''Road Runner'' is a racing video game based on the
Wile E. Coyote and Road Runner shorts. It was released in arcades by
Atari Games
Atari Games Corporation, known as Midway Games West Inc. after 1999, was an American producer of Arcade game, arcade Video game, games. It was formed in 1985 when the coin-operated Arcade game, arcade game division of Atari, Inc. was transfered ...
in 1985.
Gameplay
The player controls Road Runner, who is chased by Wile E. Coyote. In order to escape, Road Runner runs endlessly to the left. While avoiding Wile E. Coyote, the player must pick up bird seeds on the street, avoid obstacles like cars, and get through mazes. Sometimes Wile E. Coyote will just run after the Road Runner, but he occasionally uses tools like rockets, roller skates, and pogo-sticks.
Development
Originally, the game was going to use laserdisc technology for the backgrounds and road. When the player died in the game, one of many cartoon death sequences taken from the original shorts would have shown.
The game was going to be released in 1984, but Atari decided to cancel the game. The game was eventually released in 1985, but this version was a modified version. The laserdisc cutscenes were taken out of the final game, and the road and backgrounds were changed to computer-generated graphics. The prototype cabinet was eventually found, and it is now playable at California Extreme.
Music
The background music during attract mode and 4th level is "
Sabre Dance
"Sabre Dance", ''Suserov par''; russian: Танец с саблями, ''Tanets s sablyami'' is a Movement (music), movement in the final act of Aram Khachaturian's ballet ''Gayane (ballet), Gayane'' (1942), where the Ballet dancer, dancers dis ...
" from ''
Gayane'' by
Aram Khachaturian
Aram Ilyich Khachaturian (; rus, Арам Ильич Хачатурян, , ɐˈram ɨˈlʲjitɕ xətɕɪtʊˈrʲan, Ru-Aram Ilyich Khachaturian.ogg; hy, Արամ Խաչատրյան, ''Aram Xačʿatryan''; 1 May 1978) was a Soviet and Armenian ...
, the 1st level music is "
William Tell Overture
The ''William Tell'' Overture is the overture to the opera '' William Tell'' (original French title ''Guillaume Tell''), whose music was composed by Gioachino Rossini. ''William Tell'' premiered in 1829 and was the last of Rossini's 39 operas, a ...
" by
Gioachino Rossini
Gioachino Antonio Rossini (29 February 1792 – 13 November 1868) was an Italian composer who gained fame for his 39 operas, although he also wrote many songs, some chamber music and piano pieces, and some sacred music. He set new standards f ...
, 2nd level music is "
Flight of the Bumblebee" by Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov, and 3rd level is "
Trepak" from ''
The Nutcracker
''The Nutcracker'' ( rus, Щелкунчик, Shchelkunchik, links=no ) is an 1892 two-act ballet (""; russian: балет-феерия, link=no, ), originally choreographed by Marius Petipa and Lev Ivanov with a score by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaiko ...
'' by
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky , group=n ( ; 7 May 1840 – 6 November 1893) was a Russian composer of the Romantic period. He was the first Russian composer whose music would make a lasting impression internationally. He wrote some of the most popu ...
.
Ports
''Road Runner'' was ported to the
Amstrad CPC
The Amstrad CPC (short for ''Colour Personal Computer'') is a series of 8-bit home computers produced by Amstrad between 1984 and 1990. It was designed to compete in the mid-1980s home computer market dominated by the Commodore 64 and the Sin ...
,
Atari 2600
The Atari 2600, initially branded as the Atari Video Computer System (Atari VCS) from its release until November 1982, is a home video game console developed and produced by Atari, Inc. Released in September 1977, it popularized microprocessor- ...
,
Atari ST
The Atari ST is a line of personal computers from Atari Corporation and the successor to the Atari 8-bit family. The initial model, the Atari 520ST, had limited release in April–June 1985 and was widely available in July. It was the first pers ...
,
Commodore 64
The Commodore 64, also known as the C64, is an 8-bit home computer introduced in January 1982 by Commodore International (first shown at the Consumer Electronics Show, January 7–10, 1982, in Las Vegas). It has been listed in the Guinness ...
