''Bump 'n' Jump'', also known in Japan as , is an overhead-view

vehicular combat game A vehicular combat game (or car combat game) is a vehicle simulation video game where the primary gameplay objectives include vehicles armed with weapons attempting to destroy vehicles controlled by the CPU or by opposing players. The genre n ...

developed by

Data East , also abbreviated as DECO, was a Japanese video game, pinball and electronic engineering company. The company was in operation from 1976 to 2003, and released 150 video game titles. At one time, the company had annual sales of 20 billion yen in ...

and originally released in the arcade in 1982. Distributed in North America by

Bally Midway Midway Games Inc. (formerly Midway Manufacturing and Bally Midway, and commonly known simply as Midway) was an American video game company that existed from 1958 to 2010. Midway's franchises included ''Mortal Kombat'', ''Rampage (franchise), Ra ...

, the arcade version was available as both a dedicated board and as part of Data East's

DECO Cassette System 240px, DECO Cassette System loading screen The DECO Cassette System is an arcade system that was introduced by Data East in October 1980. It was the first standardised arcade system that allowed arcade owners to change games. Developed in 1979, ...

. The goal is to drive to the end of a course while knocking enemy vehicles into the sides of the track and jumping over large obstacles such as bodies of water. The arcade game was a commercial success in Japan and North America. The game was ported to the

Atari 2600 The Atari 2600 is a home video game console developed and produced by Atari, Inc. Released in September 1977 as the Atari Video Computer System (Atari VCS), it popularized microprocessor-based hardware and games stored on swappable ROM cartridg ...

Intellivision The Intellivision (a portmanteau of intelligent television) is a home video game console released by Mattel Electronics in 1979. It distinguished itself from competitors with more realistic sports and strategic games. By 1981, Mattel Electronic ...

ColecoVision ColecoVision is a second-generation home video-game console developed by Coleco and launched in North America in August 1982. It was released a year later in Europe by CBS Electronics as the CBS ColecoVision. The console offered a closer expe ...

Nintendo Entertainment System The Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) is an 8-bit home video game console developed and marketed by Nintendo. It was first released in Japan on 15 July 1983 as the and was later released as the redesigned NES in several test markets in the ...

, and

Sharp X1 The , sometimes called the Sharp X1 or CZ-800C, is a series of home computers released by Sharp Corporation from 1982 to 1988. It is based on a Zilog Z80 CPU. The RGB display monitor for the X1 had a television tuner, and a computer screen ...

. The Famicom version of ''Burnin' Rubber'' was published as in Japan in October 1986.

Gameplay

The enemy vehicles are

cars A car, or an automobile, is a motor vehicle with wheels. Most definitions of cars state that they run primarily on roads, seat one to eight people, have four wheels, and mainly transport people rather than cargo. There are around one billio ...

and

truck A truck or lorry is a motor vehicle designed to transport freight, carry specialized payloads, or perform other utilitarian work. Trucks vary greatly in size, power, and configuration, but the vast majority feature body-on-frame construct ...

s. Cars can be bumped into obstacles or jumped upon and destroyed. Trucks cannot be bumped and can only be jumped upon to destroy them and will sometimes drop debris that the player has to avoid. Players get points for bumping other cars and causing them to crash. At the end of each level, players receive 500 points per enemy vehicles crashed, but making it through the level without wrecking any vehicles results in a special bonus of 50,000 points. Going from one level to another is characterized by a change of seasons. When a large obstacle which needs to jumped over, such as a body of water, is approaching, then the game displays a flashing exclamation point as a warning. When the speed of the car is at least 100 mph, players are able to perform a jump. Cars are lost upon wrecking into either side of the road, plunging into water, or hitting an obstacle. The game continues until the player runs out of cars. Extra cars will be given during the game, except after 999,999 points are scored. Once this score is reached, a "survival of the fittest" mode will activate for the rest of the game.

