''Road Rash 3'' is a 1995

racing In sports, racing is a competition of speed, in which competitors try to complete a given task in the shortest amount of time. Typically this involves traversing some distance, but it can be any other task involving speed to reach a specific g ...

and vehicular combat video game developed and published by

Electronic Arts Electronic Arts Inc. (EA) is an American video game company headquartered in Redwood City, California. Founded in May 1982 by former Apple Inc., Apple employee Trip Hawkins, the company was a pioneer of the early home computer game industry ...

(EA) for the

Sega Genesis The Sega Genesis, known as the outside North America, is a 16-bit Fourth generation of video game consoles, fourth generation home video game console developed and sold by Sega. It was Sega's third console and the successor to the Master Sys ...

. It is the fourth installment in the ''

Road Rash Road rash is a colloquial term for skin injury caused by abrasion with road surfaces, often as a consequence of cycling and motorcycling accidents. It may also result from running, inline skating, roller skating, skateboarding, and longboardin ...

'' series and the last to be released for the Genesis. The game is centered around a worldwide series of

motorcycle A motorcycle (motorbike, bike; uni (if one-wheeled); trike (if three-wheeled); quad (if four-wheeled)) is a lightweight private 1-to-2 passenger personal motor vehicle Steering, steered by a Motorcycle handlebar, handlebar from a saddle-style ...

races that the player must win to advance to higher-difficulty races, while engaging in unarmed and armed combat to hinder the other racers. Development of ''Road Rash 3'' began after series programmer Dan Geisler experienced frustration working on '' Michael Jordan: Chaos in the Windy City'' and offered to make a new ''Road Rash'' title instead. The game's worldwide settings were influenced by the need for a significant new feature despite the Genesis's technology having been pushed to its limit. The game was positively received by critics and commercially successful; critics appreciated the refined gameplay and visuals, but pointed out a lack of innovation, and had mixed reactions to the audio.

Gameplay

''Road Rash 3'' puts the player in control of a motorcycle racer who must finish in third place or higher among fourteen other racers; the player advances throughout the game's five levels by winning five races on each level.''Road Rash 3'' instruction manual, pp. 12–13 The game's races take place in a number of settings around the world, consisting of

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

Kenya Kenya, officially the Republic of Kenya, is a country located in East Africa. With an estimated population of more than 52.4 million as of mid-2024, Kenya is the 27th-most-populous country in the world and the 7th most populous in Africa. ...

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

, and the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

. During a race, the racer can brake, accelerate and attack neighboring opponents. The racer will punch at the nearest opponent with a default input, while holding a directional button during the input will result in either a backhand or a kick. Some opponents wield weapons such as clubs,

chain A chain is a serial assembly of connected pieces, called links, typically made of metal, with an overall character similar to that of a rope in that it is flexible and curved in compression but linear, rigid, and load-bearing in tension. A ...

nunchaku is a traditional East-Asian martial arts weapon consisting of two sticks (traditionally made of wood), connected to each other at their ends by a short metal chain or a rope. It is approximately (sticks) and (rope). A person who has pract ...

crowbar A crowbar, also called a wrecking bar, pry bar or prybar, pinch-bar, or occasionally a prise bar or prisebar, colloquially gooseneck, or pig bar, or in Australia a jemmy, is a lever consisting of a metal bar with a single curved end and flat ...

s, mace,

cattle prod A cattle prod, also called a stock prod or a hot stick, is a handheld device commonly used to make cattle or other livestock move by striking or poking them. An electric cattle prod is a stick with electrodes on the end which is used to make catt ...

