10 /10 1 Votes
Initial release date 1985 Genre Racing video game | 5/5 My Abandonware Designer Rick Koenig | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Similar Ariolasoft games, Racing video games | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
C64 commodore 64 racing destruction set
Racing Destruction Set is a car racing and motocross computer game that was published in 1985 by Electronic Arts. It was developed for the Commodore 64 computer system, and was advertised as being Commodore 128 compatible. A version for the Atari 8-bit family of computers was also released.
Contents
The game featured the innovative ability to design and then play racing tracks with a variety of vehicles. Reviews of the game have almost always been highly complimentary. Racing Destruction Set has spawned a number of remakes and clones on other platforms.
Gameplay
The game was a one or two-player game played with joysticks. Player 1 controlled the red car on the top screen and player 2 controlled the yellow car on the bottom screen.
The game had several features which created a classic and innovative computer game. First, the game allowed the player to create different race tracks using a variety of templates. The player could create ramps and elevation changes in the layout of the track as well. The builder also had the options to change the type of terrain—laying slippery ice stretches of track, normal track, or difficult sandy sections of track.
For a particular race, the player could change a variety of features. The player could alter the gravity to reflect gravity on different planets or the moon. The player had the option of changing which vehicle they wanted to race in and make customized changes to the tires, engine and other aspects of the vehicle. The vehicles available were a Can-Am sports car, a Jeep, a Lunar Rover, a dirt bike, a baja bug, a pickup, a Sting Ray, a stock car, a street bike, and an indy/grand prix car.
The race was done in split-screen mode, with one player able to race in the top half of the screen and another player in the bottom. The races had an option for racing mode or destruction mode. In racing mode, a number of laps were chosen and the quickest to complete them was the winner. In destruction mode, each player had access to oil slicks and landmines which could be ejected from the back of the vehicles.
Development
The game was written by Rick Koenig, with art by Connie Goldman and music by David Warhol. Koenig, Goldman and Warhol had all worked for the Intellivision game design team at Mattel during the early 1980s, where Koenig had programmed the Intellivision Motocross game. When Intellivision Director of Game Development Don Daglow left Mattel and joined Electronic Arts as a Producer in late 1983 during the Video Game Crash of 1983, he reunited Koenig, Goldman and Warhol on Racing Destruction Set at EA.
Racing Destruction Set was supplied on either floppy disk or two double-sided cassette tapes. Side 1 of the cassette had the game files and sides 2, 3, and 4 had track files. The cassette conversion of this game was done by Ariolasoft.
Remakes
In 1991, RDS was remade on the Super Nintendo Entertainment System, and released as RPM Racing. This was followed up by Rock N' Roll Racing, also on the SNES, in 1993.
Reception
Racing Destruction Set was Electronic Arts' third best-selling Commodore game as of late 1987. In the UK, issue 6 of Zzap!64 magazine awarded the game a "Sizzler", giving it a rating of 95%.