Super Sprint - Amstrad CPC

One of the better racing games on the amstrad. This video is just to show the game maps basicly as there is no ending and it just keep recycling the maps.

Alas it didnt get good reviews at all. Actually it even got a -10% (-2/20) from a french mag :D But it is also a game that hides very well how good it is untill you have played it enough.

Importent to add that this is an arcade conversion as well, so the game is limited to what it may do. Quite a few thing you might think is "bugs" is also in the arcade game .. like you can get stuck beween a wall/door and the tornado being continously whilled around. The chopper is there if your cars should explode (at speed 3-4 you explode hitting walls), but kinda pointless as the amstrad game dont have continues.

Music: The arcade does have quite a lot music as there is a different "win" jingle for every track. Quite basic ones tho, so that the amstrad dont have any music at all isnt that big a deal.

Sfx: Now this is where the game could really have been improved. Sadly the only noise in the amstrad version is that sad engine humm. What made the arcade game so awesome was the lovely and quite meaty pickup noises when you picked up a spanner/bonus. Most importent is that deep bass "bump" noise when you hit a wall .. as the game wasnt build for accuracy when you sat there grasping the stearing wheel and the whole thing would shake when you went bump-bump-McBumpety. Having either tried emulating those noises or just
sampled one of them would have been so worthwhile.

Gameplay: The arcade maps has in most cases been properly converted to the amstrad, but it seems the programmers has been "kind" enough to be a bit creative on some of the more simple looking maps. This definately turn up the game difficulty as all those extra corners slow the player down (but not the AI cars). Just take a look on the 2nd map with the jump and you see it (lucky if you even make it) .. but map 1 and 3 are so easy because of the long stretches and the AI cars never take shortcuts (unlike they do in the arcade). Your car may seem "heavy" to handle at first but once you get proper upgrades like lvl 3-4
traction you can even take all the corners at full speed. You may have noticed that the game menu defaults to 2 player co-up and indeed 2 real players makes it that more fun.

Bugs: The spanners (and oil) spawn randomly & sometimes hidden in corners or "below" walls thanks to the slight scaled design. This means that you sometimes gets "forced" to ram into a wall or pixel perfect drive over a spanner as you can only pick one up if you drive "below" it. Driving into a wall sometimes "auto-help" your by facing your car out .. and sometimes not.

By Activision 1987

Category:

Gaming

Tags:

• Retro
• game
• amstrad
• cpc
• spectrum
• commodore

[khisanth75]

I had this as part of some compilation and as someone else mentioned it didnt get great reviews or anything, but I really enjoyed it. I loved Grand Prix Simulator from Codemasters and this looked better and had a nice feel to it.

Great game.

[CholoCPC]

@khisanth75 Paying full price for this would indeed have been a bit of a letdown, but i think i got it from the "we are the champions" compilation as well, so it wasnt economically bad (even tho i had one of the games already).

[ash81b4u]

I remember the mags not really liking it. Probably worth getting as a budget release and not full price. Not a bad little game. Champoinship Sprint is almost identical I think.

[CholoCPC]

@ash81b4u Truly Championship Sprint was the next "copy and paste" game the series ;D

[Hindleyak]

I don't think it's a good idea to have a motor race when there's a mini-cyclone circling around the track. Or maybe it's tumbleweed?

Anyway, I think this one was worth a go for a while.

[CholoCPC]

@Hindleyak You must be a bit desperate when you start racing during these weather conditions ;D Definately room for improvements too.

[alex76gr]

Epic moments playing Super Sprint came back in my mind.

Never played this one for years!

Great choice CholoCPC!

[CholoCPC]

@Metr81 At least the maps are quite similar. Wish it had been more like the arcade. This game would have rocked it there had been joysticks with "rumble" features, no doubt ;)

[CholoCPC]

@Rintendo64 Indeed, the only thing the engine hum does is make you turn down the volume ;) Might as well been no audio at all and it wouldnt have mattered.

[Rintendo64]

I <3 CPC graphics. That engine hum gets annoying quickly and this runs slowly, glad i didn't get this back in the day.