''Road Rash'' is a 1991
racing
In sport, racing is a competition of speed, in which competitors try to complete a given task in the shortest amount of time. Typically this involves traversing some distance, but it can be any other task involving speed to reach a specific goa ...
and
vehicular combat
Vehicular combat games (also known as just vehicular combat or car combat) are a sub-genre of vehicle simulation video games where the primary objectives of gameplay include vehicles armed with weapons attempting to destroy vehicles controlled b ...
video game originally developed and published by
Electronic Arts
Electronic Arts Inc. (EA) is an American video game company headquartered in Redwood City, California. Founded in May 1982 by Apple employee Trip Hawkins, the company was a pioneer of the early home computer game industry and promoted the d ...
(EA) for the
Sega Genesis
The Sega Genesis, known as the outside North America, is a 16-bit Fourth generation of video game consoles, fourth generation home video game console developed and sold by Sega. It was Sega's third console and the successor to the Master Syst ...
. It was subsequently ported to a variety of contemporary systems by differing companies. The game is centered around a series of
motorcycle
A motorcycle (motorbike, bike, or trike (if three-wheeled)) is a two or three-wheeled motor vehicle steered by a handlebar. Motorcycle design varies greatly to suit a range of different purposes: long-distance travel, commuting, cruising ...
races throughout
California
California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...
that the player must win to advance to higher-difficulty races, while engaging in unarmed and armed combat to hinder the other racers.
''Road Rash'' was one of the first games conceived by EA following the company's decision to begin developing games internally. The game's programmers Dan Geisler and Carl Mey were hired by EA to create a banked road effect for ''
Mario Andretti Racing'', then being developed as an
NES
The Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) is an 8-bit third-generation home video game console produced by Nintendo. It was first released in Japan in 1983 as the commonly known as the The NES, a redesigned version, was released in American ...
title. When the NES hardware proved incapable of rendering the desired effect, focus shifted to a motorcycle racing game for the more powerful Sega Genesis. The game includes combat elements that were inspired by the violent behavior of
Grand Prix motorcyclists during races, and the resulting uncertainty surrounding the game's genre created conflict between EA's development team and management.
''Road Rash'' was released to critical and commercial success, and was EA's most profitable title to date. The original version for the Sega Genesis was particularly acclaimed for its violent and aggressive gameplay and the convincing sense of speed in its graphics. The game is the debut installment of the ''
Road Rash
Road rash is a colloquial term for skin injury caused by abrasion with road surfaces, often as a consequence of cycling and motorcycling accidents. It may also result from running, inline skating, roller skating, skateboarding, and longboardi ...
'' series, and was followed by a number of sequels made for various consoles.
Gameplay
''Road Rash'' puts the player in control of a motorcycle racer who must finish in fourth place or higher among fourteen other racers; the player advances throughout the game's five
levels
Level or levels may refer to:
Engineering
*Level (instrument), a device used to measure true horizontal or relative heights
*Spirit level, an instrument designed to indicate whether a surface is horizontal or vertical
*Canal pound or level
*Regr ...
by winning five races on each level.
[''Road Rash'' (Genesis) instruction manual, p. 13] The game is primarily single-player, but allows for two players to
play intermittently against each other.
[''Road Rash'' (Genesis) instruction manual, pp. 12–13] The game's races take place in a number of
California
California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...
n settings, including
Grass Valley
A grass valley (also vega and valle) is a meadow located within a forested and relatively small drainage basin such as a headwater. Grass valleys are common in North America, where they are created and maintained principally by the work of b ...
, the
Sierra Nevada
The Sierra Nevada () is a mountain range in the Western United States, between the Central Valley of California and the Great Basin. The vast majority of the range lies in the state of California, although the Carson Range spur lies primarily ...
,
Napa Valley
Napa Valley is an American Viticultural Area (AVA) located in Napa County in California's Wine Country. It was established by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF) on January 27, 1981. Napa Valley is considered one of the premier ...
and the
Pacific Coast Highway.
[''Road Rash'' (Genesis) instruction manual, pp. 17–18] During a race, the racer can brake, accelerate, and attack neighboring opponents. The racer will punch at the nearest opponent with a default input, while holding a directional button during the input will result in either a backhand or a kick. Some opponents wield clubs, which can be taken and used by the racer if the opponent is attacked as they are holding the club out to strike.
