My Played Video Games Review: Super Hang-On for the Sega Genesis
Super Hang-On is a motorcycle racing arcade game released by Sega of Japan in 1987. It was the sequel to the acclaimed Hang-On, a 1985 motorcycle racing arcade game. It got a home conversion on the Sega Genesis in 1990.
Not really popular in my country but this was always included in bootleg compilation games cartridges containing a few games during the early 1990s.
The Story
Hang-On is back with cool races that guarantee to rev your engine. Whether racing against time across four continents, or going against an opponent on a specially designed circuit, there is no better thrill than that.
Your driving has got to red-line to beat the rest. So grab your helmet, don your leather suit, and boost your courage. It is time to burn some rubber and become king of the racetrack!
The Graphics and Sound
The graphics are great for their time and still look okay today. The characters and motorcycles size onscreen are big. The tracks are pretty colorful and vibrant. There are little touches such as the billboards that you will tend to look at but can make you crash if you can't concentrate on racing. The billboards are quite funny.
The sound is a bit mixture of good and bad. On one hand, the music is good, but it gets annoying after a while. On the other hand, the sound effects are nice, especially the motorcycle engine noises. The game's many sound effects are surprisingly suited to the action that uses it.
The Gameplay
Super Hang-On has got two modes of play. The Arcade Mode and an Original Mode. Arcade Mode is the same in the arcade, it allows you to choose a track and the music. The Original Mode is a career mode where your goal is to earn race money to repair your bike, or buy a new one, and to finish the game by earning money and fame. The gameplay is quite smooth, the game runs fast and there's no slowdown, which is amazing considering when the game was released.
The controls are responsive but it is overly responsive sometimes, making it very easy to lose driving control. Thankfully, incidents like this are rare and few. Nonetheless, the controls are still quite good.
The game has got some good replay value. The Original Mode will keep you at it, and the Arcade Mode is always a quick play nostalgic trip of the arcade's golden years.
My Verdict
Super Hang-On is a good arcade-style racer but it does not feature a 2 player mode, which would have made it greater still. Playing against a second player is essential in racing games, and I was disappointed with the lack of this missing feature.
Overall, this would be a nice addition to your retro game collection if you like simple classic racers that are good time killers.
Go play this arcade racing classic on the Sega Genesis/Mega Drive or on your favorite emulators.