Ports

Mattel Electronics licensed ''Bump 'n' Jump'' from Data East and in 1983 released an

version and then a version for the

. They also produced a version for

distributed by

Coleco Coleco Industries, Inc. ( ) was an American company founded in 1932 by Maurice Greenberg as The Connecticut Leather Company. The name "COLECO" is an abbreviation derived from the company's original name which combines the first two letters of "C ...

in 1984. Data East released a port of ''Burnin' Rubber'' as ''Buggy Popper'' for the Famicom in Japan on 8 October 1986. It was released for the

in North America by

Vic Tokai Tokai Communications Corporation Inc (known as Vic Tokai Corporation until 2011) is a telecommunications company in Japan providing DSL services and network solutions. Its headquarters are in the in Aoi-ku, Shizuoka, Shizuoka Prefecture. In N ...

in December 1988 as ''Bump 'n' Jump''. Adding a level of complexity, the NES version of the game also requires players to pick up cans of

gasoline Gasoline ( North American English) or petrol ( Commonwealth English) is a petrochemical product characterized as a transparent, yellowish, and flammable liquid normally used as a fuel for spark-ignited internal combustion engines. When for ...

that are interspersed in each course, since the car uses up fuel steadily throughout the game if it's going too fast.

Reception

In Japan, ''Burnin' Rubber'' was the ninth highest-grossing arcade game of 1982. In the United States, ''Bump 'n' Jump'' was among the thirteen highest-grossing arcade games of 1983.

Legacy

In 1996, ''

Next Generation Next Generation or Next-Generation may refer to: Publications and literature * ''Next Generation'' (magazine), video game magazine that was made by the now defunct Imagine Media publishing company * Next Generation poets (2004), list of young ...

'' listed it as number 65 on their "Top 100 Games of All Time", lauding the innovative jumping and bumping mechanics, the variety of cars, and the strong sensation of speed and tension. The arcade version was made available on the

PlayStation Portable The PlayStation Portable (PSP) is a handheld game console developed and marketed by Sony Interactive Entertainment, Sony Computer Entertainment. It was first released in Japan on December 12, 2004, in North America on March 24, 2005, and in PA ...

in North America by G1M2 with its original title. The game also appears on the ''

Data East Arcade Classics ''Data East Arcade Classics'' is a compilation of video games created by Japanese video game company Data East. The collection disc is developed by American studio G1M2 and published and released by Majesco Entertainment for the Wii on February 1 ...

'' compilation with its original name. Two clones were released for the Commodore 64. ''Burnin' Rubber'' in 1983 uses the chorale parts of

Johann Sebastian Bach Johann Sebastian Bach (German: Help:IPA/Standard German, �joːhan zeˈbasti̯an baχ ( – 28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque music, Baroque period. He is known for his prolific output across a variety ...

's '' Herz und Mund und Tat und Leben'' cantata for the soundtrack. ''Bumping Buggies'' was produced in 1984.

High scores

On 25 December 2011, Charlie Wehner of Missouri beat the arcade version's

world record A world record is usually the best global and most important performance that is ever recorded and officially verified in a specific skill, sport, or other kind of activity. The book ''Guinness World Records'' and other world records organizatio ...

with a score of 3,175,880. On 14 September 2013, John McNeill of Brisbane, Australia claimed the

with a score of 5,869,264 but due to ownership issues with

Twin Galaxies Twin Galaxies is a social media platform and video game database. Twin Galaxies is the official supplier of video game records to ''Guinness World Records''. History In mid-1981, Walter Day, founder of Twin Galaxies, Inc., visited more than 1 ...

at the time, the score was not officially recognised until 5 January 2015. The

using MAME was achieved by John McNeill of Brisbane, Australia on 2 March 2012 with a score of 2,531,168.

References

External links

* *
''Bump 'N' Jump''
at

Mobygames MobyGames is a commercial website that catalogs information on video game A video game or computer game is an electronic game that involves interaction with a user interface or input device (such as a joystick, game controller, controlle ...

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