C&VG
1st March 1990
Publisher: Sega
Machine: Sega Mega Drive (EU Version)
Published in Computer & Video Games #100
Super Hang-On
Super Hang-On is a motorcycle tournament played across the four continents of Africa, Asia, America and Europe. Each continent represents a different level of difficulty, getting harder respectively.
On each one there's a trackful of console-controlled bikers to race against, and the object is to reach the finish line within the alloted time. Each course is split into stages, and you simply have to complete the stage within the time limit to go on to the next - any time left over is added to the next stage's limit. To assist in your pursuit of the chequered flag, there's a turbo button attached to the bike which can boost your speed when necessary.
As well as the main game, a freebie game is also included on the cartridge, in the form of a one-on-one race between you and a console biker. Beginning with a rubbish bike, money is won each time you beat the opponent, with which you can purchase extra equipment such as wheels, frame, engine and so on. There's a password system which lets you make the contest an ongoing affair - a very neat idea.
Megadrive
The Megadrive hasn't seen a driving game of any sort since its release, and when one finally surfaces it just happens to be one of the best ever seen on any home machine, console or otherwise.
Graphically, Super Hang-On is nothing short of astonishing - the motorcycle sprites are as big as their coin-op counterparts, I kid you not. That's not all either.
As far as I can see (and I've been playing it for a while) there's very little, if in fact any, loss of speed between the console and arcade versions. The striped road effect, which I've complained so much about over the months, actually works, and to cap it all, the music and effects are as faithful to the original as one could hope for!
Super Hang-On is an amazing game; it's as playable as its arcade daddy and it even has a free game which prolongs its lifespan even more!
If Sega can do this with Super Hang-On, it bodes very well for their forthcoming conversion of Super Monaco GP!