Out Run is another gem in the Sega Ages library. It emulates its arcade predecessor perfectly, and it feels tighter in the controls department. Beyond those, there’s nothing else to offer, which is fine for a classic. You don’t want to change what people love for the sake of updating.
It has been forever and a night since I played Out Run. I’m pretty sure that the last time I touched the game was in an arcade when it was first released. That was quite a few years ago, folks, and surprisingly, the game actually has become more fun thanks to Sega’s care and attention to the Nintendo Switch version that just came out today under the Sega Ages moniker. That’s what we’re discussing in this review.
Let’s dig right into it.
Out Run is a car game from 1986 that mirrored Pole Position in design. You race down a road to checkpoints that extend a numerical countdown to keep the experience going. It’s a way to give players hope/chance that their game will last well beyond the quarter they paid, kind of like gambling, but that is what an arcade game is to the very core. The roads you ride on twist and turn with signs while offering up the possibility of a crash if you’re not paying attention to how fast you’re going/when the turns happen.
The game featured 3D graphics that skewed the perspective of the draw distance and seemed to use the same techniques with background approach that made Yu Suzuki’s 1985 Space Harrier such a mesmerizing visual treat. It truly was neat to see in motion back in the day. Having a large screen playing this fast-moving game that featured peril after peril made for an immersive experience.
Pretty game aside, I will admit that I had an absolutely miserable time with Out Run when it first arrived in the arcade scene. While I loved the animation, which was unique for that time, it was tough as nails to succeed in the game. The controls were specific in design, meaning that you had to control the car nice and tight. The controls demanded your attention at all times. If you overestimate a turn, then you’re toast. Overestimating wasn’t simply a slip and boom scenario either, it was a slip-skid-skid-skid-I-see-it-happening-in-real-time-skid-crash-BOOM. It was incredibly frustrating to watch happen over and over again. The game let you know in no uncertain terms that you made a mistake and you suck. Crashing meant that you lose time, which is hard to recover in the game. Pumping quarters into that machine was the name of the game, and it certainly played that game well. Frustration and losing quarters is not the ideal scenario you want to live in when you’re trying to stretch out five dollars from your parents.
Now, beyond the negativity, the glorious part of the game was the animation. There was a lot of personality in this game when you crashed. Your partner in crime would yell at you upon your off-road mistake, which was amusing. Should you skid off the road, or outright flip over/over/over, then the animation became more violent and risky. It was so violent that driver and passenger would be ejected from the Ferrari. It was neat to see and experience.
There were a lot of pros/cons to this game, but it’s certainly a classic.
All of the above said, here we are in 2019 and it turns out that Sega wants to release Out Run under their Sega Ages moniker for the Nintendo Switch. I tell you, folks, I was skeptical about this release. All of the above issues occurred were with a driving wheel that was specifically designed to bring an actual driving experience to the arcade goer, so how in the world would the Switch, with its tiny nubs, possibly get close to that experience? It did. I love it. I feel dirty now.
The Nintendo Switch has been a helluva force for the Sega Ages titles to release on, and Out Run is no exception. Somehow Sega has found a way to perfect the controls with this game — USING THOSE NUBS. It’s accurate, it works, and the game is actually quite enjoyable to a reviewer that once couldn’t even look at the quarter muncher in the arcades. It really is quite accurate with turning correctly. It feels nice, which is not a description I use lightly for those Switch controllers. There’s more control in the game, which is huge for me because it means less frustration. And please take note, my 42-year old hands and eyes don’t work as well as they used to, so I know the controls have improved on this thing. I would really suck at the game otherwise.
To help out the controls, Sega has implemented an ‘Old’ and ‘New’ option for controls before you start the game. I cannot honestly tell the difference between the two, as I didn’t have much of a problem with either, but somehow the new controls seem to be a lot more forgiving when you’re turning in Out Run. It’s quite impressive.
What else has changed for Out Run’s Switch debut? Unlike the other games that have been released, which come with challenge modes and such, there’s not much else this one offers. You can change the game to look graphically smoother, as well as show replays of your races (and there is a rank mode), but there’s nothing beyond those things. The only visual change, outside of smoothing the motion/graphics out (not a remaster), is the ability to put the game in an arcade cabinet on screen, but honestly, that’s just pointless. Why would you want that screen size wasted? Give me widescreen or give me death.
Regardless of the lack of huge bonus features, the game just feels better on the Switch in comparison to previous versions. That’s quite enough to warrant a purchase, at least for me. It’s a $7.99 game that feels better than the original, yet captures the essence of the arcade experience. There’s simply nothing taken away, just not much given back in the update, other than controls. BUT! If that means I can have fun with a game that made me miserable in the arcades, then I’m there.
Overall, Out Run is another gem in the Sega Ages library. It emulates its arcade predecessor perfectly, and it feels tighter in the controls department. Beyond those, there’s nothing else to offer, which is fine for a classic. You don’t want to change what people love for the sake of updating.
