Thrash Rally

Overview

Thrash Rally is a top-down rally racing game developed and released by Alpha Denshi for arcades (running Neo Geo MVS hardware) in November 8, 1991.

Loosely based on both the 1992 World Rally Championship and the 1992 Dakar Rally, Thrash Rally pits players in various rally raids (similar to the Drift Out series) with a variety of rally cars and other vehicles (including a dune buggy and a large truck). It is one of the three known games for the MVS platform to support multiplayer through linked arcade machines (the other two being Riding Hero and League Bowling). Up to four players can play simultaneously.

It was later released for the Neo Geo AES on December 20, 1991 and ported to the Neo Geo CD (with the name Rally Chase) on October 31, 1994. In 1996, Alpha Denshi (as ADK) would create a spiritual successor to Thrash Rally, titled Over Top.

Vehicles

The game includes nine total playable vehicles, each with their own preference for acceleration, handling, and body strength. Only the six rally cars are playable in the World Championship mode, while all cars can be played in the Cross Country Raid mode.

Rally Cars

• Blaster LX (known as Lancian Deleta in the Japanese version, based on the Lancia Delta)
• Land Crusher (known as the Toyot GT-Four in the Japanese version, based on the Toyota Celica GT-Four)
• Warp ATV (known as the Nissun GTI-R in the Japanese version, based on the Nissan Pulsar GTI-R)
• Turbo GT (known as the Citraen ZX in the Japanese version, based on the Citroën ZX)
• Thunderjet (known as the Mitsuboshi in the Japanese version, based on the Mistubishi Pajero)
• OD 6000X (known as the Parshce 911 in the Japanese version, based on the Porsche 959)

Other Vehicles

• Offroad Bike
• Sand Buggy
• Camion

Stages

When a player starts a game, they can choose from two modes: World Championship and Dakar Paris - The Cape (also known as Cross Country Raid).

World Championship

This mode allows a single player to compete against five computer opponents (based on real rally drivers) in five stages loosely based on five real rally events from the 1992 World Rally Championship:

1. Monte Carlo Rally (Monaco)
2. Safari Rally (Kenya)
3. Acropolis Rally (Greece)
4. 1000 Lakes Rally (Finland)
5. RAC Rally (United Kingdom)

If the player completes all five stages in first place, they will play the Dakar Rally as a bonus stage. Other than the bonus rally, there is no high score system in place.

Cross Country Raid

This mode only includes a single race loosely based on the 1992 Dakar Rally through Africa, from Paris to Cape Town. Although the stage is not very long (roughly the size of two World Championship stages), playing this mode unlocks three additional vehicles to choose from, has a persistent leaderboard for the fastest time, and can be played in multiplayer for up to four linked cabinets.