[''Road Rash'' (Genesis) instruction manual, pp. 10–12] The racer can be ejected from their bike if they crash into an obstacle (such as cows, deer, cars and trees
[''Road Rash'' (Genesis) instruction manual, pp. 18–19]) or if they run out of
stamina (shown in the bottom-left corner of the screen) due to fights with opponents.
[''Road Rash'' (Genesis) instruction manual, pp. 9–10] In this event, the racer will automatically run back toward their bike, though the player can alter their course and avoid incoming traffic with the directional buttons, or stand still by holding the brake input button.
Opponents will likewise be ejected from their bike if their own stamina is depleted; the stamina of the nearest opponent is visible within the bottom-right corner of the screen.
The racer begins the game with $1,000 and earns cash prizes for each successful race.
[''Road Rash'' (Genesis) instruction manual, pp. 19–20] Between races, the player can access a shop and view several bikes of differing weights, speeds and steering capabilities, and the player may purchase a new bike with the money they have accumulated.
[''Road Rash'' (Genesis) instruction manual, pp. 16–17] The player will receive a password at the end of a successful race, which can be entered at a password entry screen in a subsequent session to maintain the player's progress;
[''Road Rash'' (Genesis) instruction manual, pp. 14–15] The player will advance to the next level after winning a race on all five of the game's tracks.
The player wins the game by winning a race on each track in all five levels.
The bike has its own "damage meter" between the racer's and opponents' stamina meters, which decreases every time the racer suffers a crash. The bike will be wrecked if the meter fully depletes, which ends the player's participation in the current race and deducts the cost of a repair bill from the racer's balance.
Motor officers make sporadic appearances throughout the game's tracks, and can also end the player's participation if they apprehend the racer following a crash, which deducts the cost of a fine from their balance. If the racer lacks the funds to cover either a repair bill or a fine, the game will
end prematurely.
Development and release
Conception and early development
''Road Rash'' was one of the first titles conceived by EA after they made the decision to begin developing video games in-house; until that point, EA had previously outsourced video game development to external studios, and were primarily focused on
PC games due to the effects of the
video game crash of 1983
The video game crash of 1983 (known as the Atari shock in Japan) was a large-scale recession in the video game industry that occurred from 1983 to 1985, primarily in the United States. The crash was attributed to several factors, including ma ...
.
In its tentative steps back into the console market, EA focused on genres that were determined to be strategic, namely
sports
Sport pertains to any form of competitive physical activity or game that aims to use, maintain, or improve physical ability and skills while providing enjoyment to participants and, in some cases, entertainment to spectators. Sports can, th ...
and
racing
In sport, racing is a competition of speed, in which competitors try to complete a given task in the shortest amount of time. Typically this involves traversing some distance, but it can be any other task involving speed to reach a specific goa ...
titles. Preliminary development began on an
NES
The Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) is an 8-bit third-generation home video game console produced by Nintendo. It was first released in Japan in 1983 as the commonly known as the The NES, a redesigned version, was released in American ...
title named ''
Mario Andretti Racing'', and programmer Dan Geisler was hired by the company at this time.
Technical director Carl Mey, who had just been laid off from
Epyx
Epyx, Inc. was a video game developer and publisher active in the late 1970s and 1980s. The company was founded as Automated Simulations by Jim Connelley and Jon Freeman, originally using Epyx as a brand name for action-oriented games before rena ...
following its bankruptcy, was also hired by EA and was given his first major project of creating a "banked road" effect for the game. Mey soon realized that while the NES was capable of road-scaling effects, banking would be beyond the console's ability.
Producer and designer Randy Breen, who was previously involved with ''
Indianapolis 500: The Simulation'', was influenced by the difficulty and tedium of that title to create a racing game with more accessibility and entertainment value.
Because ''Andretti'' was set to follow a similar formula to ''Indianapolis 500'', Geisler, Breen, May and co-designer Walter Stein began a brainstorming session for a different type of racing game that would not necessarily adhere to realism. After Mey and Geisler rejected
QuadRunners as potential racing vehicles due to ''Andrettis dirt track setting, Breen suggested motorcycles.
Breen recounted: "I'd been into motorcycles for a long time, and we quickly realized bikes gave us lots of technical advantages. For instance, we could put more bikes than cars onscreen at once, and the bikers were more visible than car drivers, so they could be more expressive".
