Sega Rally Championship

From Sega Retro

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Sega Rally Title.png

Sega Rally Championship
System(s): Sega Model 2A CRX, Sega Saturn, PlayStation 2, PC
Publisher: Sega
Developer:
Genre: Racing

















Release Date RRP Code

Sega Rally Championship (セガラリー・チャンピオンシップ), also known simply as Sega Rally or occasionally by the extended title of Sega Rally Championship 1995, is an arcade racing game developed by Sega AM5 for Sega Model 2A CRX arcade hardware. It was released in 1995 to critical acclaim, and is the first in the Sega Rally series.

This is not the same game as the Game Boy Advance and N-Gage Sega Rally Championships which emerged in the years which followed.

Gameplay

Sega Rally is an off-road racing game, in which players drive rally cars across one of four tracks as quickly as possible. Like prior Sega arcade racing games, Sega Rally enforces a strict time limit and a checkpoint system - success is measured by how fast the player can navigate the three standard tracks before either crossing the final finish line or retiring due to the timer running out.

As a rally game, Sega Rally has no concept of "laps" (in the arcade version at least) - each track is treated as a linear journey from a defined beginning to a defined end (although in reality, all tracks are circular, so the beginning is the end). There are computer players which need to be avoided, with the overall aim of finishing in first place at the end of third course. The positions are carried through to each track, so if a user finishes in 10th on the first track, he or she will start in 10th place on the second. Opponent cars are not covered by the same strict rules - they exist solely to provide an extra layer of challenge to the game.

Sega Rally is notable for being the first racing game to allow players to drive on different surfaces, including including asphalt, gravel and mud. Each surface has different friction properties which adjust the car's handling accordingly. Prior to Sega Rally's release, racing games often took a more simplified approach to differing surface types - grass for example might simply reduce the top speed of the car, not affect handling, leading to unrealistic results. These features allow Sega Rally to stand out as a true "rally" game, a sport very much dictated by road surfaces, rather than a generic racing game with rally-esque settings.

As is standard for rallying, an unseen co-driver issues instructions for the road ahead, although it would not be until Sega Rally 2 when distances would be mentioned. The computer controlled AI cars are not as aggressive as seen in Daytona USA - they instead aim to take the best possible racing line at all times to deny the player of valuable seconds.

Cars

Only three cars exist in the first Sega Rally, two by Italian car manufacturer Lancia and one by the Japanese firm Toyota. All three are based on Group A models seen in the World Rally Championship, although there are some minor differences in regards to paintwork and sponsors. Template:Sections As is standard for many Sega racing games, both automatic and manual transmission variants of all three cars exist, with the manual car generally being faster.

Tracks

Template:Sections

History

Development

Release

Saturn Version

Following the arcade release, plans were put in place to bring the game in an enhanced form to the Sega Saturn. Marketed as a killer app for the system, the Saturn version arrived in late 1995/early 1996 to critical acclaim, and is often regarded as one of the system's best racing games.

The Saturn release retains all the features of the arcade version, although due to the Saturn being less powerful than the Model 2 arcade board, significant cuts were made to graphics, namely polygon counts, texture quality, draw distance and screen resolutions. To compensate, the Saturn Sega Rally has a full redbook audio soundtrack created by Naofumi Hataya.

As well as retaining the arcade mode and its original rules, the Saturn version contains a time attack mode in which you can race across multiple laps against a player ghost, as well as a split-screen two-player mode with similar track options. The primary difference is the ability to create and use customised variants of the Celica and Delta, with added adjustments for handling, tyres, front and back suspension, and even the blow-off valve to give the car a different noise when moving. The Saturn version also keeps a more detailed record of lap times and statistics of that nature. There is also a two-player cooparative mode.

The Saturn version was converted by Sega of Japan's CS Team, under guidance from Sega AM3. There are minor differences between regions - generally the US version has fewer graphical details than its Japanese and European counterparts, and its replay mode has fewer camera angles. All versions are compatible with the Arcade Racer Joystick.

Plus

1996 saw the release of Sega Rally Championship Plus in Japan. Plus is very much the same game and the standard Saturn Japanese release, but adds XBAND support and is tuned to work with the 3D Control Pad. For the latter reason alone it is generally considered to be the most definitive Sega Rally for the console.

