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DEVELOPER
Avalanche Software
PUBLISHER
Midway
AVAILABLE
Now
MEDIUM
Cartridge
PLAYERS
Two
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rcades weren’t too big where I grew up, in fact, they still aren’t. About the only time I ever got to play an arcade game was when we took a ride on the PEI ferry. One of the games on that ferry was Ivan Ironman Stewart’s Offroad, and I swear, I pumped enough quarters into that machine to keep the ferry company in business. What a great game. We’ve since enjoyed many incarnations of that title, from the NES, to the Genesis, from the Gameboy to the SNES. Some have been good, and some have been bad, but one thing is for sure, no one ever really took the game to the next level. It was attempted with Baja on the SNES, but that game was never too successful.  Well, the wait is over. Midway has released the N64 conversion of their latest arcade racer, Off Road Challenge. This is what a sequel to Ivan Stewart’s game should be; in fact, Ivan Stewart was a consultant on ORC. Off Road Challenge is a 3D racer, unlike its predecessor, but you will notice similarities, such as nitro and money  pickups on the tracks, and the chance to spend your prize money on improving your acceleration, suspension, nitro count, top speed and better tires. Of course, this is only in the circuit mode, whereas you can also play a 2-player battle or a single race. The N64 has precious few excellent racing games, only San Francisco Rush and WaveRace really stick out in my mind. In my opinion, Off Road Challenge doesn’t necessarily stand beside those two classics, but it is one damn good time, and that’s what really counts. Midway has all the bases covered, multiple, diverse courses, lots of jumps, a full season mode, hidden tracks and vehicles, it’s all here.  Visually, ORC delivers a satisfying framerate with some nice roadside detail and some excellent car models. The car physics are also excellent, there’s enough weight on the cars so that they react to the road realistically, and the faster you go, the worse your car handles. Each vehicle drives noticeably different as well. Midway has successfully delivered a solid racer on the N64; fans of the original should take to this game like a duck to water. Anyone even remotely interested in off road racing should give this game a try.
-- Greg Sewart
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