The game's title originated from Breen reminiscing to the group about riding his own bike on
Mulholland Drive
Mulholland Drive is a street and road in the eastern Santa Monica Mountains of Southern California. It is named after pioneering Los Angeles civil engineer William Mulholland. The western rural portion in Los Angeles and Ventura Counties is nam ...
to meet with friends and thinking to himself: "Man, if you wiped out here, you'd get some serious
road rash
Road rash is a colloquial term for skin injury caused by abrasion with road surfaces, often as a consequence of cycling and motorcycling accidents. It may also result from running, inline skating, roller skating, skateboarding, and longboardi ...
". Geisler suggested the title ''Road Rash on Mulholland Drive'', and Breen used the name to pitch the concept to EA. The title was eventually shortened to ''Road Rash'', and development moved from the NES to the recently introduced Sega Genesis, which was powerful enough to generate the desired road effects.
![Sega-Genesis-Mod1-Bare](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c2/Sega-Genesis-Mod1-Bare.jpg)
Before joining EA, Geisler had worked on
Spectrum HoloByte's racing game ''
Vette!
''Vette!'' is a 1989 racing video game published by Spectrum Holobyte for MS-DOS compatible operating systems in 1989. Macintosh and NEC PC-9801 ports followed. The objective is to race a Chevrolet Corvette through the streets of San Francisco. ...
''; Geisler's coding for this title provided the framework for ''Road Rash'', particularly its algorithm for estimating road curvature. Geisler claimed that the Genesis's memory capacity could have allowed him to create 802 miles of unique roads, and that he could have accurately mapped out the entire coast of California. The road effect for ''Road Rash'' took Geisler about six months to create, comprising a large portion of the game's early development.
3D-rendering technology for the game was adapted from the Genesis version of ''
Blockout
''Blockout'' is a puzzle video game published in 1989 by California Dreams. It was developed in Poland by Aleksander Ustaszewski and Mirosław Zabłocki. American Technos published an arcade version. ''Blockout'' is an unlicensed, 3D version of ...
'', which was in development at the same time.
Lead artist Arthur Koch was brought onto the development team after the project was well underway, and he was tasked with training the other artists on using EA's in-house tools and conforming to the Genesis's 64-color palette, which Koch stated "was hard for a lot of artists to grasp".
Several months into development, EA made the decision to promote ''Road Rash'' at the 1990
Consumer Electronics Show
CES (; formerly an initialism for Consumer Electronics Show) is an annual trade show organized by the Consumer Technology Association (CTA). Held in January at the Las Vegas Convention Center in Winchester, Nevada, United States, the event typi ...
as a show of support for the Sega Genesis.
This initial demonstration proved unsatisfactory; as Breen recalled: "We struggled to maintain a reasonable frame rate and the animations weren't effective".
Mey also had concerns with "the very tame, almost
Disney
The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on October ...
-like view of the
AMA, and Randy's desire to make it a 'go anywhere'-style game". He remarked that the development team would refer to the game as "Randy's Sunday Ride" behind his back, and that "we all knew ''Road Rash'' needed more balls to sell than a simulation of someone following the speed limit".
Following the show, the game needed to be re-pitched twice to avoid cancellation,
and the team was given an additional six months to improve the game.
Revamp and release
Mey requested to EA producer
Richard Hilleman
Richard Hilleman is an American computer game and video game producer best known for his work creating the original Madden Football game for video game consoles for Electronic Arts. Apart from ''Madden'', Hilleman was a key figure in building t ...
that he be given creative control over the gameplay on the grounds that he "wanted to make the game kick ass", to which Hilleman agreed.
Over the following months, Geisler and Stein improved the game's performance, and Connie Braat refined the animation. To increase the player's sense of immersion, the rival racers were given individual names and characters, and would deliver banter in between races.
The motor officers who pursue the player and arrest them if they crash were added to the game to create tension. To obtain reference material, Koch went to a local police department and convinced a motor officer to pose for photographs. The wipe-out animations were brought about by Koch's previous work on ''
John Madden Football
''Madden NFL'' (known as ''John Madden Football'' until 1993) is an American football video game series developed by EA Tiburon for EA Sports. It is named after Pro Football Hall of Fame coach and commentator John Madden and sold more than 130 m ...
'' and ''
Lakers versus Celtics and the NBA Playoffs
''Lakers versus Celtics and the NBA Playoffs'' is a basketball video game developed and released by Electronic Arts. It was first released in 1989 for MS-DOS-compatible PCs and for the Mega Drive/Genesis in 1991. The game was highly successful; it ...
