I know what you’re thinking. You’re wondering if Sugar Rush Speedway is actually an authentic arcade game. You’re probably wondering the same thing about a lot of games these days. With the resurgence of classic games, whether on mobile or via Xbox Live Arcade or PlayStation Network, it’s become incredibly difficult to determine what is and what isn’t an authentic arcade experience.
Well, let me tell you — it’s totally real. At least, it is when you run it on an iPhone.
That’s not a rhetorical question. In actuality, many people have been duped into thinking that games like Mortal Kombat Arcade Game and Street Fighter II Turbo: Champion Edition are knock-offs. If you run either of those games on an iPhone, it will seem like the pixels are moving way slower than you’re actually moving. And the sound effects and music will grate on your nerves. If you haven’t played those games in years and you suddenly decide to give them a try on your iPhone, you might also have a bad experience.
But fret not! All those complaints can be fixed with a quick trip to Settings -> General -> Restrictions. Turns out, those games are quite compatible with the iPhone and don’t require any special treatment to work properly.
As for Sugar Rush Speedway, it actually uses a technique called “texture packing,” which increases the apparent resolution of the device by using more efficient software to scale down high-definition images. The end result is a pixelated look that evokes the good old days of the Atari 2600 and its ilk.
What you’ll need to do is navigate to the App Store on your iPhone and search for Sugar Rush Speedway. When the game loads, it should look something like this:
You’ll see a play icon at the top left of the screen. This is how you start gameplay. Simply tap this icon to enter the game.
The first thing you’ll encounter is a blue sky with white puffy clouds. Look at that! Isn’t it dreamy?
Once you’re in the game, you’ll see various vehicles zipping around a racetrack. Some of these cars are moving really fast, and some are moving really slow. The point is to guide the yellow car to the finish line before the blue car does.
The catch is that there’s a lot of dirt, leaves, and other types of debris that get in the way. You’ll need to dodge these obstructions as you try to reach the finish line.
Every now and then, you’ll encounter cars that will try to crash into you. The trick is to keep moving forward, and eventually, you’ll reach the part of the track where the road splits in two. There, you can either take the upper road or the lower road. The choice is yours. But, either way, you’ll need to be careful not to hit the barricades because this will cause you to lose momentum and perhaps even lead to you crashing.
This is a simple game, but it’s one of the most addictive ones I’ve ever played. And I play a lot of games. Especially on my iPhone. Because, you know… iPhones.
Speaking of iPhones, if you play this game on an older handset, you’ll likely notice that the interface is a little clunky. The scrolling through the game’s various options and screens is overly cumbersome. For some reason, the on-screen keyboard doesn’t respond accurately. Nevertheless, despite all those quirks, the game plays perfectly well.
If you’re curious about what all the fuss is about, you can find out a lot more at the Sugar Rush Speedway website. You can read all about the game’s development and learn about its various features. You can also watch videos of the game in action. These can be accessed from the same site.
In the end, are video games dead? Perhaps. But even in the twilight of the medium, they’ve evolved. Games are now a part of people’s everyday lives, and they serve a purpose far beyond just entertainments. For the most part, classic games remain timeless because they were built on solid engineering principles and feature simple but effective interface designs.