Back in early 2013 '90s Arcade Racer was confirmed for the Wii U eShop, with an initial crowdfunding campaign making way for a publishing deal with Nicalis. Back then developer Antonis Pelekanos told us that it was a love letter to titles such as Daytona USA, and that he was targeting a release by the end of the year. As it's now 2014 that time has clearly passed, but Nicalis has provided a blog update on progress so far.
This update focuses on the progress of the Wii U version in comparison to the PC build, with clarification that the use of the Unity engine has "made our part of getting [it] running on Wii U much easier than expected". The post goes on to admit that some details have been lost in translation from PC, but nevertheless talks up the performance of the title on Nintendo's home console.
Without getting into minutia that we’re probably not allowed to share in great detail, some things that worked on PC couldn’t be ported exactly Wii U without having affecting how the game performs on the Nintendo console–and probably other consoles, too. However, we’re very happy with the results. Fidelity, image quality and a smooth framerate are our priorities. Detractors note, Wii U is proving very capable of running the game at 60fps at 720p with 4xMSAA and FXAA resulting in a crystal clear image. It’s simply beautiful.
On the programming side these past few weeks our lead programmer has been busy working on the AI and creating the type of competition we’ve discussed in the past–focusing on a fun arcade experience. Our goal is to be able to race against 30 cars in each race. If we hit that number we’ll be quite happy.
30 car races certainly sound appealing, and fans of Sega's classic arcade racing titles are sure to be hopeful that the 60 frames-per-second at 720p will satisfy rose-tinted memories. No solid release date is given in the update, but the target is mid-2014.
Below is the trailer released last year. Are you looking forward to this one?
[source blog.nicalis.com]
Comments 64
60 fps. That's all I needed to hear. Erm.. I mean read.
Hopefully there is an online component.
Sounds good for me. As long as gameplay is smooth, I might think about getting this.
MY GOD THIS GAME BETTER HAVE ONLINE MODES!
Amazing - I can't wait for this!
Cruis'n!
Cruis'n the wooo-oo-oorld! Yeah yeah yeah!
If it's anything like Cruis'n World on the n64 I'm there...
This looks great! A perfect love letter to Daytona only with more than three courses! Day one for me I think
I'm eagerly expecting this one.
@eichs22 looks more like Daytona, which is a great thing.
I've been very interested in this game for a long time..the sooner it is released, the better.
I can't wait for this. Have been excited for it since it's successful kickstarter. Glad a new mid 2014 date has finally been announced.
Looks great, memories of Virtua Racing and Daytona USA are dancing in my head.
Hmph. I'd like my Daytona USA throwback to play in full 1080p HD 60fps, thank-you-very-much.
I personally never cared for "FPS" or "p" much, I rarely actually notice when a game is only 30FPS
I will take a 720p game at 60 FPS over 1080p at 30 FPS..........every time, especially so for a racer.
Releasing this around the same time as mario kart seems a little foolish
But will there be online?
Yes, of course, dedicated online will come standard,.........except for the Wii U version.
Take my money Nintendo lack good racers I'm not counting mario kart I love it but I mean real racers and Daytona brings back good memories I'm so wanting this and happy we(u) lol getting this can't wait and as for online nowadays shouldent b a prob but that would b even better if it is hearing bout this game has made my day as I didn't know it was coming
Definitely up for this
@eichs22 I LOVED Cruis'n World! I'll be picking this up for sure.
Glad there's been an update, I was beginning to worry that this wasn't coming.
@CrazyOtto You've got to watch the comparisons of 30 vs 60fps. It's a huge difference. Once you notice what 60 fps looks like, you will never want to go back to 30.
The tracks are pure scenery porn.
Having a solid 60fps and 720p is more important than 1080p but I do think if they tried they could get 1080p and 60fps.
Hope this not gonna be $30 like F1
If it's worth the $30, no complaints here.
Want!
Looks fantastic, I'm looking forward to it.
