Battle Royale Racing
When most people think of battle royale games, people immediately think of the likes of "PLAYERUNKNOWN Battlegrounds" (PUBG), the wildly-popular and still played "Fortnite," or even the lighthearted goofy play of "Fall Guys," or the Fall Guys clone "Stumble Guys." The concept of a Battle Royale game is in the sense of gathering many players to compete in one space and try to outlast their opposition for as long as possible. Such competitions involve taking on different strategies to help gain the advantage and win. Another element of Battle Royales is in having only one life; and when you are defeated, it's over. Permadeath. No continues (most of the time).
Nintendo has had its way the past few years with now four Battle Royale-type games from the gaming past. It began with "Tetris 99," the game of Tetris where 99 players battle each other until one is left standing. "Super Mario Bros. 35" brought about chaos in the world of Super Mario Bros. 1 with 35 different players. "Pac-Man 99" turns Pac-Man into a chaotic multiplayer experience.
So where does racing/driving come in the realm of a Battle Royale? At least F-Zero 99 tests the waters by adding aggressive racing elements to the classic F-Zero game. Anyone who can imagine a racing/driving game where defeating other opponents on track can be grounds for a competitive Battle Royale game. Even if a game was not meant to encourage aggressive driving, you can still add aggressive elements to a game to compliment a Battle Royale environment. So in other words, you could even encourage aggressive driving in racing games not known for rewarding aggressive driving, such as Gran Turismo, Daytona USA, or even any of the Formula 1 games.
Battle Royale Racing: Analysis
Let's dive deeper into this style.
Considerations.
A Battle Royale environment usually suits the mindset of having one chance to prove yourself. When you are defeated, you are eliminated. You must try to outlast your opposition as long as you can.Elimination and Elimination Methods.
To make this all happen, you must have a system where people can actually be defeated or considered defeated. This can be done by having a damage system (does not have to be visual or physical). If it is shown a contender has been defeated, he/she/they will be out of a given session. Players would be rewarded for defeating opposing racers.Here are some methods of elimination I can think of. Follow my lead:
1.) The simplest elimination method is to simply eliminate players who finishes a race in last place or if someone completes a lap in last place. Aggressive driving in this setting is not encouraged but could be a deciding factor as to who gets eliminated.
BASIC ELIMINATION EXAMPLES: (older "Need for Speed" series games, such as "Need for Speed: High Stakes"), Speed Up! (arcade), Test Drive Unlimited 2 (PS3/XBOX360/PC)
2.) Another method is to have a health system. It can be implemented as either a health system or a damage meter. Once the health meter is depleted or damage meter is full, a driver will be retired from the event.
HEALTH/DAMAGE EXAMPLES: Super F1 Circus Gaiden (Super Famicom), SD F-1 Grand Prix (Super Famicom), Death Rally(PC), Whiplash/Fatal Racing (PC), WipEout series, Thunder Truck Rally (PS1), and Enthusia Professional Racing (PS2)
3.) Another way of elimination is with a limit system. During the course of a race or a tournament, there will be a cut limit to which every racer must try to be above to continue racing. If, for example, the Limit is 17th out of 20 cars, those ranked 18th through 20th will be eliminated. Once the initial limit is reached, a new higher limit will be set with eliminations pending for that new number. Those who survive the Limit will qualify.
LIMIT EXAMPLES: Super Monaco GP (arcade, Genesis/Megadrive), Battle Grand Prix (Super Nintendo/Super Famicom)
4.) The final method I will discuss here is a combination of health/damage and a limit. This is like what "F-Zero 99" has. Each player has a certain amount of energy along with certain limits to stay above. It can be stressing to try to keep your energy intact while also being above a certain cut line to avoid elimination.
HEALTH/DAMAGE WITH LIMIT EXAMPLES: F-Zero 99 (Nintendo Switch)
5.) Some racing/driving games have other methods to encourage elimination either playing by the rules or taking out racers. "Wave Race 64," for example, will have you disqualified if you miss too many buoys during the course of one race. Certain racing games that have regulations for races (like in the ToCA Race Driver series) can have you disqualified if you commit too many violations. They are not exactly elimination rules, but they have a feel of elimination due to insubordination.
Now that we know the limits, let us imagine what games could take advantage of some sort of Battle Royale system. Go to the next section, please...
Candidates for Battle Royale Racing/Driving: 2D
None of what you are about to read is met with any scientific research. Many of these are just thoughts of mine that I pose to you. What racing/driving games can benefit from a Battle Royale system? The headers showcase each game and how I think they could have a Battle Royale system to them of some kind. So take a look:
Super Mario Kart.
Some would think this should be the easiest choice. However, it seems too good to some people, even considering F-Zero came before Super Mario Kart. This is even though the Mario Kart series is still raced and loved to this day compared to the mostly dormant (until recently) F-Zero series. During making this blog post, I researched a video on YouTube featuring a race in Super Mario Kart with 101 drivers on track and all of the madness that ensued.R.C Pro-Am Series.
