Super Off Road

EASY PEASY LEMON SQUEEZY

» SNES » 1991 » SOFTWARE CREATIONS Because my wife is all sorts of awesome she bought me a SNES game for Christmas 2019. Granted, it was actually a game that I had purchased myself, and afterwards I explained I would need £25 so she could wrap it up for me, but it was still a lovely thing to open on Christmas Day.

I’ve got many fond memories of playing Super Off Road when it was first released on the Super Nintendo at the back end of 1991, and I was hoping to relive those memories I had then by playing it with my daughter over the Christmas break. I must confess, though, that as much fun as we had, I don’t actually think the game itself is particularly good on Nintendo’s system.

For the most part it’s very entertaining, and Software Creations should be commended for how accurate it feels next to the arcade original. Granted, the handling was never going to be the same as using a steering wheel, but the little trucks feel surprisingly authentic as they bump and jostle around the tracks. It looks great, too, with authentic-looking visuals, a great amount of animation on those little vehicles and neat little touches like flags wobbling as you hit them. It all looks tiny, but it feels big to play. Oh and it sounds absolutely fantastic due to an exceptional soundtrack by Tim and Geoff Follin (if I’m honest, the punchy soundtrack is the main reason I asked for the game).

So what’s wrong with the SNES version of Super Off Road? Simple, it’s too easy. All you do is spend all your spare cash on nitro, using any leftover money to go towards acceleration, tires, top speed and shocks. Providing you boost ahead it’s very hard to loose your lead so it quickly gets to a point where you build up countless nitro and boost yourself around the track. Sure, this is fun in itself, but because the game has no actual end you can effectively go on forever. Or in my case, until your daughter gets bored and goes back to suckle at Youtube’s teat.