Fairly similar scores all over, with a slight advantage to the C64 version, but let's see how it turns out. The DOS version seems the only one with more of a presence, as 3047 voters at Abandonia have given it a similar score of 2.7 from 5.0, while the site editor has given it a 3.0. The score at CPC-Softs is similarly mediocre 11 out of 20, and only 2 users at Generation-MSX have voted their version to get a 3 stars out of 5 rating. At World of Spectrum, 21 voters have given their version a score of 5.53. The C64 version has a score of 6.7 from 53 votes at Lemon64, while its 16-bit counterpart has a 5.17 from 30 votes. While getting fairly good reviews at the time of release, time hasn't been particularly kind on this game. It also stands as a clear turning point in the company's success story. Mysteries notwithstanding, 4x4 ORR is one of the last big Epyx titles that (probably) originated on the C64, before the company turned their focus on creating games for the Atari Lynx while importing European games to the U.S. Another mystery regarding this game is, that some websites (such as MobyGames and Wikipedia) claim that it was also released for the Atari ST, when little exploration is needed to prove this claim false. was a short lived team, who were only responsible for developing four Epyx releases in 1988, all of which were somehow sports related. It's also one of the most mysterious Epyx games, since not much is known about the people involved in the making of practically any other version apart from the C64 and Spectrum ones, the former of which I'm rather certain is the original, since it actually does offer a proper Epyx-type credits sequence. Besides, it's about time an Epyx game, that is not part of their multi-event sports series, is featured on the blog.Ĥx4 Off-Road Racing isn't nearly one of the better known or popular Epyx games, but it is one of the more interesting titles. So, this presented a puzzle for a long while, until the answer was presented to me by a reader called Zaltys on the 5th of June 2020 - thanks again for the suggestion, and sorry for the delay! Not only does this bring another game into the numerals in the comparisons archive, but it also gives me a chance to really dive into a game I've long meant to, but have always postponed it due to lack of inspiration and time. But now that the comparison of Exploding Fist is done, the next logical step (if such logic exists) would be an Epyx game, but I didn't want to write about any of the other sport games quite yet, nor about Impossible Mission, because I've never really understood it, and there are just too many versions to bother with it. Since restarting the comparison blog in late 2019, I've been trying to avoid writing about games that are bound to be heavy work for a comparison. Published for Amstrad CPC, Commodore 64, Commodore Amiga, IBM-PC compatibles, MSX and Sinclair ZX Spectrum by Epyx for the North American market, and U.S. Sinclair ZX Spectrum version written by Steve Marsden and David Cooke. but any initial enthusiasm doesn't last.Ī technically competent racing sim spoilt by incredibly laborious gameplay and a total lack of variety.Programming by Paul Nickels, Joe Simko, Ed Schoenberg, Steve Thomas and K-Byte The idea captures your interest at first. The pre-race shots are pretty neat.įront-end ditty plus typical engine drone. Neatly designed four-wheelers rev up against bland and boring backdrops. Loads of easy-to-use options - an off-road racer's dream. Forget about excitement and breath-taking action: the only sharp intake of breath that this simulation could give rise to is a snore. I ended up using the wrong tyres and crashing on purpose just for a bit of variety. It's just that once you've gone cross-eyed trying to decipher the instruction sheet and picked all your extras, there isn't that much to it.įor a start all the landscapes, from desert to mud-flat, look virtually the same: I can only assume that all the other racers have rushed off to consult an optician in response to this, because hardly any of them are actually on the track! I bet you're all thinking, "It's an Epyx game so the presentation's got to be good". Once again, the advice is to stick to well-tried race games like Buggy Boy and Pitstop II. This, coupled with the very poor sound don't induce much wish to play the game, and even the most hardened race fans won't be too enthralled.
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