Wallace & Gromit The Grand Tour - Unreleased PC Build (April 15, 1999)
46Exploring the recently released PC prototype of Wallace & Gromit: The Grand Tour dated April 15, 1999. Explinations for various points in the video can be found below.
Wallace & Gromit: The Grand Tour eventually became Gubble Buggy Racer when the initial pitch for the game was canned, this build looks to be placed around the time where W&G was being turned into Gubble Buggy.
A link to the build can be found here, released by codebound
https://archive.org/details/wallace-gromit-the-grand-tour-april-15-1999.-7z
Track 1: two three one 00:07
Right off the bat, various HUD elements are toggled on with F1-F4, I notice the track map tanks the framerate (which is already struggling) so I hid that again to make things more viewable. You'll note that Wallace has a facecam (pratcam), and he emotes through this during races.
We can press A, F and H to give Wallaces kart different weapons. A is a backwards firing oil slick. F is a turbo boost (I use this the most) and H is a porridge gun. I demonstrate these throughout the video.
This track is the one missing the most graphics, hard to tell whether its from Gubble Buggy or W&G.
Noteably the F turbo boost uses voice clips from A Close Shave.
Menus 03:30
In the menu I showed all the avalible options, despite there being folders for other karts and racers in the files (Box, Chitty, Chitty2, Chitty3, FeathersMcGraw, Gromit, TechoTrousers, Truck, Wheels) only Wallace is avalible to drive.
Track 2: one two three 04:07
This is the most complete track in the game, and is eventually used in Gubble Buggy Racer as Gubble World. The frame rate suffers here from all the textures, again I show the course map and switch it off to lessen the load.
Track 3: three two one 07:48
This track has very minimal textures present, but they're textures from the W&G stage of development! various advertisement boards around the course show Wendolene and Prestons Dog Food. The track map also displays an actual map rarther than a dotted line, and doesn't noticeably tank the frame rate, so I left it up so I could use it to guide me around. There are also collectables on this map! Which I discovered late into this segment driving into a cracker. Can't tell what the cracker did, but pick-ups for the porridge cannon and oil slick are on the main straight and all function.
Thank you for the release of this! This is a dream come true, here's hoping we can find an older build from before the reskin to Gubble Buggy Racing began someday.
Recorded 08/12/24
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