Tuesday, September 16, 2025

Dirt Racer for SNES PAL


Image: MobyGames

Dirt Racer

Super FX for the fail


Genre: racing - arcade

Publisher: Elite Systems

Year: 1995

System: SNES PAL


Gameplay Score: 1

Gameplay Notes:

Atrocious controls. They're so bad that it's legitimately fascinating to try to make sense of them. The tiniest of movements causes your vehicle to spin out of control. Also the opponent AI is weird because it seems to match your skill or movement such that you always stay just ahead of it. It's like reverse MK rubberbanding. Play Stunt Race FX instead.


Level Design Score: 1

Level Design Notes:

Stages have ill-defined objectives and bizarre layouts. Some are a traditional oval, with numerous 90 degree turns, but others have strange open layouts with a set of spots you need to drive over to "complete" the track. There are two modes that play the same. Every race is a two-person competition.


Theme Score: 2

Theme Notes:

European sensibilities such as a dumb smiley/sad face to indicate whether you're winning or losing and almost no other text. Otherwise no personality.


Art Style Score: 2

Art Style Notes:

Runs fairly smooth for a Super FX game, with what looks like a good polygon count. Unfortunately, the panels are pixelated and colored like a bad Genesis game. The sprites are the one saving grace, but with only three of them it's not enough to save this trainwreck


Audio Score: 2

Audio Notes:

Perfectly fine music but almost no sound effects. It's strangely quiet.


Overall Score: 25

Review ID: 3908



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