,
MS-DOS
MS-DOS ( ; acronym for Microsoft Disk Operating System, also known as Microsoft DOS) is an operating system for x86-based personal computers mostly developed by Microsoft. Collectively, MS-DOS, its rebranding as IBM PC DOS, and a few ope ...
,
ZX Spectrum
The ZX Spectrum () is an 8-bit computing, 8-bit home computer that was developed by Sinclair Research. It was released in the United Kingdom on 23 April 1982, and became Britain's best-selling microcomputer.
Referred to during development as t ...
, and
Nintendo Entertainment System
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 America ...
. The Atari 2600 port was one of
Atari Corporation
Atari Corporation was an American manufacturer of computers and video game consoles. It was founded by Jack Tramiel on May 17, 1984, as Tramel Technology, Ltd., but then took on the Atari name less than two months later when WarnerMedia, Warn ...
's last games for the system, being released in 1989.
Like other NES games released by
Tengen, ''Road Runner'' was unlicensed by
Nintendo
is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational video game company headquartered in Kyoto, Japan. It develops video games and video game consoles.
Nintendo was founded in 1889 as by craftsman Fusajiro Yamauchi and originally produce ...
itself, released as an unlicensed cartridge
rounding Nintendo's protections. It was planning on to be released in a licensed version by
Mindscape, but it was scrapped in the fall of 1989.
Reception
The game was reviewed in 1988 in ''
Dragon
A dragon is a reptilian legendary creature that appears in the folklore of many cultures worldwide. Beliefs about dragons vary considerably through regions, but dragons in western cultures since the High Middle Ages have often been depicted as ...
'' #140 by Hartley, Patricia, and Kirk Lesser in "The Role of Computers" column. The reviewers gave the game 3 out of 5 stars.
The game went to number 2 in the UK sales charts, behind ''
Exolon''.
Reviews
*''
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 ...
'' (CVG) (Sep, 1987)
*''
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 ...
'' (CVG) (Oct, 1987)
*''
Commodore User
''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 ...
'' (Feb, 1987)
*''Génération 4'' (1987)
*''
ACE (Advanced Computer Entertainment)
''ACE'' (Advanced Computer Entertainment) was a multi-format computer and video game magazine first published in the United Kingdom by Future Publishing and later acquired by EMAP.
History
ACE launched in October 1987, roughly the same time as ...
'' (Nov, 1989)
*''
Zzap!
''Zzap!64'' was a computer games magazine covering games on the Commodore International series of computers, especially the Commodore 64 (C64). It was published in the UK by Newsfield Publications Ltd and later by Europress Impact.
The magazine ...
'' (Sep, 1987)
*''
ASM (Aktueller Software Markt)
''Aktueller Software Markt'' (literally ''Current Software Market''), commonly known by its acronym, ''ASM'', was a German multi-platform video game magazine that was published by Tronic-Verlag from 1986 until 1995. It was one of the first magazine ...
'' (Sep, 1987)
*''Happy Computer'' (1986)
*''Happy Computer'' (Jul, 1987)
*''
Commodore User
''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 ...
'' (Aug, 1987)
*''
Commodore Force
''Commodore Force'' was a computer games magazine covering games for the Commodore 64. It was published in the UK by Europress Impact. Its predecessor was ''Zzap!64''.
Background
''Commodore Force'' was created when ''Zzap! 64'' was re-launche ...
'' (Aug, 1993)
References
External links
*
''Road Runner''at the Arcade History database
''Road Runner''at the Arcade Flyer Archive
for the Atari ST at Atari Mania
*
{{Looney Tunes video games
1985 video games
Amstrad CPC games
Arcade video games
Atari 2600 games
Atari arcade games
Atari ST games
Cancelled Game Boy Color games
Commodore 64 games
DOS games
Video games based on Looney Tunes
Tengen (company) games
Unauthorized video games
ZX Spectrum games
Wile E. Coyote and The Road Runner
Video games about birds
Video games developed in the United States
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Multiplayer and single-player video games