Developers: Sega AM2 (Arcade, Saturn, 2001, HD), Sega AM3 (Championship Circuit Edition, Circuit Edition, and Deluxe Edition)
Publisher: Sega
Platforms: Arcade, Sega Saturn, PC, Dreamcast, PS3 (PSN), Xbox 360 (XBL)
Release Dates (US): 1994 (Arcade), May 1995 (Saturn, Arcade version), November 26, 1996 (Saturn, Championship Circuit Edition), October 31, 1997 (PC, Deluxe Edition), June 1998 (Daytona USA 2), March 12, 2001 (Dreamcast), October 25, 2011 (PSN), October 26, 2011 (XBL)
Genre: Racing
Daytona USA is another one of Sega's Arcade racing games that has been ported numerous times, and for good reason.
The Gameplay is solid. It is classic arcade racing at its finest. You start in last place and you have a finite number of Laps and Time to get to 1st place and finish the race. You pass Checkpoints that give you Time Extensions so you can keep play. That's all there is to it, just solid racing. The original Arcade version was the start, you had 3 courses to drive on and can choose Manual or Automatic transmission, with the Manual transmission having a 5 mph speed advantage. The arcade game supported up to 8 players at once so you can race your friends. Daytona USA also has a unique feature, you can turn around and race in Reverse and still finish. It is a challenge and makes you take a different approach to the courses. The Saturn port of the Arcade game is faithful to the Arcade game. The next one for the Saturn was the Championship Circuit Edition, which added 2 new tracks, new music and remixed music, and a selection of cars with different stats. The PC game was called the Deluxe Edition, it featured all the content from the Saturn's Championship Circuit Edition with the addition of an extra course. The Championship Circuit Edition also had a Net Link version, which is almost indistinguishable from the standard version. Contrary to popular belief, Panzer Dragoon Saga is not the rarest game for the Saturn, it is actually Daytona USA Championship Circuit Edition Netlink Version, which can fetch prices up to $1,100. The Dreamcast version came out in 2001, and is also called Daytona USA 2001. It features the 5 courses from the Championship Circuit Edition plus 3 new courses. It also features a new selection of cars along side the Hornet. The Dreamcast game also featured Online play for up to 8 players, and a local 2 player mode. The most recent version is the HD version on PSN and XBL, it is a port of the original Arcade game, but also adds a Mission Mode, a Survival Mode, a Karaoke mode, Leaderboard support, and 8 player online.
A sequel was made for the Arcade called Daytona USA 2: Battle on the Edge. It features 3 new tracks and a choice of 3 new cars with different stats. A few months later, an enhanced version called Daytona USA 2: Power Edition was released. It adds a 4th car, which is the Hornet from the original Daytona USA, replaces the environment on the Beginner track, and adds a Challenge mode, which allows you to race all 3 tracks as one super lap, you start on the Advanced course, go to the Expert course, and finish with one lap around the Beginner course. It still has up to 8 player races like the first game.
The Arcade music is classic. Dayton USA is where ROLLING START come from! The songs are catchy, and the 2001 remixes are good as well.
Bottom Line: Daytona USA is a classic arcade racing game that shouldn't be missed. It is a definite Play It.
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