Publisher Atari and developer Headless Chicken have announced arcade racing game NeoSprint for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Switch, PC (Steam), and Atari VCS. A release date was not announced. It will cost $24.99 and support up to eight players.
Here is an overview of the game, via Atari:
About
Atari’s newest release, NeoSprint, has its roots in the Sprint series of arcade racing games from the late 70s. NeoSprint shifts from the original’s 2D to 3D isometric tracks, and injects some serious single-screen racing fun for up to eight players. There’s tons of gameplay across Campaign, Grand Prix, Obstacle Course and Time Trial modes, and building and sharing tools let you share your tracks and compete for the fastest times with players around the world.
NeoSprint is a passion project, conceived by Atari’s long-serving art director John Kauderer and developed by the Costa Rican-based studio Headless Chicken. Sprint 2 is a worthy-addition to the Sprint series bloodline and that is sure to satisfy speed demons and architects alike.
NeoSprint was exclusively introduced as an early-access game on the Atari VCS during development. The team used feedback from the VCS community to refine and finesse many aspects of the game.
Key Features
- Isometric Arcade Action – Precise controls with an arcade feel makes NeoSprint gameplay easy to pick up but hard to master. Learn the intricacies of drifting and drafting to pull ahead across a dazzling array of pre-made and player-created racetracks.
- Robust Track-Building and Sharing – Design twisting, turning tracks with a deep, customizable track builder. Build ramps, jumps, banks and more with easy-to-use drop and click track segments, and add an even more of a personal touch with scenery and decorations to make your track stand out. Choose from one of four different biomes—forest, desert, winter, and city—when building tracks, and group together or mix and match in your circuits. Easy-to-use tools allow you to share your tracks—-and try out tracks posted by other players.
- A Lineup Built for Speed – Featuring nice different car types, from muscle to sports cars, all with unique speed, acceleration and handling. Each car is customizable with different colors and Atari-themed decals. Create your dream car and get racing!
- It’s a Career – In the solo Campaign Mode, challenge eight unique AI rivals in NeoSprint‘s to be the circuit’s best driver. Travel through multiple Cups with increasingly difficult tracks. As you progress, unlock new decorations and car liveries.
- Alternate Game Modes – With Grand Prix mode you can build circuits from your own tracks, download tracks created by other players, or mix them together. Obstacle Courses and Time Trials provide hours of racing fun after completing the Campaign.
Background
- According to one of the Sprint 2 developers, Dan Van Elderen, it was the first racing game to use artificial intelligence. In a November 1997 interview, Can Eldren said Sprint 2 “was the first game that actually introduced the concept of a computer car that had the intelligence to drive itself around the track—not necessarily just in a canned predetermined course, but in a semi-intelligent manner, depending on how you were doing.”
- The Sprint series included Sprint 2, 4, 8, and One in that order, with the numbers indicating the number of players, not the order of release.
- In the United States at release, Sprint 2 was a top-three arcade industry earner for three years running. It was the second highest-earning arcade video game in 1977 and 1978, and the third highest in 1979.
- Unlike many early racing arcade cabinets, the Sprint games offered a selection of tracks—four for Sprint 8, twelve for Sprint 2—which contributed to their success in arcades.
Watch the announcement trailer below. View the first screenshots at the gallery.