Your Sinclair


Championship Run

Author: Jon Pillar
Publisher: Zeppelin Games
Machine: Spectrum 48K

 
Published in Your Sinclair #75

Championship Run

Catalytic converters ahoy - Zeppelin's latest is one of those high-rev 3D driving games that simulates racing tracks from all over the world. You're Biff Buff, a small-time racer with big-time ambitions, and your aim is to work your way up the ranks until you get a shot at the Drivers' Championship. With one eye on the road and one on the leaderboard, you have to contend with aggressive opponents, fuel distribution and a nasty line in gradual car damage. One of the sneakiest things is that your engine suffers when you wrench it into the wrong gear.

Unlike other, straightforward tyre-grinders it makes a point of punishing you for doing something that would be incredibly dangerous in real life. This puts a bit of a brake on my natural game, which involves driving at very high speeds off the track, through signs and into other cars. The car sprites are rather ungainly, with your machine picked out in a fetching shade of purple. Roadside scenery is nothing much to speak of either. But the speed makes up for everything - the game literally rockets along, and it's a job not to press back into your seat in sympathy.

The game's not perfect, but don't hang up your fireproof long johns just yet! Overall, Championship Run is rather a corker. If you like a bit of realism with your race game, this is the one to head for.

It's a castle! And it looks like you're heading for the drawbridge.

Jon Pillar

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