PC Version

1997 saw a PC release of Sega Rally, appropriately titled Sega Rally Championship PC. This version shares the same feature set as the Saturn version although sports superior graphics and network play.

An very rare variant of the PC version, distributed with Righteous 3D video cards (by Orchid) exists with added Direct3D support. The added 3D hardware acceleration provided by this port allows for superior graphics and frame rates, although as textures were not replaced, it is still on the whole less detailed than the Model 2 version.

Plus: NetLink Edition

In the United States an enhanced Sega Saturn version of the game was released under the title of Sega Rally Championship Plus: NetLink Edition. This is similar to Sega Rally Championship Plus, though swaps XBAND support for Sega NetLink support. It does not, however, feature 3D Control Pad support, so now that the NetLink service is deceased, is no different to the standard Saturn port.

PlayStation 2 Version

A version for the PlayStation 2 was bundled as a box set with Sega Rally 2006 in Japan and Asia. This is a straight port of the Model 2 version with some adjustments for the PlayStation 2 hardawre. Only the arcade mode is available and extra settings of the Saturn and PC versions are absent, however it is currently the most accurate home port of the game available.

Legacy

Sega Rally was followed by Sega Rally 2 for Sega Model 3 hardware and later the Sega Dreamcast. Codemasters have cited Sega Rally as a strong influence on their first Colin McRae Rally game.

Production Credits

Arcade Version

Chief Programmer: Sohei Yamamoto
Programmer: Kenichi Yamamoto, Shinobu Hayashi, Satoshi Shiozaki
Chief Graphic Designer: Kenji Sasaki
Graphic Designer: Kumiko Shoji, Kenji Arai, Seiichi Yamagata, Tomoko Yemura, Nachiyo Kamogawa
Music: Takenobu Mitsuyoshi
Sound Effects & Music: Tomoyuki Kawamura
Mechanical Engineer: Masao Yoshimoto, Masayoshi Yamada, Hiroki Koyama, Hiroyuki Takahashi, Tomoya Takasugi, Takuya Ohashi
Cabinet Graphic Designer: Jun Hirato
Special Thanks: Toyota Motor Corporation, Fiat Auto S.P.A. -Lancia-, C-One Corporation, Shuichi Furuoka, Koh Akiyama
Navigator's Voice: Kenneth Ibrahim
Assistant Director: Isao Matsumoto
Produced by: Tetsuya Mizuguchi
Directed by: Kenji Sasaki

Saturn Version

Head Programmers: Ryuichi Hattori, Osamu Hori
Programmers: Kouichi Toya, Yasuhiro Watanabe, Koji Kaifu
Head Graphic Designers: Minoru Matsuura, Shiro Kinemura
Graphic Designers: Saori Wada, Masashi Kubo, Maiko Kitagawa
Sound Director: Tatsuya Kozaki
Music Composer: Naofumi Hataya
Sound Effects: Seiro Okamoto, Tatsuya Kozaki
Sound Programmers: Naomi Yamamoto, Tadahiko Inoue, Yoshiaki Kashima
Navigator's Voice: Kennes Ibrahim
Special Thanks: Kenji Sasaki, Sohei Yamamoto, Mario Cotza, Toyota Motor Corporation, Fiat Auto S.P.A. - Lancia
Supervisor: Yoshio Fujimoto
Produced by: Tetsuya Mizuguchi
Directed by: Ryuichi Hattori, Atsuhiko Nakamura


Head Programmers: Ryuichi Hattori, Osamu Hori
Programmers: Kouichi Toya, Yasuhiro Watanabe, Koji Kaifu
Head Graphic Designers: Minoru Matsuura, Shiro Kinemura
Graphic Designers: Saori Wada, Masashi Kubo, Maiko Kitagawa
Sound Producer: Yukifumi Makino
Sound Director: Tatsuya Kozaki
Music Composer: Naofumi Hataya
Sound Effects: Seiro Okamoto, Tatsuya Kozaki
Sound Programmers: Naomi Yamamoto, Tadahiko Inoue, Yoshiaki Kashima
Navigator's Voice: Kenneth Ibrahim
Recording Producer: Tatsutoshi Narita
Recording Director: Fumitaka Shibata
Recording Engineer: Naoyuki Machida
Public Relation: Hiroto Kikuchi, Ryutaro Nonaka, Tadashi Takezaki, Yasushi Nagumo
Overseas Coordination: James Spahn, Ryoichi Hasegawa
Manual Preparation: Hiroyuki Mitsui, Hiroya Tanaka, Hayato Takebayashi
Special Thanks: Kenji Sasaki, Sohei Yamamoto, Shinji Kawahira, Jun Senoue, Youji Ishii, Koichi Nagata, Makoto Oshitani, Yutaka Kamimura, Ko Tanaka, Mario Cotza, Koki Takahira (Car Graphic), Toshiya Hasegawa (Rally Xpress), C-One Corporation, Castrol, Michelin
Original Sound Track