Those who remember for the Nintendo Entertainment System or later the SEGA Genesis/Megadrive may recall the R.C. Pro-Am series. This game saw two titles on NES and then a "Championship Edition" on Genesis/Megadrive. These games had you control a remote control vehicle around a race track with several hazards along the way. In the sequel to RC Pro-Am on NES, you could upgrade your vehicle and purchase items to gain the edge. The two NES R.C. Pro-Am Games had up to four drivers to a track while the Championship Edition on Genesis/Megadrive had six to a track. You must place third or better to advance and continue the game.If a system can be implemented where many gamers can compete at once at a number of racing tracks, Battle Royale-type racing would be great for this series. A mini Grand Prix would have to be set up so that a number of drivers can still play for longer.
Excitebike Series.
Excitebike made supercross and motocross fun. While you are not racing for position, you do race to post race times that let you qualify for the next event. You race cleanly for the most part. However, in the mode against other racers, you can clip other racers and force them to fall off of their bikes. A Battle Royale for a game series like this may not have things like exotic items to cause chaos, but it can be a smart way to cause some mayhem in racing.To show that it COULD be possible to implement a Battle Royale system, I finished one race in Excitebike classic in 48th place. So while I don't think up to 99 racers would be possible to race for position, you could make it to where you host a bunch of races while eliminating the lower-performing riders.
Death Rally (Classic).
3D Realms' Death Rally series has been about combat racing. The original Death Rally in 1996 let you race with vehicles equipped with guns. If you enable weapons in the original Death Rally, you can also shop for more items to deliver more damage.The safe way is to go with a bunch of 2D racing/driving games. Well now, it's time to look at the 3D racing/driving games that can promote Battle Royale mayhem.
Candidates for Battle Royale Racing/Driving: 3D
Here are some 3D games for Battle Royale consideration...
Destruction Derby Series.
The Destruction Derby series has a lot of hard-fought, wheel-to-wheel racing. The first Destruction Derby had regular races along with a dedicated Demolition Derby mode. The first game basically encouraged you to intentionally spin out and wreck other cars to boost your score. Rounding up a handful of players for multiplayer action would be wild. I am not as educated on any game in the Destruction Derby series after the first game, unfortunately.Death Rally (2011).
The modern Death Rally in 2011 was not as loved as the classic Death Rally, but a lot of the main combat racing elements still apply. The appeal of a Battle Royale for this game is very much there. However, the idea of a Battle Royale involves having a lot more opposition on hand. Death Rally has up to four racers while the 2011 Death Rally has up to six racers.Burnout Series.
No single franchise has emphasized and expressed combat racing quite like the Burnout series. Everything from roughing up racers to landing Takedowns make Burnout the most intense racing/driving game series out there. Eliminations would be no problem for a Battle Royale. What I would be curious of, however, is how would you handle the Battle Royale system. Do you eliminate the ones who place last in a race? It would be tough to think about how to implement a Battle Royale-type system in a Burnout. Then again, people still miss the Burnout series after "Burnout Paradise."WipEout Series.
WipEout basically was made for Battle Royale. Later games in the series had an Elimination event where it is simply you trying to defeat as many opponents in the race while keeping your ship intact. A WipEout Battle Royale is very doable. The most ships on a track at once is 16 in WipEout Fusion. If somehow you could get 16 (or perhaps more) onto a track, this would make for some insane Battle Royale-type racing.blur.
blur has been described as Mario Kart with real vehicles. Depending on who you ask, blur is either an underrated racing game gem or a very fun and forgotten racing game. It was made by the same people behind the Project Gotham Racing series. I would say if you can develop a game that combines Super Mario Kart with maybe something like Project Gotham Racing, you could have some wild Battle Royale racing with blur.Grand Theft Auto Series.
The Grand Theft Auto Series has a bunch of races one can take part in. A Battle Royale system could be fairly simple if implemented properly. The biggest title in the series for racing in this ecosystem is with Grand Theft Auto V.Trackmania Series.
While the Trackmania series never was about wheel-to-wheel racing, it is a racing game where posting the best time for each track is paramount to success. Therefore, a Battle Royale format would eliminate those who do not post fast enough times to stay in a tournament. Since TrackMania games do not involve wheel-to-wheel racing, having a custom/bespoke Battle Royale system would seem pointless. You would have to introduce some wheel-to-wheel racing to make a Battle Royale system possible. Or, you could have a Battle Royale system in the sense of a knockout-style competition. The lower-performing drivers would be eliminated until the higher performing drivers advance.Of course, these are only ideas to get things started. Maybe you can think of other ideas with your favorite racing games and racing game series.
Battle Royale Racing: Will It Work?
F-Zero 99 at least shown what could be possible with Battle Royale concepts for racing/driving games. I think if certain gamers are into combative racing, it will surely find its niche among the racing/driving game set. Some of the obvious kind of titles I did not include. For example, Wreckfest basically is Battle Royale racing and demo derby. I will leave it up to you to think of how you could make Battle Royale a thing for your favorite racing/driving games.
This is a blog post that has been sitting on my PC for quite some time. It has been until now I decided to complete this post. That is what happens when you have a bunch of topic ideas and do not do anything until later. Anyhow, this is another completed post on "John's Race Space." I hope you enjoyed it! Subscribe/Follow my blog(s) in any capacity if you love my work. Share my blog post(s) with others if you enjoy my work. Support me further by connecting with me on social media; and if you are inclined, feel free to donate to me (tips/donations are voluntary but would be appreciated). Thank you for reading! Take care and be well.
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