''; on the subject, Koch said: "I was disappointed with the tackles and the falls and the fouls. I thought they could be a lot more dynamic. So I suggested that we devote more frames of animation to the crashes". Breen cited additional influence from ''
Wile E. Coyote and the Road Runner
Wile E. Coyote and the Road Runner are a duo of cartoon characters from the ''Looney Tunes'' and ''Merrie Melodies'' series of animated cartoons, first appearing in 1949 in the theatrical cartoon short '' Fast and Furry-ous''. In each episode, ...
'' and "other cartoons where the villain gets beat up", adding that "even though it set you back, it was still fun to watch".
The combat element of the game was inspired by the behavior of
Grand Prix motorcyclists, who Breen noticed would sometimes shove and kick each other during races.
Other influences on this aspect include the biker gang action scenes in ''
Akira'' and the tire pump scene in ''
Breaking Away
''Breaking Away''
is a 1979 American coming of age comedy-drama film produced and directed by Peter Yates and written by Steve Tesich. It follows a group of four male teenagers in Bloomington, Indiana, who have recently graduated from high sc ...
''.
While working on the game's combat system, Mey and Geisler set a "no projectiles" rule, as such elements were a major issue in game engines that ran based on the frame rate.
The introduction of fighting elements served to muddy the game's genre classification among EA's management, as they primarily specialized in simulation games and were uncertain how to market a title that was simultaneously a fighting and a racing game. Geisler named ''
Hang-On
is an arcade racing game released by Sega in 1985 and later ported to the Master System. In the game, the player controls a motorcycle against time and other computer-controlled bikes. It was one of the first arcade games to use 16-bit graphi ...
'' as an influence in the game's direction, saying that "''Hang-On'' before us was a game I liked, but I thought it was limited – no hills, no punching, no kicking. I respect
Yu Suzuki
is a Japanese game designer, producer, programmer, and engineer, who headed Sega's AM2 team for 18 years. Considered one of the first auteurs of video games, he has been responsible for a number of Sega's arcade hits, including three-dimensional ...
, but I had it in my mind that this was going to make ''Hang-On'' obsolete. And I think we kind of accomplished that".
Due to the game's violent content, EA was unable to secure official licenses from existing manufacturers, and so created soundalike brands in their place; "Panda", "Shuriken", "Kamikaze" and "Diablo" are respectively derived from
Honda
is a Japanese public multinational conglomerate manufacturer of automobiles, motorcycles, and power equipment, headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan.
Honda has been the world's largest motorcycle manufacturer since 1959, reaching a product ...
,
Suzuki
is a Japan, Japanese multinational corporation headquartered in Minami-ku, Hamamatsu, Japan. Suzuki manufactures automobiles, motorcycles, All-terrain vehicle, all-terrain vehicles (ATVs), outboard motor, outboard marine engines, wheelchairs ...
,
Kawasaki and
Ducati
Ducati Motor Holding S.p.A. () is the motorcycle-manufacturing division of Italian company Ducati, headquartered in Bologna, Italy. The company is directly owned by Italian automotive manufacturer Lamborghini, whose German parent company is Au ...
.
The game's roads were modeled by a crew led by and made use of
Bézier curve
A Bézier curve ( ) is a parametric curve used in computer graphics and related fields. A set of discrete "control points" defines a smooth, continuous curve by means of a formula. Usually the curve is intended to approximate a real-world shape t ...
s. Breen claimed that the final road effect made some players
vomit
Vomiting (also known as emesis and throwing up) is the involuntary, forceful expulsion of the contents of one's stomach through the mouth and sometimes the nose.
Vomiting can be the result of ailments like food poisoning, gastroenteriti ...
from
motion sickness
Motion sickness occurs due to a difference between actual and expected motion. Symptoms commonly include nausea, vomiting, cold sweat, headache, dizziness, tiredness, loss of appetite, and increased salivation. Complications may rarely include d ...
, to which he yelled out "Great. I've finally made a game that makes people puke!" Simultaneous multiplayer, which would become a common feature of subsequent ''Road Rash'' titles, was not yet possible due to the CPU power consumed by the game's road effect.
The game's music was composed by
Rob Hubbard
Rob Hubbard (born 1955 in Kingston upon Hull, England) is a British composer best known for his musical and programming work for microcomputers of the 1980s, such as the Commodore 64.
