Top Racer Collection is a package consisting of four retro racing titles. You’d be forgiven for never having heard of Top Racer, as for much of the world the series was known as Top Gear. Debuting in 1992 on the Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES), the series was well received by consumers, if not by critics. 30 years on, that latter part remains the same. This Top Racer Collection review was not fun to write.
The package features four titles: Top Racer, Top Racer 2, Top Racer 3000 and Top Racer Crossroads. The first title sets the standard that carries through its sequel. However, Top Racer 2 adds customisation options, track variety and some OutRun inspired car flipping. Top Racer 3000 spices things up considerably. Now you’re racing in the future. The cars seem pretty much the same as any other title in the series. But now the tracks have you hurtling across alien planets. There’s ramps, tracks with multiple paths and more. There’s also a revised upgrade system allowing for greater vehicle improvements.
Top Racer Crossroads is brand new for this collection; though we should use the word ‘new’ lightly. It’s a remixed version of the original Top Racer, adding in some new cars and background variation. Exactly why this has been done, we’re not sure.
While all of the above may sound great, as previously stated, this Top Racer Collection review isn’t going to be complimentary to much of it. Essentially, it’s a wonder why anyone would feel it necessary to recreate these games in the modern era for any reason but nostalgia.
Every single title in the collection was surpassed long before the demise of the SNES itself. Let alone on later consoles. And we’re not just talking in terms of technical presentation – of course racing games are vastly more competent now – but instead, of actual enjoyment. The game is barely playable by today’s standards; the view distance is irritatingly short, the car movement restrictive and the CPU racers are not held to the same standards as the player. It is, ultimately, a series of bad games.
But, nostalgia. As someone who played the original titles back in the early 90s it was a fun opportunity to revisit them. Even more so with the added online gameplay, revisiting rivalries with childhood friends. However, any enjoyment is fleeting. You’ll soon realise that there are far better racing games to spend your time with, both on the SNES and retro styled on modern consoles. Top Racer Collection may have been a great idea on paper, but that’s where it should’ve stayed.
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