Final Lap Longplay (Arcade) [QHD]

Game Info --------------------------------------------------- Developer: Namco Publisher: Namco Year of Release: 1987 Game Review & Impressions --------------------------------------------------- Final Lap is the successor to Pole Position/Pole Position II, and was the first of Namco's titles to use their System 2 arcade hardware. It's a racing game based on Formula 1, with cars featuring recognisable, if somewhat grainy livery from official racing teams of the time. The game features a shortened version of Japan's Suzuka circuit, with races comprising 4 laps around the track. The original cabinet comprised a pair of sit-down race cockpits with steering wheel, gear shift and pedals, and up to four cabinets could be connected together to support 8-player competitive play. The standout feature of the original arcade cabinet was, of course, the ability to race against other players. That's not something I can really showcase here, so the video is limited to single player, which is effectively a time trial of the circuit, trying to avoid CPU drivers and reach the finish line before time runs out. It's actually quite a dull experience solo and really not worth playing, something compounded by the extremely odd cornering and traction simulation. Slowing down to take the sharpest corners robs you of precious seconds, and the only strategy I could find to actually finish the race within the time limit was to decelerate to a speed where accelerating under full lock wouldn't send me into a complete spin. There was no discernible speed penalty for coming off the track at these bends, so I just had to do it, regardless of how counterintuitive it seemed. I can't be too harsh on Final Lap because solo play was never really the game's strong suit to begin with. This was meant to be played against other people, and before the likes of Super Monaco GP and Daytona USA, having multiple human opponents racing head to head would have been quite the experience. I do think the game suffers somewhat for having only a single circuit, however, something the sequel, Final Lap 2, resolved in 1990. Chapters --------------------------------------------------- 00:00 Attract mode 00:54 Gameplay