Early life
Hubbard first started playing music at age seve ...
.
[''Road Rash'' (Genesis) instruction manual, p. 24] ''Road Rash'' was Hubbard's second motorcycle-based game following the 1985
Mastertronic
Mastertronic was originally a publisher and distributor of low-cost computer game software founded in 1983. Their first games were distributed in mid-1984. At its peak the label was one of the largest software publishers in the UK, achieved b ...
title ''
Action Biker
''Action Biker'' (also known as ''KP Skips Action Biker with Clumsy Colin'' in the UK) is a 1985 game for the Atari 8-bit family, Commodore 64, and ZX Spectrum released by Mastertronic. The game was a tie-in with snack food KP Skips, whose ...
''.
The development of ''Road Rash'' spanned a total of approximately 21 months.
Breen took advantage of EA's policy of not crediting producers on box art by removing Mey's name and inserting his own. This incident led to EA abolishing the practice of box-printed credits altogether. Mey would be presented with EA's in-house "Fireman of the Year" award, an accolade given to employees with the most impact on troubled projects.
The Genesis version was publicly announced in March 1991 and released in North America in September 1991. The Amiga version was developed by Peakstar Software, featured music composed by Jason A.S. Whitely, and was released in December 1992.
''Road Rash'' was converted for the
Game Gear
The is an 8-bit fourth generation handheld game console released by Sega on October 6, 1990, in Japan, in April 1991 throughout North America and Europe, and during 1992 in Australia. The Game Gear primarily competed with Nintendo's Game Boy, ...
and
Master System
The is an 8-bit
third-generation home video game console manufactured by Sega. It was originally a remodeled export version of the Sega Mark III, the third iteration of the SG-1000 series of consoles, which was released in Japan in 1985 and ...
by Gary Priest of
Probe Software
Acclaim Entertainment was an American video game publisher from Long Island, active from 1987 until filing for Chapter 7 bankruptcy on September 1, 2004. Through a series of acquisitions between 1990 and 2002, Acclaim built itself a large portfol ...
, with music adapted by Greg Michael.
[''Road Rash'' (Game Gear/Master System) opening credits] These versions were released in March 1994.
The Game Boy version was published by
Ocean Software
Ocean Software Ltd was a British software development company that became one of the biggest European video game developers and video game publisher, publishers of the 1980s and 1990s.
The company was founded by David Ward and Jon Woods and wa ...
and released in June 1994.
In April 1996,
THQ
THQ Inc. was an American video game company based in Agoura Hills, California. It was founded in April 1990 by Jack Friedman, originally in Calabasas, and became a public company the following year through a reverse merger takeover. Initi ...
announced that it would publish a
Super NES
The Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES), commonly shortened to Super NES or Super Nintendo, is a 16-bit home video game console developed by Nintendo that was released in 1990 in Japan and South Korea, 1991 in North America, 1992 in E ...
version of ''Road Rash'' for a Christmas 1996 release that ultimately did not materialize. The Genesis version of ''Road Rash'', along with its immediate sequels ''
II'' and ''
3'', was included in the
PlayStation Portable
The PlayStation Portable (PSP) is a handheld game console developed and marketed by Sony Computer Entertainment. It was first released in Japan on December 12, 2004, in North America on March 24, 2005, and in PAL regions on September 1, 2005, ...
compilation title ''
EA Replay
''EA Replay'' is a retro-themed compilation for the PlayStation Portable comprising a number of classic games.EA Confir ...
'' in 2006.
Reception
The Genesis version of ''Road Rash'' was met with critical acclaim.
KITS Kits may refer to:
* Kitsilano, a neighbourhood of the city of Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
*Kits, an American taffy candy made by Gilliam Candy Company
*KITS, a San Francisco, California radio station
*Kottayam Institute of Technology & Sci ...
disc jockey
Big Rick Stuart, writing for ''
GamePro
Gamepro.com is an international multiplatform video game magazine media company that covers the video game industry, video game hardware and video game software in countries such as Germany and France. The publication, GamePro, was originally la ...
'', gave the game a perfect score and called it "an instantly addictive motorcycle 16-bit game with a somewhat sick twist thrown in".
''MegaTech'' magazine said: "Lots of races, lots of bikes, and plenty of thrills 'n' spills make this the best racer on the Megadrive!"