"Ignition"
  • 'Conditioned Reflex', 'Getting Muddy', 'Power Games', 'Reckless Running', 'Ignition', 'Desert Land', 'My Dear Friend, Rally'
Music Composed by: Takenobu Mitsuyoshi
Sound Produced by: Takayuki Hijikata
  • 'My Dear Friend, Rally'
Written by: Kenneth Ibrahim, Tetsuya Mizuguchi

Supervisor: Yoshio Fujimoto (TEIN)
Thanks to the cooperation of Toyota & Lancia. The automobiles in Sega Rally Championship are the actual cars that participated in the WRC.

  • Toyota Celica GT-Four, Lancia Delta HF Integrale, and Lancia Stratos

Produced by: Tetsuya Mizuguchi
Directed by: Ryuichi Hattori, Atsuhiko Nakamura
Presented by: Sega Enterprises

US Manual Credits

Producer: Chris Cutliff
Assistant Producer: Tracy Johnson
Test Lead: Fernando Valderrama
Test Assistant Leads: Steve Thompson, Jay Vo, Sean Doidge
Manual: Marc Sherrod
Sega Sports Team: Scott Rohde, Chris Smith, Gerald Deyoung, Rosie Freeman, Mark Panigua, Lorne Asuncion, Todd Morgan, Dave Perkinson, Matt Underwood, Terry Thomas, Tom Abramson, John Gillin, Anne Moellering, Brad Hogan, John Carlucci, Adriane DeGroot

US Manual Credits (Plus: NetLink Edition)

Sega of America:

Producer: Tre Johnson
Net Link Producer: Paul Stathacopoulos
Director of Net Link Engineering: Yutaka Yamamoto
Lead Testers: Sean Doidge, Michael McCollum, Chris Lucich
Product Manager: Andrew Stein
Product Specialist: Mark Subotnick
Packaging: Eric Smith
Designers/Programmers: Victor Zavala, Patrick Joiner, Bruce Jones
Manual: Frank Higgins/Andrew Stein
Manual Layout: Verdoni Multi Media
SOA Software Test Department: Anthony Borba, Steve Bourdet, Ryan Hurth, Rick Greet, Ty Johnson, Marc Dawson, Roger DeForest, Polly Villayuta, Chris Cates, Jeremy Caine, Jesse Caseras, Aaron Hommes, Greg Pett, Hamilton Baylon, Lloyd Kinoshita, John Jansen, Matt Ironside, Mo Berry, Ferdinand Villar, Michael Yu
Special Thanks: Mark Lindstrom, Steve Hutchins, Greg Winslow, Geraldine Dessimoz, Mike Needham, Yoshi Nakano, Eileen Sacman, Dan Stevens, Marcelyn Ditter, Anne Moellering, Mike Markey, Sega On-Line and the Seedy Crew

MPATH, Inc.:

XBAND Software: Josh Horwich, Janice Hsia, Dave Jacobs, Richard Kiss, Dan Lindsey, Andrew Stadler, Hoan Tran
XBAND Art: Joanna Escolar, Joey Stocklein
Mplayer Art: William Haas
Web Design: John Schroeder

PlanetWeb, Inc.:

VP Engineering: Ken Soohoo
Computer Engineering: Jeff Chin, Steven Cole, Warren Gee, Edgar Allen Tu
Art Direction: Cuyler Gee
QA Manager: Randall Hughes
QA: John Takizawa
Director of Server Technologies: James Straus