@TruenoGT Sega is still making them. With the console budgets they should be able to get stuff equivalent to this : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MOINoDbityw (Not finished but that is what it should be like. Same with FPS that should look like Operation G.H.O.S.T). In terms of how smooth they get it they are in a different league. (Or they are less willing to sacrifice framerate maybe). Stuck in youtube at 30fps though - doesn't work in the html5 player.
The Nintendo Life video is equally pointless without the HTML5 player as well.
Love me some classic arcade racing. Coupled with GamePad steering and gear shifting, this is bound to be a thrilling, authentic experience.
I would buy it full price of the shelf, so yes I am indeed quite looking forward to this. We can't live of "need For Speed Most Wanted" for ever!
This is a must have for me. I will be comparing the PC to the Wii U version though. That said I'm not going to be upgrading my mid level graphics card though.
It better have online or it just won't be a true arcade experience at all..
Cool! Yep, looking forward. Online would rock!
Been waiting for this game forever, too bad it comes out after Mario Kart, still going to buy it though. I love arcade racers.
@TwoTheNines True Arcade experience has to include a physical wheel and pedals surely ? (Only super recent thing Arcades having online connections).
Adding this one to my watch list. Looks pretty fun and dinosaurs are always welcome!
Now this looks awesome!!
Add online and you have a sale
@element187
One of the Devs was posting over at Neogaf and specifically stated that, at the least, Wii U will have a really awesome 2p mode local with one on Gamepad other on Screen. He wants to make sure local is ,and if they can get online in before launch they will. Otherwise they will more than likely do a post launch patch for online. So it looks like we will have online play, but more odds are it will be post launch add on.
I want it, and I want it NOW!
Good to know that the frame rate has been prioritised; otherwise it would be falling at the first hurdle towards replicating the look and feel of a Japanese arcade game.
Western devs tend to worry more about wowing you with detail and realism, frame rate be damned. Another school of thought is that simple shapes, bright colours and characters that are free to move about in their space unhindered by sluggish refresh rates (or slow frame rendering?) can be just as attractive. A line can be traced from Pac-man right up to Super Mario 3D World today.
Everything about this game just makes me happy.
Online please
This game looks gorgeous! Will definitely buy!
Can't wait, looks really good! This and Project Cars should do nicely to fill that racing void! Haven't gotten into NFS Most Wanted yet though.
Looks awesome. I hope they include online because I don't have many friends...
Daytona USA was an excellent racing game which I would love to revisit in some form. This looks like a day one purchase for me as if it even vaguely resembles the adrenaline of those games, it will be a delightful experience!
j want also f 355 !!!!!!
please !
and virtua striker online !
for this to get far and to sell like hot cakes it needs ONLINE MODES
Day one purchase
Interesting game...just as long as it doesn't get lost in the shadow of Mario Kart. Nevertheless, it looks like a great mix of virtua racing, daytona USA, and even Indy 500!
Good choice. 1080p and 720p usually makes a pretty small difference (especially with anti-aliasing enabled), but 60fps and 30fps is a world of difference in fast moving games.
I'm not really into racing games but this will be a day one purchase.
I was actually thinking of this the other day, wondering where it's gone... Still looking forward to it - will still probably get it on first day! I hope we have a more updated video soon
I think I learned about this game here. I'm super excited for it! Although I'm no good at racing games, I still find them fun to play. I like arcade-style racers the most because they can get away with outlandish and fascinating scenery and mechanics that make racing easier for car-dummies like me.
I really want this, but now i also really want daytona and scud race on my wii u as well
This sounds awesome!
90's is awesome, this game should have some shortcuts
90's is awesome, this game should have some shortcuts
This game looks awesome. I love racers like this. Not much of a racing SIM guy but arcade racers, yes yes yes! I love Mario Kart/Sonic Transformed, I love F-Zero/Fast Racing, and I love games like this. Games like Rush back on the N64. Stunt mode was so good in that game...
OMG that looks awesome, I am a fan of Sega's 90s arcade racers, and too bad I didn't know about this kickstarter last year. It's okay I will be buying it anyway.
Looking forward to seeing how this one turns out...
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