''Top Gear Overdrive'' is a

racing game Racing games are a video game genre in which the player participates in a motor racing, racing competition. They may be based on anything from real-world racing leagues to fantastical settings. They are distributed along a spectrum between more re ...

released in 1998 for the

Nintendo 64 The (N64) is a home video game console developed and marketed by Nintendo. It was released in Japan on June 23, 1996, in North America on September 29, 1996, and in Europe and Australia on March 1, 1997. As the successor to the Super Nintendo E ...

and the sequel to ''

Top Gear Rally ''Top Gear Rally'' is a 1997 racing video game developed by Boss Game Studios and released for the Nintendo 64. A follow-up to Kemcos original '' Top Gear'' game, it features a championship mode where a single player must complete six season ...

''. The game has support for high-resolution graphics if used with the

Expansion Pak Nintendo 64 accessories are first-party Nintendo hardwareand third-party hardware, licensed and unlicensed. Nintendo's first-party accessories are mainly transformative system expansions: the 64DD Internet multimedia platform, with a floppy driv ...

and features music from the band Grindstone.

Gameplay

In the main mode of play, the player races through six seasons, each season containing more races from more tracks, with faster cars competing. At the beginning of the race the player starts at the back of the grid at the start line. Computer players at the front of the grid often start one-third of the way around the first lap. Players start with three charges 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 ...

, which are used to give the player a temporary speed boost. While racing, the player can pick up two power-ups: nitrous oxide and cash. The nitrous oxide can be used straight away, while the cash is added to the winnings at the end of the race and used for buying upgrades to the player's car. Shortcuts are available on each track, and often the use of these decide the outcome of the races, particularly in later seasons. At the end of each race the player is presented with a screen to allow for various upgrades to their car, such as to acceleration and handling. The player is also able to change their car for a better (or worse) vehicle and can buy extra nitrous oxide to use in the next race. At the end of the season, if the player places fourth or better in all of that season's tracks, they are allowed to progress to the next season.

Soundtrack

The soundtrack in this game was entirely scored by the band Grindstone from

Portland, Oregon Portland ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Oregon. Located in the Pacific Northwest at the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers, it is the 28th-most populous city in the United States, sixth most populous on th ...

. They were made the first band in history to feature on an N64 game. Lamar Stilwell, the bands lead singer at the time, said he came across an advert in The Rocket Magazine which was "looking for a band that sounds like

Alice In Chains Alice in Chains (often abbreviated as AiC) is an American rock band formed in Seattle in 1987. Since 2006, the band's lineup has comprised vocalist/guitarists Jerry Cantrell and William DuVall, bassist Mike Inez, and drummer Sean Kinney. Voca ...

and

Soundgarden Soundgarden was an American rock band formed in Seattle, Washington, in 1984 by singer and drummer Chris Cornell, lead guitarist Kim Thayil, and bassist Hiro Yamamoto. Cornell switched to rhythm guitar in 1985, replaced on drums initially ...

". Knowing Grindstone would fit that sound he wrote back describing his love for video games, the band got the gig and were offered $4000 for their soundtrack to be used.

Reception

The game received "favorable" reviews according to the

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website

GameRankings GameRankings was a video gaming review aggregator that was founded in 1999 and owned by CBS Interactive. It indexed over 315,000 articles relating to more than 14,500 video games. GameRankings was discontinued in December 2019, with its staff bei ...

References

External links

* {{Top Gear series 1998 video games Kemco games Multiplayer and single-player video games Nintendo 64 games Nintendo 64-only games Snowblind Studios games Top Gear (video game series) Video games developed in the United States