PC Version

Head Programmers: Ryuichi Hattori, Osamu Hori
Programmers: Kouichi Toya, Yasuhiro Watanabe, Koji Kaifu
Head Graphic Designers: Minoru Matsuura, Shiro Kinemura
Graphic Designers: Saori Wada, Masashi Kubo, Maiko Kitagawa
Sound Director: Tatsuya Kozaki
Music Composer: Naofumi Hataya
Sound Effects: Seiro Okamoto, Tatsuya Kozaki
Sound Programmers: Naomi Yamamoto, Tadahiko Inoue, Yoshiaki Kashima
Navigator's Voice: Kenneth Ibrahim
Special Thanks: Kenji Sasaki, Sohei Yamamoto, Mario Cotza, Toyota Motor Corporation, Fiat Auto S.P.A. - Lancia
Supervisor: Yoshio Fujimoto
Produced by: Tetsuya Mizuguchi
Directed by: Ryuichi Hattori, Atsuhiko Nakamura

PlayStation 2 Version

Chief Programmer: Sohei Yamamoto
Programmer: Kenichi Yamamoto, Shinobu Hayashi, Satoshi Shiozaki
Chief Graphic Designer: Kenji Sasaki
Graphic Designer: Kumiko Shoji, Kenji Arai, Seiichi Yamagata, Tomoko Yemura, Nachiyo Kamogawa
Music & Sound Effects: Takenobu Mitsuyoshi, Tomoyuki Kawamura
Sound Programmer: Yuichi UeDA
Mechanical Engineer: Masao Yoshimoto, Masayoshi Yamada, Hiroki Koyama, Hiroyuki Takahashi, Tomoya Takasugi, Takuya Ohashi
Cabinet Graphic Designer: Tetsuo Okabe
Special Thanks: Toyota Motor Corporation, Fiat Auto S.P.A. -Lancia-, C-One Corporation, Shuichi Furuoka, Koh Akiyama
Navigator's Voice: Kenneth Ibrahim
Assistant Director: Isao Matsumoto
Produced by: Tetsuya Mizuguchi
Directed by: Kenji Sasaki

Gallery

Physical Scans

Model 2 Version

Sega Retro Average 
Publication Score Source
93 №163, p93
83 №11, p76/77
Arcade
88
Based on
2 reviews
Sega Retro Average 
Publication Version Score
Arcade
N/A
Based on
0 reviews

Sega Rally Championship


Saturn Version

Sega Retro Average 
Publication Score Source
90 №13, p46/47/48/49/50/51
96 №50, p98/99/100/101
95 №171, p38/39/40/41
80 №29, p70/71
100 №3, p142
95 №40, p64/65/66
98 №60, p108/109/110
97 №75
97 №3, p78/79
93 №15, p58/59/60/61
Sega Saturn
94
Based on
10 reviews
Sega Retro Average 
Publication Version Score
Alaab Alcomputtar (SA)
95
[1]
CD Consoles (FR)
100
[2]
Consoles + (FR)
96
[3]
Computer & Video Games (UK)
95
[4]
Digitiser (UK) PAL
93
[5]
Edge (UK)
80
[6]
Electronic Gaming Monthly (US)
85
[7]
Famitsu (JP) NTSC-J
90
[8]
Fun Generation (DE)
100
[9]
Fusion (US) NTSC-U
75
[10]
Gambler (PL)
95
[11]
GameFan (US) NTSC-U
96
[12]
Game Players (US) NTSC-U
92
[13]
GamePro (US) NTSC-U
80
[14]
GamePro (UK)
95
[15]
GamesMaster (UK) PAL
95
[16]
Hobby Consolas (ES)
95
[17]
LeveL (CZ)
86
[18]
MAN!AC (DE) PAL
89
[19]
Maximum (UK)
100
[20]
Mega Force (FR) PAL
98
[21]
Mega Fun (DE) NTSC-U
92
[22]
Mean Machines Sega (UK)
95
[23]
Mean Machines Sega (UK) PAL
95
[24]
Next Generation (US) NTSC-U
100
[25]
Player One (FR)
98
[26]
Power Up! (UK)
98
[27]
Saturn Fan (JP) NTSC-J
86
[28]
Saturn+ (UK) PAL
95
[29]
Score (CZ)
90
[30]
Secret Service (PL)
95
[31]
Sega Magazin (DE)
95
[32]
Sega Pro (UK) PAL
95
[33]
Świat Gier Komputerowych (PL)
95
[34]
Sega Saturn Magazine (UK) PAL
97
[35]
Sega Saturn Magazine (JP) NTSC-J
93
[36]
Sega Saturn Magazine (JP) NTSC-J
91
[37]
Strana Igr (RU)
73
[38]
Total Saturn (UK) PAL
96
[39]
Ultimate Future Games (UK) PAL
93
[40]
Última Generación (ES)
95
[41]
Video Games (DE)
93
[42]
Sega Saturn
93
Based on
42 reviews

