Racing Destruction Set
Encyclopedia
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.
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.
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.
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
.
, and released as RPM Racing
. This was followed up by Rock N' Roll Racing
, also on the SNES, in 1993.
awarded Racing Destruction Set a "Gotcha" award as one of the top games of its era. In the UK, issue 6 of Zzap!64
magazine awarded Racing Destruction Set a "Sizzler", giving it a rating of 95%.
Motocross
Motocross is a form of motorcycle sport or all-terrain vehicle racing held on enclosed off road circuits. It evolved from trials, and was called scrambles, and later motocross, combining the French moto with cross-country...
computer game that was published in 1985 by Electronic Arts
Electronic Arts
Electronic Arts, Inc. is a major American developer, marketer, publisher and distributor of video games. Founded and incorporated on May 28, 1982 by Trip Hawkins, the company was a pioneer of the early home computer games industry and was notable for promoting the designers and programmers...
. It was developed for the Commodore 64
Commodore 64
The Commodore 64 is an 8-bit home computer introduced by Commodore International in January 1982.Volume production started in the spring of 1982, with machines being released on to the market in August at a price of US$595...
computer system, and was advertised as being Commodore 128
Commodore 128
The Commodore 128 home/personal computer was the last 8-bit machine commercially released by Commodore Business Machines...
compatible. A version for the Atari 8-bit family
Atari 8-bit family
The Atari 8-bit family is a series of 8-bit home computers manufactured from 1979 to 1992. All are based on the MOS Technology 6502 CPU and were the first home computers designed with custom coprocessor chips...
of computers was also released.
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
Sports car
A sports car is a small, usually two seat, two door automobile designed for high speed driving and maneuverability....
, a Jeep
Jeep
Jeep is an automobile marque of Chrysler . The first Willys Jeeps were produced in 1941 with the first civilian models in 1945, making it the oldest off-road vehicle and sport utility vehicle brand. It inspired a number of other light utility vehicles, such as the Land Rover which is the second...
, a Lunar Rover
Lunar rover
The Lunar Roving Vehicle or lunar rover was a battery-powered four-wheeled rover used on the Moon in the last three missions of the American Apollo program during 1971 and 1972...
, a dirt bike, a baja bug
Baja Bug
The term Baja Bug generally refers to an original Volkswagen Beetle modified to operate off-road , although other versions of air-cooled Volkswagens are sometimes modified as well.-History:...
, a pickup
Pickup truck
A pickup truck is a light motor vehicle with an open-top rear cargo area .-Definition:...
, a Sting Ray
Chevrolet Corvette C2
The Chevrolet Corvette , also known as the Corvette Sting Ray, is a sports car produced by the Chevrolet division of General Motors for the 1963 through 1967 model years.-Origin and development:...
, a stock car, a street bike
Sport bike
A sport bike, also written as sportbike, is a motorcycle optimized for speed, acceleration, braking, and cornering on paved roads, typically at the expense of comfort and fuel economy in comparison to less specialized motorcycles...
, and an indy/grand prix
Open wheel car
Open-wheel car, formula car, or often single-seater car in British English, describes cars with the wheels outside the car's main body and, in most cases, one seat. Open-wheel cars contrast with street cars, sports cars, stock cars, and touring cars, which have their wheels below the body or fenders...
car.
The race was done in split-screen
Split screen (computer graphics)
Split screen is a display technique in computer graphics that consists of dividing graphics and/or text into non-movable adjacent parts, typically two or four rectangular areas. This is done in order to allow the simultaneous presentation of related graphical and textual information on a computer...
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 IntellivisionIntellivision
The Intellivision is a video game console released by Mattel in 1979. Development of the console began in 1978, less than a year after the introduction of its main competitor, the Atari 2600. The word intellivision is a portmanteau of "intelligent television"...
game design
Game design
Game design, a subset of game development, is the process of designing the content and rules of a game in the pre-production stage and design of gameplay, environment, storyline, and characters during production stage. The term is also used to describe both the game design embodied in a game as...
team at Mattel
Mattel
Mattel, Inc. is the world's largest toy company based on revenue. The products it produces include Fisher Price, Barbie dolls, Hot Wheels and Matchbox toys, Masters of the Universe, American Girl dolls, board games, and, in the early 1980s, video game consoles. The company's name is derived from...
during the early 1980s, where Koenig had programmed the Intellivision Motocross
Motocross
Motocross is a form of motorcycle sport or all-terrain vehicle racing held on enclosed off road circuits. It evolved from trials, and was called scrambles, and later motocross, combining the French moto with cross-country...
game. When Intellivision Director of Game Development
Game development
Game development is the software development process by which a video game is developed. Development is undertaken by a game developer, which may range from a single person to a large business. Mainstream games are normally funded by a publisher and take several years to develop. Indie games can...
