved on 2008-05-09.
- ^ Freeway Flybots Preview. Lost Levels. Retrieved on 2008-05-10.