Sega Rally Championship

Saturn, US
Segarally sat us backcover.jpgSegarally sat us frontcover.jpg
Cover
Segarally sat us manual.pdf
Manual
Saturn, US (Plus: NetLink Edition)
SegaRallyNetlinkEdition US Box Back.jpgSegaRallyNetlinkEdition US Box Front.jpg
Cover
Segarallynetlink sat us manual.pdf
Manual
Saturn, EU
Segarally sat eu cover.jpg
Cover
SegaRallyChampionship saturn eu cd.jpg
Disc
Saturn, EU (newer)

Saturn, JP
Segarally sat jp backcover.jpgSegarally sat jp frontcover.jpg
Cover
Saturn, JP (Plus)
SegaRallyPlus Saturn JP Box Back.jpgSegaRallyPlus Saturn JP Box Front.jpg
Cover
Saturn, JP (Plus) (Satakore)
SegaRallyPlus Saturn JP Box Front Satakore.jpg
Cover
Saturn, BR
Segarally sat br backcover.jpgNospine.pngSegarally sat br frontcover.jpg
Cover
Saturn, KR
SegaRally Saturn KR Box.jpg
Cover

PC Version

PC, US
SegaRally PC US Box Front.jpg
Cover
PC, US (Expert Software)
SegaRally PC US Box Front Expert.jpg
Cover
PC, EU

Sega Rally PC EU Disc.jpg
Disc
Sega Rally PC EU Box Back.jpgSega Rally PC EU Box Front.jpg
Jewel Case
PC, EU (Ntertainment)
<div style="margin:auto; max-width:Expression error: Unexpected < operator.px"> 320x120px
Cover
PC, JP
SegaRally PC JP Box Front.jpg
Cover
PC, JP (Ultra 2000)
SegaRally PC JP Box Front Ultra2000.jpg
Cover
PC, UK (Xplosiv)
SegaRally PC EU Box Xplosiv.jpg
Cover
PC, UK (Xplosiv) (Alt)

PC, UK (GrabIt)
SegaRally PC EU Box GrabIt.jpg
Cover
PC, UK (Fair Game)

PC, DE

PC, DE (Green Pepper)
SegaRally PC DE Box GreenPepper.jpg
Cover
PC, NL/FR (Sega Classics)