Don Daglow
Don Daglow
Don Daglow is an American computer game and video game designer, programmer and producer. He is best known for designing a series of pioneering simulation games and role-playing games, as well as the first computer baseball game and the first graphical MMORPG, all between 1971 and 1995...
left Mattel and joined Electronic Arts as a Producer in late 1983 during the Video Game Crash of 1983
Video game crash of 1983
The North American video game crash was a serious event that brought an abrupt end to what is considered the second generation of console video gaming in North America. Beginning in 1983, the crash almost destroyed the then-fledgling industry and led to the bankruptcy of several companies producing...
, he reunited Koenig, Goldman and Warhol on Racing Destruction Set at EA.
Racing Destruction Set was supplied on either floppy disk
Floppy disk
A floppy disk is a disk storage medium composed of a disk of thin and flexible magnetic storage medium, sealed in a rectangular plastic carrier lined with fabric that removes dust particles...
or two double-sided cassette tapes
Compact Cassette
The Compact Cassette, often referred to as audio cassette, cassette tape, cassette, or simply tape, is a magnetic tape sound recording format. It was designed originally for dictation, but improvements in fidelity led the Compact Cassette to supplant the Stereo 8-track cartridge and reel-to-reel...
. 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
Ariolasoft
Ariolasoft GmbH, later known as United Software, was a German computer game developer, publisher and distributor. It started as the software subsidiary of Ariola Records...
.
Remakes
In 1991, RDS was remade on the Super Nintendo Entertainment SystemSuper Nintendo Entertainment System
The Super Nintendo Entertainment System is a 16-bit video game console that was released by Nintendo in North America, Europe, Australasia , and South America between 1990 and 1993. In Japan and Southeast Asia, the system is called the , or SFC for short...
, and released as RPM Racing
RPM Racing
RPM Racing is a Super Nintendo Entertainment System racing game developed by Silicon & Synapse under contract from Interplay Entertainment and published by Interplay....
. This was followed up by Rock N' Roll Racing
Rock N' Roll Racing
Rock N' Roll Racing is a battle-racing video game developed by Silicon & Synapse and published by Interplay for the Sega Mega Drive/Genesis and the Super Nintendo Entertainment System in 1993. The background music consists of instrumental versions of several heavy metal and rock n' roll songs,...
, also on the SNES, in 1993.
Reception
GameSpy.comGameSpy
GameSpy Industries, Inc., known simply as GameSpy, is a division of IGN Entertainment, which operates a network of game websites and provides online video game-related services and software. GameSpy dates back to the 1996 release of an internet Quake server search program named QSpy. The current...
awarded Racing Destruction Set a "Gotcha" award as one of the top games of its era. In the UK, issue 6 of Zzap!64
Zzap!64
Zzap!64 was a computer games magazine covering games on the Commodore International series of computers, especially the Commodore 64 . It was published in the UK by Newsfield Publications Ltd and later by Europress Impact....
magazine awarded Racing Destruction Set a "Sizzler", giving it a rating of 95%.
See also
- Adventure Construction SetAdventure Construction SetAdventure Construction Set is a program written by Stuart Smith that is used to construct tile-based graphical adventure games. ACS was originally published by Electronic Arts in 1984 on the Commodore 64, and was later ported to the Apple II, Amiga and MS-DOS platforms...
- Music Construction SetMusic Construction SetMusic Construction Set is a music composition notation program. It was originally developed in 1984 for the Apple II, and quickly ported to other systems of the era. It was designed and developed by Will Harvey and published by Electronic Arts...
- Pinball Construction SetPinball Construction SetPinball Construction Set is a computer game by Bill Budge published by Electronic Arts. It was released for the Apple II and Atari 800 in 1983 and was later ported to other platforms, such as the Commodore 64 and DOS .-Description:...
- Ultimate Wizard
External links
- Racing Destruction Set at c64sets.com - Images of the package, manual and screen shots