''Screamer'' is an racing video game for

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 ...

compatible operating systems. The game uses texture mapped

polygon In geometry, a polygon () is a plane figure that is described by a finite number of straight line segments connected to form a closed ''polygonal chain'' (or ''polygonal circuit''). The bounded plane region, the bounding circuit, or the two toge ...

-modelled tracks and cars and shares some elements with

Namco was a Japanese multinational corporation, multinational video game and entertainment company, headquartered in Ōta, Tokyo. It held several international branches, including Namco America in Santa Clara, California, Namco Europe in London, Na ...

's 1993 ''

Ridge Racer is a racing game, racing video game series developed and published for arcade systems and home game consoles by Bandai Namco Entertainment, formerly Namco. The first game, ''Ridge Racer (1993 video game), Ridge Racer'' (1993), was originally rel ...

''. A sequel, ''

Screamer 2 ''Screamer 2'' is a video game developed by Milestone and published by Virgin Interactive Entertainment, released in 1996 on September 30 in North America and November 15 in Europe. It is the second game in the ''Screamer'' series. Unlike its pre ...

'', was released in 1996.

GOG.com GOG.com (formerly Good Old Games) is a digital distribution platform for video games and films. It is operated by GOG sp. z o.o., a wholly owned subsidiary of CD Projekt based in Warsaw, Poland. GOG.com delivers DRM-free video games through its ...

released an

emulated In computing, an emulator is Computer hardware, hardware or software that enables one computer system (called the ''host'') to behave like another computer system (called the ''guest''). An emulator typically enables the host system to run so ...

version for

Windows Windows is a group of several proprietary graphical operating system families developed and marketed by Microsoft. Each family caters to a certain sector of the computing industry. For example, Windows NT for consumers, Windows Server for serv ...

in 2009 and

Mac OS X macOS (; previously OS X and originally Mac OS X) is a Unix operating system developed and marketed by Apple Inc. since 2001. It is the primary operating system for Apple's Mac (computer), Mac computers. Within the market of ...

in 2012.

Gameplay

Development

Software rendering is used in the game, unlike ''Screamer''s three sequels ''

'', '' Screamer Rally'' and ''

Screamer 4x4 ''Screamer 4x4'' is a 4x4 off-road game, developed by Hungarian-based Clever's Games and published by Virgin Interactive. It is the fourth and last game in the ''Screamer'' series. It is the first game in the series not developed by Milestone. It ...

'', that all utilized 3D hardware (in the case of ''Screamer 2'', after a

patch Patch or Patches may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media * Patch Johnson, a fictional character from ''Days of Our Lives'' * Patch (''My Little Pony''), a toy * "Patches" (Dickey Lee song), 1962 * "Patches" (Chairmen of the Board song) ...

was released.) As a result, ''Screamer'' was one of the early games to really require a Pentium processor to run at full speed, particularly in SVGA mode. A special 3D accelerated version was available with the Number Nine Reality 332FX graphics card, that utilized the

S3 ViRGE The S3 ViRGE (Video and Rendering Graphics Engine) graphics chipset was one of the first 2D/ 3D accelerators designed for the mass market. Introduced in 1995 by then graphics powerhouse S3, Inc., the ViRGE was S3's first foray into 3D-graphics. ...

chipset. The game's music was composed by

Allister Brimble Allister Brimble is a British video game music composer. He began composing music and sound effects for the video game industry in the mid-1980s. He also produced various audio tracks, as "Brimble's Beats", that were distributed on cover disks ...

Reception

A reviewer for ''Maximum'' commended the game for its high speed, replay sequences, smoothly scrolling graphics, selection of vehicles, numerous modes and options, overall high longevity, and low price point. He noted that the computer-controlled opponents follow a fixed course, and would even crash full speed into the player car rather than deviate from that course, but did not feel this was a bad thing. He gave the game 5 out of 5 stars. A reviewer for ''

Next Generation Next Generation or Next-Generation may refer to: Publications and literature * ''Next Generation'' (magazine), video game magazine that was made by the now defunct Imagine Media publishing company * Next Generation poets (2004), list of young ...

'' was also pleased with the graphics, selection of vehicles, and numerous modes. He praised the game for being more accessible than most racers, allowing players to begin racing without having to figure out the car's technical aspects, though he also criticized it as being "simplistic". He scored it 4 out of 5 stars, concluding that "there may not be a lot to it, but the graphics, playability, and selection of cars with their different qualities make it a title worthy of a look". The editors of ''

Computer Games Magazine ''Computer Games Magazine'' was a monthly computer and console gaming print magazine, founded in October 1988 as the United Kingdom publication ''Games International''. During its history, it was known variously as ''Strategy Plus'' (October 1 ...

'' nominated ''Screamer'' as the best racing game of 2001, but ultimately gave the award to ''

NASCAR Racing 4 ''NASCAR Racing 4'' is a racing simulator produced by Papyrus and released in February 2001. Gameplay The game was a huge step forward over its predecessor and addressed many requested features for the game. Namely was the introduction of full 2 ...

''. An advertisement for the game, showing a burnt-out car wreckage with the slogan "Every Christmas the roads are full of mad men. Join them", aroused public outcry.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Screamer (Video Game) 1995 video games DOS games Games commercially released with DOSBox MacOS games Racing video games Video games developed in Italy Video games scored by Allister Brimble Virgin Interactive games Windows games Single-player video games