Before setting off, you can choose to change your car type. No names
here, but your choices are obviously an Acura NSX,
Lamborghini Diablo...
PROTIP:
The NSX is recommended as having the best cornering bar none.
|
... Ferrari F40 and Porsche 911 Carrera.
Unfortunately, once you choose one type of car, you are stuck with
it for the rest of the game.
PROTIP:
If you wipe out in the Porsche, try to take a look at what(!) your
passenger is! |
The game seems to have disabled the option, but there still remain
graphics in the selection screen for 2 additional cars: a Citroën
2CV and a Renault 5 Turbo. I guess they
were in a French mood one day but snapped out of it.
PROTIP:
Hackers can set RAM location $2010 to 4 or 5 on the selection screen
to drive these forbidden cars.
***
BONUS! Or try the cheat codes below!
|
You can also choose between a convenient 2-speed
manual transmission, a manly 5-speed, and automatic for pussies. |
You get a choice of 10 different music tracks, with
a wide range of styles, most falling into the jazz fusion category.
The music really gets you into the laid-back mood for driving and is
excellent, despite lacking the catchy melodies of Out Run. Some oddball
tracks like "Oh! Brazil" and the hillbilly "Q CHAN"
are in there, but give the whole soundtrack a few plays and it will
really grow on you. |
|
|
| A
few more observations: Song 6, "Shake Me Down", is essentially
a CD remix of the menu music in Final Lap Twin on the
PCE. The title music of Road Spirits similarly shares a melody with
the title screen of FLT. These and other songs sound
similar to Galaxy Force's whole soundtrack, as well
as Quartet's too. |
The
connection? Katsuhiro
Hayashi.
Not
just any old studio musician, he composed the soundtracks for numerous
SEGA arcade games, including: Quartet, Galaxy Force, Super
Hang-On, SDI, and Gain Ground. On the Sega
Master System, he composed for Hokuto no Ken/Black Belt, Ashura/Rambo
II, and others. |
His
PCE works include Final Lap Twin, Altered Beast, Road Spirits,
Hihou Densetsu, Minesweeper, Zero 4 Champ II, and the fabuloso
Terraforming. His great music is basically why I'm
writing this page.
Hayashi's
nicknames include Funky K.H. and Q CHAN.
(aha!) |
One
of ARC's regular game designers has the nickname "2CV". Maybe
that explains the Citroens in the game... |
= 
= 
