OutRun 2 Busted Open! Full Playtest, New Stages Unveiled, 20 Hi-Res Videos

We smash Sega's latest arcade masterpiece wide open - OutRun 2 gets the hands-on treatment with impressions, stunning new screens and video footage galore.

This week, we played a near-complete version OutRun 2, and - like anyone else within a mile of the machine - came away completely gobsmacked. As one of Sega's most anticipated sequels of all time, OutRun 2 delivers probably the best graphics ever seen in an arcade, along with the most fun you can have legally in a public place.

Imperial Avenue: Roman architecture and coliseums

Staying true to the roots of Yu Suzuki's 1986 classic, this Sega super-sequel combines cutting edge arcade technology, with everything that made the original title legendary. OutRun 2 makes a mockery of the modern day racing simulation by offering back-to-basics arcade gameplay that still demands a level of genuine competence to succeed.

Metropolis: European landmarks in one night time city!

The concept it simple - choose your motor from one of at least eight different Ferraris, ranging from the Dino 246 GTS to the F50, including the 360 Spider and the awesome Enzo. Then experience the thrill of using the most powerful driving machines around the most wonderful landscapes on planet Earth, with a pretty girl by your side. It's just like real life. Except this game is really, really fast.

Snow Mountain: Big mountains, with lots of snow

You progress from stage to stage in one continuous race, taking either a left or right route at the end of each stage to continue - providing you have enough time remaining to reach each checkpoint, of course. At each 'stage junction', choosing the left route will lead to an easier stage than the right, with a total of five stages between starting position and your goal.

And it's the stages themselves that steal the show in OutRun 2. To date, Sega have revealed six stages, starting with the opening Palm Beach stage - a colourful, sunny setting of typical Sega glory that you'll have seen in screenshots by now. Next you have the choice of Deep Lake on the left, and Alpine on the right. Deep Lake is characterised by lots of trees and a large bridge crossing - you guessed it - a deep lake. Alpine is more open, with lots of hills and some mildly challenging cliffedge action. (Click here for screens of the first three stages).

The next round of stages separate the men from the boys. Ranging from easiest to hardest, they are Castle Wall, Coniferous Forest and Desert. Castle Wall demonstrates exemplary texturing on miles of old brickwork, cooling under a yellow sky and hazy sunlight; Coniferous Forest is, unsurprisingly, a meandering road through a green forest; while Desert presents the biggest challenge so far with some evil hairpins, compensating drivers with some truly jaw dropping scenery - the sand, pyramids and palm trees look great. (Click here for screens of this second set of three stages).

Next up, the fourth group of stages - previously unseen to the world until this very article - and things are getting tough. Cloudy Highland is a dull and very grey stage, with a long winding road and low clouds; Industrial Complex is a fascinating maze of pipes, cranes and scaffolding underneath a brown sky; Snow Mountain is an awesomely large mountain covered in - erm, snow, with a few aqueducts and tunnels - while Ghost Forest is a stage we didn't get to see.

Finally, the toughest group of stages require serious skill to complete. Starting with the rather camp and flowery Tulip Garden (the end of route 'A' we managed to complete); Metropolis - an awesome, fictional mix of various European city landmarks such as the Eiffel Tower and Nelson's Column with streetlights illuminating the gorgeous night sky; Ancient Ruins - the second stage we didn't get to see unfortunately; Imperial Avenue - a jaw-dropping sunset scene with Romanian architecture and coliseums; and finally the toughest stage of them all we don't even know the name of, since we couldn't reach Ghost Forest, the only stage from which the this final and most challenging mystery section is accessible. Judging by the journey so far, we bet it's damn good.

Industrial Complex: maze of pipes, scaffolding and cranes

Phew, that's a lot of scenery in one continuous race - but really, you've never seen anything like it in a racing game. In this age of gaming it's easy to forget how spectacularly talented a team of artists have to be to make things look this good, when most games are powered by serious graphics processors - but OutRun 2 really shines, not only by achieving a new technical standard in arcade graphics, but by producing the grandest, most intricate and stunning scenery in the history of racing games. Forget the screenshots - when you see it moving, it really does look phenomenal, and the regular 'public' traffic on the road adds to the graphical prowess.

As mentioned earlier, the gameplay system is extremely unconvoluted, with a high level of accessibility and relatively basic handling, a far cry from Suzuki-san's other arcade racing pride and joy, Ferrari F355 Challenge. As Suzuki himself testifies, the emphasis here is on 'being cool' by powersliding around bends and drifting away - we managed to rack up slides lasting as long as six seconds - a bit ridiculous when hurtling along at 150mph - but awfully fun. Exiting a powerslide is simplicity in itself, with next to no counter-steering required, adding to the game's immediate appeal. Mess things up though, and you'll experience one of the game's deadly crash sequences - although again, it doesn't destroy your chances and you'll be back in the race in no time - currently, there's no car damage either.

Tulip Garden: Full of flowers, a bit camp really

While the layout of the game described thus far has looked at the main 'OutRun Mode', two other single-player modes are also available. Heart Attack Mode sees you following the instructions of your pretty girl passenger - such as taking over a number of cars in succession or powersliding at certain points - and if executed properly, you'll see her 'heart gauge' rise, to get a hidden special ending!

Time Attack Mode offers driving without a passenger. You compete for the fastest track times, before receiving a password to be entered into an internet ranking system - and, if you're ranked top, your race will become a ghost car for other players to try and beat. Finally, the multiplayer mode offers a similar experience to the main game for up to four players, with the race leader determining which routes are taken. Once he chooses a route, other routes are blocked off for those trailing behind.

A range of background music is available, with about seven remixes of original OutRun music on offer before you start the race. At least three bonus music tracks were locked - how they become unlocked is anyone's guess, perhaps you'll need an OutRun 2 data card with good race times and completed games to get them.

After our playtest, those in attendance were in furious discussion about whether or not OutRun 2, powered by the Xbox-compatible Chihiro arcade board, is likely to make it to home console - and indeed, whether it would be a viable move for Sega. A large part of the argument came down to the weight of the OutRun brand - do 'light gamers' even know or remember what it means?

Cloudy Highland: Low Clouds, dull and grey

As a test, I asked some friends who have no interest in technology and no clue about games. And the results of this comprehensive test? Absolutely everyone in the world has heard of OutRun. Everyone in the world has played it at some point. And if OutRun 2 comes out, everyone will buy a copy - everyone in the whole world! Well, perhaps not everyone, but with some extra modes and Xbox Live compatibility, combined with the awesome existing premise of OutRun 2 - Ferraris, pretty girls, spectacular scenery, amazing graphics and lots of fun - our bet is that a home conversion would go down an absolute treat. Chuck a bit of marketing at it, and it really could work. A lot better than some other Sega arcade conversions we could mention.

Since the amount of work involved in converting OutRun 2 to run on Xbox would stretch to no more than about a week, and a few bucks to write some compression routines, we see no reason why Oguchi-san and his decision makers shouldn't bring this masterpiece into the living room as soon as possible. These days, I for one would rather stick OutRun 2 on for a quick blast than get bogged down in hours of detailed simulation. It's nice to see that AM2 hasn't taken itself too seriously with OutRun 2 and as a result they've made a game that any driving fan can enjoy. When considering a home port, Sega should remember there are plenty of gamers who just want quick, easy fun. And if Ed Fries is reading, get them told: gamers will want this game on Xbox.

Adam Doree
Director, Kikizo.com