Game:

Sprint 2 (1976)

Category:

Review

Duration: 2:01

867 views

32

Developed by Key Games in 1976, Spirit 2 can be revisited on Atari Flashback Classics Volume 2 and Atari Vault. The object is to manually control your car around the track and cover as much ground as you can in a limited amount of time. There's 12 tracks to choose from, complete with crossovers and oil slips. Going over the edge slows you down. If you beat the target score your playtime gets extended for 30 seconds. Sprint 2 is for 1 or 2 players and both players controlled a wheel, pedal, and manual gear shift on the original cabinet. The wheel has been mapped nicely to the analog stick, but takes a couple minutes to get used to. You can change between gears with either the four face buttons, or L1 and R1, which I found much easier. Changing gears requires you to keep numbers in your head, and could be daunting to someone whose never driven manual, but it feels great once you're able to piece a lap together. The game looks good for 1976, but sometimes you get mixed up on which car is yours, especially if the contrast on your screen is piss poor. The black car provides a formidable challenge on most tracks, but what would really bring Sprint 2 back to life is if the emulation allowed leaderboards for each of the tracks, instead of just 1 overall leaderboard. The sounds of the engine and gear change provides the necessary audio cues, but I wish there was a visual indicator of which gear I was in, oh there it is. Overall, Sprint 2 was a remarkable achievement from the early days of video racing games. First time I played this game I was impressed but then I found out it was released in 76 and I almost couldn't believe it. I had it figured for 79. And that's how I general grade retro reviews, by how well they aged and how old they are.