s and

oil can An oil can (oilcan or oiler)''Road Rash 3'' instruction manual, p. 10''Road Rash 3'' instruction manual, pp. 11–12 The racer can carry multiple weapons at once and cycle through them to select a weapon for use. The mace, cattle prod and oil can are limited to ten charges each, and will be discarded when all charges have been used. The racer can be ejected from their bike if they crash into an obstacle or if they run out of stamina (shown in the bottom-left corner of the screen) due to fights with opponents. In this event, the racer will automatically run back toward their bike, though the player can alter their course with the directional buttons, or stand still by holding the brake input button.''Road Rash 3'' instruction manual, pp. 2–3 Opponents will likewise be ejected from their bike if their own stamina is depleted; the stamina of the nearest opponent is visible within the bottom-right corner of the screen. The racer begins the game with $1,000 and earns cash prizes for each successful race. The player can access a shop from the game's main menu to view bikes of differing weights, speeds and steering capabilities, and the player may purchase a new bike with the money they have accumulated.''Road Rash 3'' instruction manual, pp. 4–9 Certain bikes are equipped with a series of

nitrous oxide Nitrous oxide (dinitrogen oxide or dinitrogen monoxide), commonly known as laughing gas, nitrous, or factitious air, among others, is a chemical compound, an Nitrogen oxide, oxide of nitrogen with the Chemical formula, formula . At room te ...

charges, which can provide a burst of speed if the player quickly taps the acceleration input button twice. The player can also upgrade their current bike in four areas: engine performance, chassis endurance, tires and

suspension Suspension or suspended may refer to: Science and engineering * Car suspension * Cell suspension or suspension culture, in biology * Guarded suspension, a software design pattern in concurrent programming suspending a method call and the calling ...

. A bike can only be upgraded once in each area. The player will receive a password at the end of a successful race, which can be entered at a password entry screen in a subsequent session to maintain the player's progress. The player will advance to the next level after winning a race on five of the game's seven tracks. The bike has its own "damage gauge" between the racer's and opponents' stamina meters, which decreases every time the racer suffers a crash. The bike will be wrecked if the meter fully depletes, which ends the player's participation in the current race and deducts the cost of a repair bill from the racer's balance. Motor officers make sporadic appearances throughout the game's tracks, and can also end the player's participation if they apprehend the racer following a crash, which deducts the cost of a fine from their balance. The appearance of a police helicopter signifies the nearby presence of a motor officer, and the helicopter will attempt to strike the racer with its landing rails and make them vulnerable to the upcoming officer. If the racer lacks the funds to cover either a repair bill or a fine, they will respectively be asked to continue as a repo man for the shop or a snitch for the police. In either case, the racer will be given the task of apprehending a wanted opponent by making them crash and pulling over next to them. To aid in this mission, the shop owner will provide the racer with a crowbar, while the police will provide a club. The wanted opponent stands out from the others by wearing differently colored leathers. Successful apprehension of the wanted opponent will result in the racer's repair bill or fine being waived, while failure will prematurely end the game. ''Road Rash 3'' features a two-player mode that can either be played intermittently between players or simultaneously with the use of a split-screen display. Two players can either race against each other along with other computer-controlled racers or engage in the "Mano a Mano" mode, in which the two human players are the only competing racers on the track. In this mode, the players can select a weapon to wield prior to the start of the race.

Development and release

Upon the completion of ''

Road Rash II ''Road Rash II'' is a 1992 Racing video game, racing and Vehicular combat game, vehicular combat game developed and published by Electronic Arts (EA) for the Sega Genesis. The game is centered around a series of Motorcycle racing, motorcycle Roa ...

'', series co-creator and programmer Dan Geisler planned to leave EA and accepted an employment offer from

Crystal Dynamics Crystal Dynamics, Inc. is an American video game developer based in San Mateo, California. The studio is best known for its games in the ''Tomb Raider'', '' Legacy of Kain'', and '' Gex'' series. Madeline Canepa, Judy Lange, and Dave Morse ...

; he was primarily motivated by inadequate compensation for his work on the first two titles, and he felt that the technology for the Genesis had been pushed as far as it could. Geisler only remained with EA after negotiating for a significant payment up front. During a frustrating experience working on '' Michael Jordan: Chaos in the Windy City'', Geisler encountered EA Vice President of Marketing Bing Gordon and offered to create ''Road Rash 3'', reasoning that it could be created faster and be more commercially successful, and Gordon accepted. ''Road Rash 3'' began development in March 1994, with Nana Chambers serving as director and series co-creator Randy Breen as producer.''Road Rash 3'' instruction manual, p. 14 The game was developed in parallel with the

