Daytona USA
デイトナUSA
Hi, I’m Cory Roberts, your crew chief (just kidding, I’m not), and it’s time to review… TU-TU LU-TU TU-TU-TU-TU TU-LUUUUUUUN!!!
Daytona USA is an arcade racing game developed by Sega AM2 (in the case of Daytona USA: Championship Circuit Edition, Sega AM3, and in the case of Daytona USA 2001, Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio (then known as Amusement Vision) and Genki Kabushiki-gaisha) and published by Sega in the spring of 1994. It was ported to Sega Saturn in mid-1995 and for the Windows PCs in late 1996. This game was also our youth! Inspired by the popularity of the NASCAR motor racing series in the US, the game has players race stock cars on one of three courses. It was the first game to be released on the Sega Model 2 arcade system board. Daytona USA is one of the highest-grossing arcade games of all time.
Sega partnered with the now-closed GE Aerospace to develop the Model 2, which renders 3D graphics capable of texture filtering and texture mapping. Daytona USA was developed by AM2 after a meeting of the heads of Sega’s regional offices to decide on a game to debut the Model 2 hardware. The concept was suggested by Tom Petit, president of Sega’s American arcade division, with input from AM2 director Toshihiro Nagoshi, who became the game’s director and producer. Sega aimed to outperform Namco’s Ridge Racer (1993). The developers researched motorsports extensively; they mapped Daytona International Speedway (which is still around today), and their experience developing Virtua Racing (1992) helped with lighting and camera control.
Daytona USA was a critical and commercial success, praised for its graphics, soundtrack, and gameplay. A conversion was made for the Sega Saturn in 1995 and was followed by sequels and enhancements for consoles and arcades. It has been frequently named one of the best video games of all time. This game also has a kick-ass soundtrack by Takenobu Mitsuyoshi (in the case of Daytona USA: Championship Circuit Edition, Jun Senoue, Richard Jacques, Kenichi Tokoi, and Tomonori Sawada, and in the case of Daytona USA 2001, Keiichi Sugiyama, Naofumi Hataya, Tatsuyuki Maeda, Junko Shiratsu, Hideaki Kobayashi, and Hirofumi Murasaki)!
You can listen to these kick-ass soundtracks on YouTube:
- ROOOOO-LLLING STAAAAAART! (mirrored version)
- Daytona! Let’s go away! Daytona! (mirrored version)
- I wanna flyyyyy skyyyyy hiiiiigh, let’s goooooo togetherrrrrr! (mirrored version)
This article will also cover the Championship Circuit Edition (Daytona USA: Circuit Edition in Japan), the arcade-only Daytona USA 2, and Daytona USA 2001.
Gameplay
In Daytona USA, the player drives a stock car known as the Hornet. The player’s objectives are to outrun the competing cars and complete the race before time runs out, passing checkpoints to collect more time. Players begin in last place and compete against a field of up to 39 computer-controlled cars, dependent on the course selected. Three courses are available for play: Beginner, Advanced, and Expert, also known respectively as Three Seven Speedway, Dinosaur Canyon, and Seaside Street Galaxy. Adaptive difficulty is used; the first lap of each race measures the skill of the player and adjusts the difficulty of opponents accordingly. For less skilled players, opposing cars open lanes for the player, while higher-skilled players have to deal with opponents that block their path. The game’s physics includes realistic driving mechanics, including drifting and power sliding. The steering wheel in the arcade cabinet uses force feedback so players feel collisions and bumps. Shifting is performed with an H-type shifter.
Remakes and Sequels
Daytona USA: Championship Circuit Edition, a reworked and expanded version of Daytona USA, was released in 1996 for the Saturn. Developed by Sega’s consumer software division, it uses a modified version of the game engine used for Sega Rally Championship. An enhanced arcade remake, called Sega Racing Classic, was released in 2010 and is the only title in the series not branded with the Daytona name as Sega no longer owned the rights. It operates on Sega’s RingWide arcade system board and features high-definition graphics. Another enhanced version was released digitally for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 in 2012, as Daytona USA. It includes both the original arcade soundtrack and the newly arranged soundtrack from Sega Racing Classic with vocals by Mitsuyoshi, along with added features including eight-player online multiplayer, challenge, and karaoke modes. The Xbox 360 version was later made compatible with Xbox One.
Daytona USA 2: Battle on the Edge, an arcade-exclusive sequel using the Sega Model 3 hardware, was released in 1998. It is the only Daytona game that uses no courses or music from the original. Daytona USA 2001, a remake of Daytona USA and Championship Circuit Edition, was released in 2001 for the Dreamcast, with graphical upgrades, online multiplayer, and new courses. Daytona Championship USA, also referred to as Daytona USA 3, debuted in late 2016 as an arcade exclusive; it was the first Daytona-branded arcade game in 18 years.
That’s it for Daytona USA and in the end… Congratulations… you placed… first. See you in the next retro gaming review, and please don’t try these driving maneuvers when on the actual roads.
(Also, did we mention we’re using a GIF of Tails from Sonic the Hedgehog, replacing Aladdin from MAGI at the end of the posts? Well, MAGI has been removed from Netflix because the license has expired! But it is still on Crunchyroll in subtitled form.)
