- A roll cage is also an automotive component.
Rollcage is an arcade-style racing game for Windows and PlayStation, developed by Attention to Detail, and published by Psygnosis. The Windows version was released in the UK on March 24, 1999. The game's selling point was its unique physics engine, in which cars could drive on walls or ceilings because of the airflow passing over them at extreme speeds. The game also featured an original soundtrack by Fatboy Slim.
The game received very positive reviews and ratings.
Overview[ | ]
Rollcage allows players to race as one of 6 cars and drivers. The drivers are Tony, Lothar, Ria, Jet, Leon and Lenny. When the game is completed in "Easy" mode the "Hard" mode and a seventh mysterious driver (who now can race against you) are unlocked. Completing "Hard" mode allows players to race as the seventh driver (a policeman named Yuri). He arguably has the best statistics in the game due his car's higher speed, grip, and acceleration and strength. The cars are all double sided so, they can be driven on either side. This is done by having the tires of the car larger than the body. The cars cannot be destroyed in the game.
The racing modes available to choose from are: League, Arcade, Time attack and Multiplayer.
Tracks[ | ]
There are 4 main "Worlds" in Rollcage, each with up to four tracks; Neoto City, Harpoon Islands, Saphire Springs and Outworld.
- Neoto City is largely based on a city in Japan. This can be seen especially in the logo, as it is in the shape of Japan's national flag.
- Harpoon Islands are a series of tracks on a group of tropical islands.
- Sapphire Springs is an icy and snowy place.
- Outworld is a mining complex on Mars.
Weapons and Power-ups[ | ]
There are many weapons and power-ups in the game, and they are an integral part of the game. If used carefully, weapons and power-ups can help a lot during racing. There are 2 slots for weapons in the game so at any one time, the player can have 2 weapons, and they can be the same type.
Leader Missile[ | ]
This a missile, when fired will make its way to the leader of the race and will blow him up into the air. The car and driver will not die or get damaged (as the cars can not actually be destroyed by any means). The missile has a green tinge as it's traveling. When hit the car will go up in the air. Making for enough time (if the field is fairly bunched up), for the player to pass it.
Worm Hole[ | ]
This is opens a worm hole in front of your car and when fired makes its way to the person directly in front of you, position wise. i.e. if you are 5th it will make its way to 4th. After that, it will teleport that car behind the car that cast the attack. When launched, wormhole travels and seeks the car, but can be destroyed when it hits an obstacle.
Standard Single Missile[ | ]
This missile will fire and destroy anything that is targeted. Players can target other cars and thus this missile acts similarly to a Homing Missile only that it will target cars that are viewable on the screen at the time, not first place specifically. This missile has a gold tinge to it when traveling, to distinguish it from the Homing Missile. When hit the car will be blown up into the air. This missile can also be used to destroy buildings, signs and other structures.
Shield[ | ]
This shield is the only thing that can protect you from any type of attack. It completely covers the car much like a protective box. It depletes when it has suffered a specific amount of damage or when a single Homing Missile hits it. You can tell how much damage the shield has taken by looking at its colour. When first invoked, it will be a shade of blue, slowly turning to red near the end of its use.
Speed Boost[ | ]
This gives the player a sudden burst of speed, causing the turbine exhaust flames of the car to turn gold (presumably because of the extra fuel/boost), when the Boost is wearing off, the exhaust flames turn white and finally back to the normal colour. This power-up can be used simultaneously if both item slots are Speed Boosts. When this happens, the speed is doubled compared to that of a single boost.
Ice Beam[ | ]
This weapon looks like two lightning bolts coming out of the car. It causes cars around it to "freeze up" and will interfere with their traction control, causing them to understeer or oversteer depending on the angle and speed of the car.
Driller Missile[ | ]
This weapon shoots out three missiles in a straight line, and will carry on going until it hits something solid, i.e., anything apart from another car, so it is possible to hit more than 1 car with this attack (so long as only one of the missiles hit it). When hit the car will be blown up in the air as per norm.
Continuum Warper[ | ]
This weapon slows down every car in the game, apart from the attacking car. The weapon lasts longer the further down in position you are. That is, if the player was 6 th, it will last longer than if the player was 1st.
Driller Missile[ | ]
This can only be found in the bonus multiplayer death matches, where the only weapon is the Driller Missile and the only power-up is the Speed Boost. Also, this is the only aspect of the game where in cars can be destroyed. But when they are, they re-spawn.
Sequels[ | ]
A sequel named Rollcage Stage II was released in 2000 for Windows and PlayStation. The sequel includes 20 vehicles and a lot more tracks than the first game, and it's more accessible to novice players. There is also a training mode, a combat mode and multiplayer (up to 4 players split screen or more players on the internet or LAN).
References[ | ]
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