Paul Glancey and Tim Boone of ''
Computer and Video Games
''Computer and Video Games'' (also known as ''CVG'', ''Computer & Video Games'', ''C&VG'', ''Computer + Video Games'', or ''C+VG'') was a UK-based video game magazine, published in its original form between 1981 and 2004. Its offshoot website ...
'' respectively described the game as a "
beat 'em up
The beat 'em up (also known as brawler and, in some markets, beat 'em all) is a video game genre featuring hand-to-hand combat against a large number of opponents. Traditional beat 'em ups take place in scrolling, two-dimensional (2D) levels, ...
on motorbikes" and "''
Super Hang-On
is a motorcycle racing arcade video game released by Sega as the sequel to ''Hang-On''. It uses a simulated motorcycle arcade cabinet, like the original game. An updated version was released in arcades 1991 as ''Limited Edition Hang-On''.
Game ...
'' with fists and clubs thrown in"; both reviewers noted that the graphics were convincing in their creation of the illusion of speed in spite of the fairly simple visuals, and Glancey added that the aggressive nature of the gameplay "broadens the enjoyment you get from ''Road Rash'' a great deal and makes you wonder why no-one thought of it before".
Mark Bruton of ''
Mega Zone
''MegaZone'' was an Australian video game magazine which ran from July 1988 to October 1995, ultimately publishing 56 issues.
''MegaZone'' started out as a bi-monthly, multi-platform magazine named ''MegaComp'' which was originally published ...
'' said that the game's "vividly realistic" settings were complemented by the "excellently detailed" graphics and multi-level parallax scrolling, and was amused by the biker vocalizations, which were "very funny in a sick way".
Richard Leadbetter and Julian Rignall of ''
Mean Machines
''Mean Machines'' was a multi-format video game magazine published between 1990 and 1992 in the United Kingdom.
Origins
In the late 1980s '' Computer and Video Games'' (''CVG'') was largely covering the outgoing generation of 8-bit computers l ...
'' both praised the convincing three-dimensional effect of the graphics, with Leadbetter additionally commending the "brilliant" sound effects and Hubbard's "great" music.
''Road Rash'' was the 9th best-selling Genesis title in the United Kingdom in February 1992. In the United States, ''Road Rash'' was the third highest-renting Genesis title at
Blockbuster Video
Blockbuster or Block Buster may refer to:
* Blockbuster (entertainment) a term coined for an extremely successful movie, from which most other uses are derived.
Corporations
* Blockbuster (retailer), a defunct video and game rental chain
** Blo ...
in April 1992, and the ninth highest-renting in the following month. At the time of its release, ''Road Rash'' became EA's most profitable title.
''
Mega
Mega or MEGA may refer to:
Science
* mega-, a metric prefix denoting 106
* Mega (number), a certain very large integer in Steinhaus–Moser notation
* "mega-" a prefix meaning "large" that is used in taxonomy
* Gravity assist, for ''Moon-Eart ...
'' placed the game at #8 on their Top Mega Drive Games of All Time. ''
Game Informer
''Game Informer'' (''GI'', most often stylized ''gameinformer'' from the 2010s onward) is an American monthly video game magazine featuring articles, news, strategy, and reviews of video games and associated consoles. It debuted in August 1991 w ...
'' ranked it as the 88th best game ever made in their 100th issue in 2001. The staff praised its more violent take on motorcycle video games. In 1996,
GamesMaster
''GamesMaster'' is a British television programme which originally aired on Channel 4 from 1992 to 1998. In 2021, it returned for a new series on YouTube and E4. It was the first UK television programme dedicated to video games.
Dominik Diam ...
rated the Mega Drive version 90th on their "Top 100 Games of All Time."
The Amiga release of ''Road Rash'' was received positively. Neil Jackson of ''
Amiga Format
''Amiga Format'' was a British computer magazine for Amiga computers, published by Future plc. The magazine lasted 136 issues from 1989 to 2000. The magazine was formed when, in the wake of selling ''ACE'' to EMAP, Future split the dual-format t ...
'' found the violent gameplay to be "just all-out thrash fun" that would "annoy everyone from the road safety crew to the
Mary Whitehouse
Constance Mary Whitehouse (; 13 June 1910 – 23 November 2001) was a British teacher and conservative activist. She campaigned against social liberalism and the mainstream British media, both of which she accused of encouraging a more permiss ...
brigade", but added that the game "sounds like a kazoo
ndlooks like a moped on an 8-bit".
