Mean Machines Sega
1st September 1993
Publisher: Virgin Games
Machine: Sega Master System (EU Version)
Published in Mean Machines Sega #12
Super Off-Road
Do you remember the days when Super Off-Road was better known as Ivan 'Ironman' Stewart's Super Off-Road? Whatever happened to the Ironman? Well, Ivan was abducted by alien scientists! Yes, it's true. The dreaded Ironmen of Xantos, impressed by his off-road antics, beamed Ivan to their home planet to take part in their gladiatorial games.
The only way to escape the planet is to race against three other opponents in a series of mind-blowing truck races. Should the Ironman fail, he will be fed alive to the fearsome Skrangbeast, the most painful death in the Universe. So, fasten your seatbelt and take to the dirt-track. Even as we speak, Ivan's trusty sidekick, Bucky 'Steelboy' Grayson, is winging his way to the rescue. Keep truckin', Ironman!
Origin
Super Off-Road is a conversion of Leland's popular three-player truck racing coin-op.
How To Play
A Hard Day's Truckin'
Unlike the coin-op, this Master System conversion only allows two players to compete at any one time. Don't worry though, there are always four trucks in each race courtesy of the computer drivers.
The one to watch for is the villainous grey truck, driven by Flash. This nasty character is always topped up with plenty of nitros, making him a force with which to be reckoned.
Then there's the blue truck driven by Tornado. The driver of the yellow truck is so rubbish he never appears on the podium so you never see his name!Big prize money is awarded to the winners of each race, so everyone's a winner in this game, except for cruddy old yellow in fourth.
New Trucks For Old
The truck you start the game with is more than adequate at the beginning, but as you progress through the game it's important to keep the performance of your vehicle up to the standard of your opponents'. By using your cash winnings, you can purchase new parts for your truck from the Super Off-Road body shop.
Cheapest on the menu are Nitros at $10,000. These temporary turbo-boosters help power yoou through the race, but the real experts wil invest their hard-earned bucks in more permanent additions. Grippier tyres, better acceleration and shock absorbers are all up for grabs, but most useful of all is an increased top speed. However, it doesn't come cheap, at $100,000 a shot!Gus
Off-Road's pretty dandy (as you'd expect from a team like Graftgold). This is much like the Game Gear version, though the grahics look slightly rougher on full screen. The important thing is that the speed is there, and Super Off-Road is so enjoyable because of the rate it plays.
However, this sometimes results in some annoying wrong turnings as your truck bounces over the tracks.
I'm glad that some new track designs have ben included; they seem to be an improvement over the originals.Super Off-Road only comes into its own with two players, but it's worth making a new friend, just for the chance to play it.
Tom
Well, it's been on just about every system under the sun, so it's about time we saw Super Off-Road on the Master System and the result is excellent. This conversion is about as close to the coin-op as you could want. The graphics are brilliant and the trucks move around the screen at an incredible rate of knots.
What's more, the controls feel just right as you weave your truck about, powering off ramps into the air, bouncing off the walls. It's spot-on. The only major difference is that some of the tracks are different from their coin-op counterparts. However, this game's main problem is that it's a little too easy.By swapping all your credits for cash right at the beginning, you can notch up your top-speed to the max, making it fairly easy to beat your opponents... even on the "Hard" setting!
This isn't such a problem in two-player mode though.
Overall, Super Off-Road is a highly impressive conversion. If you're a fan of the arcade original, you'll love this.Verdict
Presentation 78%
P. The attract sequences are very faithful to the coin-op.
N. Not much in the way of options.
Graphics 90%
P. Excellent renditions of the original graphics. This could be a Megadrive game. If it weren't a Master System game, that is.
N. There's only so much you can do with brown backdrops!
P. Racey, but simple tunes accompany the action.
N. Not much in the way of spot effects.
Playability 90%
P. Simple but addictive gameplay makes this game fun from the offset.
Lastability 72%
P. You'll come back for more two-player fun.
N. A bit easy in one player mode.
Overall 82%
An excellent conversion of the coin-op. Brilliant fun! Its only fault is that it's a bit too easy.