3DO 3DO is a video gaming hardware format developed by The 3DO Company and conceived by Electronic Arts founder Trip Hawkins. The specifications were originally designed by Dave Needle and RJ Mical of New Technology Group, and were licensed by third ...

version of ''

'', and the two titles shared production assets as a result, particularly the gameplay sprites. Artist Michael Hulme was recruited from

Cinemaware Cinemaware was a video game developer and publisher. It had released several titles in the 1980s based on various film themes. The company was resurrected in 2000, before being acquired by eGames in 2005. Cinemaware Corp. (1986–1991) The co ...

for the game's development team, and was told that ''Road Rash 3'' would be EA's final title for the Sega Genesis. As EA's marketing division desired a "big new feature" for the game despite the Genesis's technology having been pushed to its limit, Hulme suggested worldwide settings as something that would "take he seriessomeplace that people haven't been before", and he painted ten rough conceptual settings in four days, which were eventually whittled down to seven settings for the final game. The game's audio was created by Don Veca. ''Road Rash 3'' was showcased at the 1995 Winter

Consumer Electronics Show CES (; formerly an initialism for Consumer Electronics Show) is an annual trade show organized by the Consumer Technology Association (CTA). Held in January at the Las Vegas Convention Center in Winchester, Nevada, United States, the event typi ...

and released in March. It was the final ''Road Rash'' game to be released for the Sega Genesis. A promotional

sweepstake In the United States, a sweepstake is a type of contest where a prize or prizes may be awarded to a winner or winners. Sweepstakes began as a form of lottery that were tied to products sold. In response, the FCC and FTC refined U.S. broadcast ...

was run by ''

GamePro ''GamePro'' was an American multiplatform video game magazine media company that published online and print content covering the video game industry, video game hardware and video game software. The magazine featured content on various video ...

'' and

Best Buy Best Buy Co., Inc. is an American multinational consumer electronics retailer headquartered in Richfield, Minnesota. Originally founded by Richard M. Schulze and James Wheeler in 1966 as an audio specialty store called Sound of Music, it was r ...

the following month, in which contestants who filled and mailed an entry form were eligible to win a grand prize consisting of an all-expenses-paid trip for the winner and a guest to

San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...

in June to see a concert performance by

Monster Magnet Monster Magnet is an American rock music, rock band formed in Red Bank, New Jersey, in 1989 by Dave Wyndorf (vocals and guitar), John McBain (musician), John McBain (guitar), and Tim Cronin (vocals and drums). The band has since undergone severa ...

, one of the featured bands in the 3DO and

Sega CD The Sega CD, known as in most regions outside North America and Brazil, is a CD-ROM accessory and format for the Sega Genesis produced by Sega as part of the fourth generation of video game consoles. Originally released in November 1991, it ca ...

versions of ''Road Rash''. The winner would meet the band backstage and receive an autographed copy of their latest album ''

Dopes to Infinity ''Dopes to Infinity'' is the third album by American rock band Monster Magnet, released on March 21, 1995. The album includes the song "Negasonic Teenage Warhead", the band's first hit single. Overview The song "Negasonic Teenage Warhead" becam ...

'', and would also receive a Sega Genesis console and a copy of ''Road Rash 3''.

Reception

Although ''Road Rash 3'' lacked the critical acclaim of previous entries in the series, it was met with generally positive reviews. Bacon of ''GamePro'' voiced approval for the game's variety of weapons and tracks, and said that the tight controls complemented the bike-upgrading feature, though he criticized the unwieldy weapon-cycling mechanic, and felt that the two-player mode, while faster and more fluid than that of ''Road Rash II'', was still twitchier and less responsive than the single-player campaign. He noted the enhanced realism of the visual details and scenery and the slickness of the sprites, but criticized the music as "annoyingly peppy" and described the sound effects as "often silly". Gary Lord of ''

Computer and Video Games ''Computer and Video Games'' (also known as ''CVG'', ''Computer & Video Games'', ''C&VG'', ''Computer + Video Games'', or ''C+VG'') is a British-based video game magazine, published in its original form between 1981 and 2004. Its offshoot web ...

