OutRun Online Arcade PSN
Partially based on OutRun 2006: Coast 2 Coast, the game contains the fifteen courses from OutRun 2 SP and ten officially licensed Ferraris.[5][6] OutRun Online Arcade also supports online head-to-head play for six players,[3] as well as high definition graphics.[7] To promote the game, Sega Europe held a contest in which the winner of a race would receive a trip to Maranello, Italy, where Ferraris are manufactured.[8] The game was released for the Xbox 360 on April 15, 2009, and was part of Microsoft's Days Of Arcade promotion.[9] The PlayStation 3 release followed one day later, exclusive to the European region.[10]
OutRun Online Arcade PSN
Reviewers' overall impressions of the game were positive. Games Master UK called it a "timeless classic" with a "reasonable download price".[23] GamePro noted the game's high replay value and reasonable price.[24] IGN favorably compared the game to the original 1986 Out Run, adding that it was a great option if "you're looking to waste a few hours drifting".[3] Reviewers were mostly in accord in praising OutRun Online Arcade's arcade-style gameplay.[3][24] They generally appreciated the HD resolutions and the other graphical improvements made to the OutRun 2 engine.[3][14] Game Revolution called OutRun Online Arcade "one of the better-looking 3D games on Xbox Live Arcade and PlayStation Network", citing graphical improvements to the cars in addition to the new lens flare and light bloom features.[15]
Some reviewers complained of faulty multiplayer components.[4][14] VideoGamer.com felt the online portion was lacking considering the inclusion of the word online in the game's title.[4] 1UP.com noted that though the game was worth the price, they would have preferred to pay a higher price to have additional content and a more stable online experience.[14] Game Revolution also expressed disappointment in the fact that game modes and cars from OutRun 2 and OutRun 2006 were excluded from the game.[15]
It's appropriate, then, that SEGA seems determined to keep OutRun alive forever. This Xbox Live Arcade and PSN downloadable is the latest in a long series of arcade and home versions of OutRun 2 that spans the last six years. Fair enough: the second-generation OutRun is an evergreen classic, and a rare example of a perfectly faithful and successful update to a canonical eighties arcade game. It deserves to have its time in the sun stretched out indefinitely, not least because it might end up being the last truly great game Yu Suzuki ever made.
To be precise, OutRun Online Arcade is a conversion of the OutRun 2 SP arcade machine, with its all-new American-themed courses (which were presented alongside the original OutRun 2 set in OutRun 2006: Coast 2 Coast) and slipstreaming technique. Like the previous home versions, the SEGA AM2 game has been ably and meticulously converted by Sheffield's Sumo Digital. Unlike them, it features no cunning challenge or mission modes, no delicious breadcrumb-trails of unlockable ephemera - from new car models to original chiptune music to improbable guest tracks from Daytona and Scud Race - to extend its lifespan and perceived value.
That's a slightly disorientating disappointment, but only at first. True to its price (800 Microsoft Points or 10 euros), its source material, its platforms and its title, OutRun Online Arcade is an arcade game through and through. It doesn't need structural longevity, fan service or feature creep. It needs leaderboards, multiplayer, a sophisticated scoring mechanic, and every second of gameplay to be tuned to perfection. It has all these things.
True to the arcade ethos, everything is unlocked right from the start. You have a selection of ten licensed Ferraris, leaning slightly towards retro nostalgia: the F50, Enzo, 360 Spider, F40, Testarossa, 288 GTO, 512 BB, Dino 246 GTS, 365 GTS/4 Daytona, and the obscene curves of the 250 GTO. They're no longer grouped into novice, intermediate and professional classes, and the performance difference between them does seem to have been evened out, though it was always quite subtle to begin with. That said, the quickest Time Attack times are still being set in F50s for the most part, the pliable and pretty Dino and Daytona still make excellent Heart Attack cars, and the Testarossa's unforgettable flattened-wedge profile and aircraft-carrier of an engine cover still provoke weak-kneed, pixellated nostalgia in men who should really know better. "Tuned" variations (faster, twitchier) are available in Time Attack and multiplayer.
For the first time on PlayStation Network and Xbox LIVE, OutRun Online Arcade delivers online multiplayer racing for up to 6 players, with fast paced OutRun, Heart Attack and Time Attack modes, the draw to the open road has never been so appealing. OutRun Online Arcade on Xbox LIVE will feature achievements and voice; and on PlayStation Network will include trophies, voice over IP and leaderboards. 041b061a72