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| Source // Wikipedia |
I must admit to glancing across the 1001 entry for Buggy Boy. Perhaps being sandwiched between Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels and The Legend of Zelda had something to do with that.
Perhaps it was the image, as bright and colourful as it is, simply not grabbing my attention.
Perhaps I dismissed it because I couldn't imagine why it would be on the list. What does Buggy Boy do that racers haven't already? There's only one way to find out.
Perhaps it was the image, as bright and colourful as it is, simply not grabbing my attention.
Perhaps I dismissed it because I couldn't imagine why it would be on the list. What does Buggy Boy do that racers haven't already? There's only one way to find out.
Frustrations
When I say one way to find out, I mean there are more ways to find out, which is great because I can't find out anything by being unable to play it, and there's only so much you can gleam from a short Wikipedia article.
YouTube once again delivers the goods, or by the look of it, the really goods.
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| Source // PhilWIP |
Fun Times
In its original arcade format, Buggy Boy made use of three screens to display the track in front of you. Scores and notifications could be shoved out the way to the tops of each of the three screens to allow a panoramic view of all things off-road.
The action does still stay in the center but there is a lot of action going on - you really need to see it in motion, rather than as a still image. You drive a buggy through one of five stages, four of which are point to point races, with one being a five lap circuit. Each of them come with a track map, though it doesn't appear to be of much use when you're doing a few hundred kilometres an hour across the sand.
Racing for position isn't any fun apparently, so points are awarded for all kinds of extras. The most obvious is by the collection of flags - preferably in order for bigger bonuses - or by driving through the various bonus gates scattered about the courses.
Getting some air by bouncing off logs will also increase your score, as well as being useful for clearing obstacles, and Buggy Boy appears to have a lot of obstacles. Giant rocks and fences are placed not just here and there but in lines right across the track - not that it spoils the fun.
Final Word
At least I assume it's fun. It looks fun. It looks like it doesn't take itself too seriously. The animations are almost cartoon-y, suiting the colours well. The inclusion of footballs that give bonus points when driven into make Buggy Boy a must for Rocket League fans...
In all seriousness, I'm a little disappointed that I'm not able to play right now. There are ports to a handful of home systems, but they're just not the same in comparison to the arcade, whether it's the three screen or single screen version. Not that I can say for absolute certain, but I wouldn't be too worried to put money on that.
Five tracks, limited replay value, no multiplayer... you can pick holes, but sometimes you just want to drive around rocks on two wheels, you know? If you can find it, play it.
Fun Facts
When driving through a tunnel, audio will become more echo-y to mimic the changes you'd hear in life. Technology!
Buggy Boy, developed by Tatsumi, first released in 1985.
Version watched: Arcade, 1985 (World of Longplays)