Neo Drift Out, Visco’s take on rally racing, is absolutely hilarious and I love it.
Una Mattina
Rally racing peaked in the ’80s or ’90s? This is an argument I’ll leave you guys to discuss. I’d say despite the brutal and extreme nature of the ’80s Group B, the ’90s era of rally racing is definitely what I would prefer better regulation and more iconic drivers like Colin McRae and his teammate, current Formula One driver Carlos Sainz’s father, Sainz Sr. (Well, I should admit Sainz Sr. probably has a higher achievement than his also pretty excellent son in his own field.) But I’m more of a Mitsubishi fan, so my vote goes to Tommi Mäkinen.
Such a popular sport, of course game companies would hop on the boat and try to make a game out of it. Well, obviously Sega Rally is probably the biggest representative of this subgenre in racing games — 3D graphics, the soundtrack..but today we are not talking about Sega Rally Championship.
Sega Rally Cabinet
Drive with your stick, no shift?
Well, one of the most interesting approaches Visco took is definitely how they actually just let you drive with a stick. Literally A and B buttons for throttle and brakes, stick for steering — which I actually would argue, for more gamers, a setting like this is easier to get used to compared to a more complex steering wheel system.
Toyota Celica should absolutely join The King of Fighers, lmao
Content
Like I mentioned before, this is a wonderful game for the ’90s rally fan, as the game features three officially licensed rally champion cars: Carlos Sainz Sr.’s Toyota Celica GT-Four, Colin McRae and once again Carlos Sainz Sr.’s Subaru Impreza 555/WRC, and Tommi Mäkinen’s Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution. The stages also simulate actual rally racing stages: European Stage, African Stage, Snow Land Stage, Southern Hemisphere Stage, Scandinavian Stage, and Great Britain Stage. Truly a complete package.
LanEvo is just better, period
The Powerful Neo Geo
Speaking of the game, we also have to talk about the Neo Geo arcade system. People familiar with Unico definitely know our long history with SNK Co. The Neo Geo was marketed as the first 24-bit system; its CPU is actually a 16/32-bit 68000 with an 8-bit Z80 coprocessor, while its GPU chipset has a 24-bit graphics data bus. It was a very powerful system when released, more so than any video game console at the time which can be reflected in the smooth gameplay of Neo Drift Out.
If you happen to have a Neo Geo and a copy of Neo Drift Out, Nova Blast is absolutely one of the best options for you to try out the game. A 26’’ display boosts the exciting gameplay to the next level. I can also prove that the Sanwa stick is not only good for Fatal Fury, but a wonderful tool to help me win the rally race. Not to mention the stereo speakers, they should be a standard when you want to hear the engine roar.