Afterburner II (Genesis / Mega Drive)

The Afterburner games were some of the earliest examples that I remember of an arcade game that seemed more like an amusement part ride.  The units for them could sometimes be gigantic with their cockpit-like set up.  Granted the home experience wasn't quite as bombastic, but Afterburner II on the Genesis was pretty darn fun.  Looking back it seems strange that your machine guns were constantly firing, and players were pretty much just dodging enemy missiles while shooting their own.  I guess gamers at the time were to busy thinking, "I'm flying a jet plane!" to think about some of the more nonsensical aspects of the game.

Outrun (Genesis / Mega Drive)

Another Yu Suzuki classic that gave us branching race courses, and a song called "Magical Sound Shower".  Outrun first came out in the arcades, then made its way to the Master System, and finally to the Genesis a few years later.  This is probably the game I most associate with arcade racing during this era, and you can see how it influenced a bunch of other arcade racers down the road, like the Rush series for instance.

Super Hang-On (Genesis / Mega Drive)

Going with a bit of a Sega Genesis racing game theme today.  Gonna start out with some Super Hang-On screenshots.  Played this a plenty in the arcades, and even more so on the Genesis.  Used to love the courses in Asia and Europe.  Stay tuned for some screens from Outrun and Super Monaco Grand Prix later in the day. ^_^

<3 Sega