''
CU Amiga
''Commodore User'', known to the readers as the abbreviated ''CU'', was one of the oldest British Commodore magazines. With a publishing history spanning over 15 years, it mixed content with technical and video game features. Incorporating ''Vic ...
'' described the game as an "immensely playable" and "nicely violent" alternative to normal racing games, but noted that the Amiga version runs slower than the Genesis version and "doesn't deliver the feeling of charging down a road at 120mph".
''Road Rash'' was the fourth-highest selling Amiga title in the United Kingdom in its debut month, and remained among the top-30 best-sellers for five more months.
The Game Gear/Master System version also received positive reviews. Manny LaMancha of ''GamePro'' commended the simple controls, clean and clear graphics, ample audio and high challenge.
Radion Automatic and Lucy Hickman of ''Mean Machines Sega'' praised the fast and easy-to-control gameplay, large sprites, and detailed and smooth graphics, though Hickman noted the absence of a simultaneous two-player mode as a drawback.
''Road Rash'' was the sixth highest-selling Game Gear title at
Babbage's
GameStop Corp. is an American video game, consumer electronics, and gaming merchandise retailer. The company is headquartered in Grapevine, Texas (a suburb of Dallas), and is the largest video game retailer worldwide. , the company operates 4,5 ...
in its first month,
and stayed within the top ten highest-selling Game Gear titles for the next five months.
Legacy
''Road Rash'' was followed by two sequels on the Genesis, ''
Road Rash II
''Road Rash II'' is a 1992 racing and vehicular combat game developed and published by Electronic Arts (EA) for the Sega Genesis. The game is centered around a series of motorcycle races throughout the United States that the player must win to ...
'' and ''
Road Rash 3
''Road Rash 3'' is a 1995 racing and vehicular combat video game developed and published by Electronic Arts (EA) for the Sega Genesis. It is the fourth installment in the ''Road Rash'' series and the last to be released for the Genesis, as wel ...
'', as well as further spin-offs developed for later platforms such as the
PlayStation
is a video gaming brand that consists of five home video game consoles, two handhelds, a media center, and a smartphone, as well as an online service and multiple magazines. The brand is produced by Sony Interactive Entertainment, a divisi ...
,
Nintendo 64
The (N64) is a home video game console developed by Nintendo. The successor to the Super Nintendo Entertainment System, it was released on June 23, 1996, in Japan, on September 29, 1996, in North America, and on March 1, 1997, in Europe and Au ...
and
Game Boy Advance
The (GBA) is a 32-bit handheld game console developed, manufactured and marketed by Nintendo as the successor to the Game Boy Color. It was released in Japan on March 21, 2001, in North America on June 11, 2001, in the PAL region on June 22, 2 ...
.
The Genesis titles achieved similar critical and commercial success to their predecessor, while the installments made for later consoles were met with mixed receptions and failed to recreate the success of the Genesis versions.
EA attempted to capitalize on ''Road Rashs success by repurposing its game engine and mix of combat and racing for the 1994
inline skating
Inline skating is a multi-disciplinary sport and can refer to a number of activities practiced using inline skates. Inline skates typically have two to five polyurethane wheels depending on the style of practice, arranged in a single line by a ...
title ''
Skitchin'
''Skitchin is a 1994 racing video game developed and published by Electronic Arts (EA) for the Sega Genesis. The game puts the player in control of an inline skater who must win races in a tournament while engaging in unarmed and armed comba ...
''.
''
Road Rash: Jailbreak'', the last official installment of the series, was released in 2000.
A spiritual successor to the ''Road Rash'' series, ''
Road Redemption
''Road Redemption'' is a vehicular combat racing video game developed by New Orleans-based studios EQ-Games and Pixel Dash Studios as a spiritual successor to the '' Road Rash'' series. The game on PC was released on October 4, 2017. Console vers ...
'', was developed by Ian Fisch and released in 2017.
References
External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Road Rash (video game)
1991 video games
Amiga games
Cancelled Super Nintendo Entertainment System games
Electronic Arts games
Game Boy games
Interactive Achievement Award winners
Master System games
Motorcycle video games
Multiplayer and single-player video games
Ocean Software games
Racing video games
Road Rash
Game Gear games
Sega Genesis games
U.S. Gold games
Vehicular combat games
Video games scored by Rob Hubbard
Video games set in San Francisco
Video games developed in the United States