PC, Asia

PC, KR

PlayStation 2 Version

PlayStation 2, JP
SegaRally PS2 JP Box.jpg
Cover

External Links



Games in the Sega Rally Series
Arcade
Sega Rally Championship (Special Stage) (1995) | Sega Rally 2 (1998) | Sega Rally 3 (2008)
Sega Saturn
Sega Rally Championship (Plus | NetLink) (1995-1997)
Windows PC
Sega Rally Championship (1997) | Sega Rally 2 (1999) | Sega Rally Revo (2007)
Sega Dreamcast
Sega Rally 2 (1999)
Game Boy Advance
Sega Rally Championship (2002)
N-Gage
Sega Rally Championship (2004)
Sony PlayStation 2
Sega Rally 2006 (2006) | Sega Rally Championship (2006)
Xbox 360
Sony PlayStation 3
Sony PlayStation Portable
Sega Rally Revo (2007)
Xbox Live Arcade
PlayStation 3 PlayStation Network
Sega Rally Online Arcade (2011)
Sega Rally related media
Music
Sega Rally Championship Ignition (1995) | Competition/Sega Rally Championship Complete (1996) | Sega Rally 2 (1998) | Sega Rally 2 Re-Arrange Album: Another Entries (1999) | Sega Rally 2006 Original Sound Track (2006) | Sega Rally Revo (2008) | Sega Rally Championship: New Century Arrange Album (2013)
Book
Sega Rally Championship Competition Driving Guide (1995) | Sega Rally Championship Course Attack Manual (1996) | Sega Rally Championship Hisshou Kouryaku Hou (1996) | Sega Rally 2 Official Guide (1998) | Sega Rally 2 Championship Competition Driving Guide (1998) | Sega Rally 2 Driving Naviation Book (1999) | Sega Rally 2 Kanzen Kouryaku!! (1999) | Sega Rally 2 Hisshou Kouryaku-hou (1999)
Film
CGMV Sega Rally Championship 1995 (1995)
  1. Alaab Alcomputtar, "" (SA; 1996-xx-xx), page 49
  2. CD Consoles, "Janvier 1996" (FR; 199x-xx-xx), page 46
  3. Consoles +, "Janvier 1996" (FR; 199x-xx-xx), page 98
  4. Computer & Video Games, "February 1996" (UK; 1996-01-12), page 38
  5. Digitiser (UK) (1996-01-24)
  6. Edge, "February 1996" (UK; 1996-01-12), page 70
  7. Electronic Gaming Monthly, "January 1996" (US; 199x-xx-xx), page 188
  8. Famitsu, "1996-01-05,12" (JP; 1995-12-22), page 31
  9. Fun Generation, "01/96" (DE; 1995-12-20), page 54
  10. Fusion, "Volume 1, Number 6: January 1996" (US; 199x-xx-xx), page 94
  11. Gambler, "10/1996" (PL; 1996-xx-xx), page 40
  12. GameFan, "Volume 4, Issue 1: January 1996" (US; 199x-xx-xx), page 18
  13. Game Players, "Vol. 9 No. 1 January 1996" (US; 199x-xx-xx), page 83
  14. GamePro, "February 1996" (US; 199x-xx-xx), page 60
  15. GamePro, "February 1996" (UK; 1995-12-xx), page 58
  16. GamesMaster (UK) "Series 5, episode 11" (1995-11-30, 24:00) (+3:25)
  17. Hobby Consolas, "Febrero 1996" (ES; 1996-xx-xx), page 48
  18. LeveL, "Říjen 1996" (CZ; 1996-10-01), page 1
  19. MAN!AC, "02/96" (DE; 1996-01-10), page 46
  20. Maximum, "January 1996" (UK; 199x-xx-xx), page 142
  21. Mega Force, "Janvier 1996" (FR; 199x-xx-xx), page 62
  22. Mega Fun, "01/96" (DE; 1995-12-20), page 32
  23. Mean Machines Sega, "February 1996" (UK; 1995-12-xx), page 64
  24. Mean Machines Sega, "March 1996" (UK; 1996-01-28), page 88
  25. Next Generation, "February 1996" (US; 1996-01-16), page 162
  26. Player One, "Janvier 1996" (FR; 199x-xx-xx), page 107
  27. Power Up!, "Saturday, January 27, 1996" (UK; 1996-01-27), page 1
  28. Saturn Fan, "1996 No. 5" (JP; 1996-02-16), page 68
  29. Saturn+, "Christmas 1995" (UK; 1995-12-14), page 22
  30. Score, "Říjen 1996" (CZ; 1996-10-01), page 112
  31. Secret Service, "Lipiec/Sierpień 1996" (PL; 1996-08-01), page 64
  32. Sega Magazin, "Februar 1996" (DE; 1996-01-10), page 30
  33. Sega Pro, "February 1996" (UK; 1995-12-28), page 26
  34. Świat Gier Komputerowych, "10/1996" (PL; 1996-xx-xx), page 1
  35. Sega Saturn Magazine, "January 1996" (UK; 1995-12-15), page 78
  36. Sega Saturn Magazine, "1996-01 (1996-01-12,26)" (JP; 1995-12-22), page 191
  37. Sega Saturn Magazine, "Readers rating final data" (JP; 2000-03), page 11
  38. Strana Igr, "Mart 1996" (RU; 1996-xx-xx), page 100
  39. Total Saturn, "Volume One Issue Four" (UK; 1996-12-29), page 48
  40. Ultimate Future Games, "February 1996" (UK; 1996-01-03), page 58
  41. Última Generación, "Diciembre 1995" (ES; 1995-1x-xx), page 56
  42. Video Games, "1/96" (DE; 1995-12-06), page 76