'' and Neil West of ''

Game Players ''Game Players'' was a monthly video game magazine founded by Robert C. Lock in 1989 and originally published by Signal Research in Greensboro, North Carolina. The original publication began as ''Game Players Strategy to Nintendo Games'' (the ...

'' deemed ''Road Rash 3'' to be essentially the same game as the previous entries in spite of its visual and gameplay enhancements. West considered the visuals to be dated despite the extra animations and scenery, and while he described the soundtrack as "nifty" and the sound effects as convincing, but questioned the absence of the grunge soundtrack from the 3DO entry. Gus Swan and Steve Merrett of ''

Mean Machines Sega ''Mean Machines'' was a multi-format video game journalism, video game magazine published between 1990 and 1992 in the United Kingdom. History In the late 1980s ''Computer and Video Games'' (''CVG'') was largely covering the outgoing generatio ...

'' considered ''Road Rash 3'' to be the fastest and most refined installment of the series, but also dated in comparison to ''

Ridge Racer is a series of racing video games created by Namco and owned by Bandai Namco Entertainment. The first game, ''Ridge Racer (1993 video game), Ridge Racer'' (1993), was originally released in arcades for the Namco System 22 hardware, later ported ...

'' and ''

Daytona USA is a 1994 arcade racing game developed by Sega AM2. Inspired by the popularity of the NASCAR motor racing series in the US, the game has players race stock cars on one of three courses. It was the first game to be released on the Sega Model 2 ...

'', and they cited EA's previous title ''

Skitchin' ''Skitchin is a 1994 racing video game developed and published by Electronic Arts (EA) for the Sega Genesis. The game puts the player in control of an inline skater who must win races in a tournament while engaging in unarmed and armed combat ...

'' as a more effective and original take on the formula. Although they acknowledged the increased crispness and size of the graphics and the variety of the audio, Merrett saw the colors as "dreadfully washed out", and they derided the music as "sad Megadrive metal for people with acne and

Bon Jovi Bon Jovi is an American Rock music, rock band formed in Sayreville, New Jersey in 1983. The band consists of singer Jon Bon Jovi, keyboardist David Bryan, drummer Tico Torres, guitarists John Shanks and Phil X, percussionist Everett Bradley ...

T-shirts".

Chris Gore Christopher Patrick Gore (born September 5, 1965) is an American speaker and writer on the topic of independent film. He founded, edited and wrote for Film Threat magazine and website and other film sites. He was producer, writer or host for seve ...

of ''

VideoGames A video game or computer game is an electronic game that involves interaction with a user interface or input device (such as a joystick, controller, keyboard, or motion sensing device) to generate visual feedback from a display device, mo ...

'' declared ''Road Rash 3'' to be "the best one yet" and praised the violent gameplay and realistic backgrounds, but felt the music was "okay". A reviewer for ''

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 ...

'' applauded the game's inclusion of the animations and track layouts of the acclaimed 3DO version of ''Road Rash'', as well as the new weapons and bike enhancer mode. According to Randy Breen, ''Road Rash 3'' outsold the previous Genesis titles. The game was the fourth-highest renting Genesis title at

Blockbuster Video Blockbuster may refer to: Corporations * Blockbuster (retailer), a former video rental chain * Blockbuster (Bend, Oregon), remaining store Arts and entertainment * Blockbuster (entertainment) a very successful movie * Blockbuster (DC Comics ...

in its opening month, and charted within the top ten on five subsequent months; it re-entered the chart for three months in 1996, and for eleven months in 1997. In ''GamePro''s "1995 Readers' Choice Awards", ''Road Rash 3'' was voted "Best Racing Sim (16-Bit Games)", taking 55% of the vote.

Notes

References

External links

* {{Authority control 1995 video games Electronic Arts games Motorcycle video games Multiplayer and single-player video games North America-exclusive video games Racing video games Road Rash Sega Genesis games Sega Genesis-only games Split-screen multiplayer games Vehicular combat games Video game sequels Video games set in Australia Video games set in Brazil Video games set in Germany Video games set in Italy Video games set in Japan Video games set in Kenya Video games set in the United Kingdom Video games developed in the United States