GT Advance Championship Racing
Encyclopedia
GT Advance Championship Racing (known as Advance GTA in Japan) is a racing game
developed by MTO
and published by THQ
. It was a launch title
for the Game Boy Advance
, and was released in Japan on March 21, 2001, in North America on June 11, 2001, and in Europe on June 15, 2001. The game's sequel, GT Advance 2: Rally Racing
, was released on June 30, 2002 in North America.
GT Advance features forty-five Japanese cars and places the player in races on thirty-two tracks. Due to positive reaction to the game in Japan, THQ purchased publishing rights for the North American and European releases to the game after a reported bidding war, and added in a controversial password save system
into the game to cut costs.
The game was received with mostly positive reviews from critics that praised the game for its fun gameplay, but THQ was criticized by most reviewers for adding passwords to the game when the Japanese version had a normal one.
. The courses vary between paved
and dirt
roads, requiring the player to adapt their driving to meet the conditions of the course they're driving on.
The game's championship mode features four levels of play, three cups of varying levels, and an unlockable "kart racing mode". Upgrades earned through gameplay can be added to the player's car, and in some cases, they can change the physical appearance of the vehicle. The game contains multiplayer support, allowing two people to play against each other using a Game Link Cable.
Controls are simple, with the A and B buttons controlling the player's gas and brakes respectively. The R and L buttons shift the car up or down a gear in manual
control, and the D-Pad
controls the car's steering. The game requires the player to master the powerslide technique to skid around corners and to reduce their lap
time.
The roads in the game are painted on a flat plane
, which allows the game to progress at a smooth rate, but makes it harder for the player to see upcoming turns in the road. The problem can be remedied by playing through a track multiple times to gain familiarity with the turns in a course. The cars are rendered through sprite
frames, giving the impression of 3D graphics
in the game.
pulled the battery RAM
out of the North American and European releases of the game, and utilized passwords to save data instead. The system forces players of the North American and European releases to enter a sixteen digit code consisting of upper and lowercase letters, numbers, and symbols into the game to retrieve their data. Many critics blamed THQ
for what was perceived to be a cost-cutting measure. It was the only major change from the Japanese version of the game.
began development on GT Advance Championship Racing about a year before the release of the game in Japan. The game was first announced on August 18, 2000, under the name of Pocket GT Advance. With the exception of a new password save system, tweaking was kept to a minimum for the North American version of the game. The choice was made in the Japanese version to use mostly English in the game so it would be playable outside of Japan.
The Japanese version of the game, Advance GTA, was praised by critics and the anticipation for the North American and European releases of the game grew. A reported bidding war between United States publishing companies
to release the game in the US began after the positive feedback from the Japanese version. It was reported a month afterwards that THQ had gained the publishing rights for the game's North American and European releases.
's Craig Harris praised the high quality graphics engine
and the entertaining powerslide system, but observed that with regards to the password system, "... some players (myself included) just might throw their hands up in disgust with what THQ has done to the game." GameSpot
observed that, "GT Advance is, at its core, a very robust and graphically impressive racing game." Despite praising the gameplay, however, GameSpot recommended that players buy a Japanese import
version of the game instead, since it was in English and included a battery save feature. Eurogamer
wrote that even though GT Advance was hampered by passwords, "... you should definitely own GT Advance one way or another, as current gripe excepted; it's a sterling example of handheld racing done properly."
Responding to criticisms of the password save system, THQ
later re-instated the battery save feature into the two sequels of the game, GT Advance 2: Rally Racing, and GT Advance 3: Pro Concept Racing
.
Racing game
A racing video game is a genre of video games, either in the first-person or third-person perspective, in which the player partakes in a racing competition with any type of land, air, or sea vehicles. They may be based on anything from real-world racing leagues to entirely fantastical settings...
developed by MTO
MTO (video game company)
MTO, which stands for Motorsports Software Technical Office, is a Yokohama-based video game developer and publisher founded in May 1996. The company is most known for the GT series of games that it has released and the more recent pet games such as Dogz and Catz.-Games developed:-Games published:...
and published by THQ
THQ
THQ Inc. is an American developer and publisher of video games. Founded in 1989 in the United States, the company develops products for video game consoles, handheld game systems, as well as for personal computers and wireless devices...
. It was a launch title
Launch title
A launch game, or launch title, is a video game released to consumers synchronously with the release of its respective video game console, meaning they are the only available games at the time of the console's launch. Several of these games are also packaged with the console...
for the Game Boy Advance
Game Boy Advance
The is a 32-bit handheld video game console developed, manufactured, and marketed by Nintendo. It is the successor to the Game Boy Color. It was released in Japan on March 21, 2001; in North America on June 11, 2001; in Australia and Europe on June 22, 2001; and in the People's Republic of China...
, and was released in Japan on March 21, 2001, in North America on June 11, 2001, and in Europe on June 15, 2001. The game's sequel, GT Advance 2: Rally Racing
GT Advance 2: Rally Racing
GT Advance 2: Rally Racing is a rally racing game developed by MTO and published by THQ for the Game Boy Advance. It was released in Japan on December 7, 2001, in Europe on June 28, 2002, and in North America on June 30, 2002...
, was released on June 30, 2002 in North America.
GT Advance features forty-five Japanese cars and places the player in races on thirty-two tracks. Due to positive reaction to the game in Japan, THQ purchased publishing rights for the North American and European releases to the game after a reported bidding war, and added in a controversial password save system
Password (video games)
In many video games of the 8-bit and, to a lesser extent, 16-bit eras , after a level was beaten and/or when all continues were used, the game would display a password, that when entered in the game would allow the player to return to this part in the game...
into the game to cut costs.
The game was received with mostly positive reviews from critics that praised the game for its fun gameplay, but THQ was criticized by most reviewers for adding passwords to the game when the Japanese version had a normal one.
Gameplay
GT Advance Championship Racing is a customizable experience, including 48 cars from 8 car manufacturers, and 32 courses. Some of the cars featured in the game are exclusively found in Asia, such as the Nissan CubeNissan Cube
The Nissan Cube is a Mini MPV produced by Nissan for the Japanese market since 1998, and now sold in export markets such as North America and Europe.-First generation:...
. The courses vary between paved
Pavement (material)
Road surface or pavement is the durable surface material laid down on an area intended to sustain vehicular or foot traffic, such as a road or walkway. In the past cobblestones and granite setts were extensively used, but these surfaces have mostly been replaced by asphalt or concrete. Such...
and dirt
Dirt
Dirt is unclean matter, especially when in contact with a person's clothes, skin or possessions when they are said to become dirty. Common types of dirt include:* dust — a general powder of organic or mineral matter...
roads, requiring the player to adapt their driving to meet the conditions of the course they're driving on.
The game's championship mode features four levels of play, three cups of varying levels, and an unlockable "kart racing mode". Upgrades earned through gameplay can be added to the player's car, and in some cases, they can change the physical appearance of the vehicle. The game contains multiplayer support, allowing two people to play against each other using a Game Link Cable.
Controls are simple, with the A and B buttons controlling the player's gas and brakes respectively. The R and L buttons shift the car up or down a gear in manual
Manual transmission
A manual transmission, also known as a manual gearbox or standard transmission is a type of transmission used in motor vehicle applications...
control, and the D-Pad
D-pad
A D-pad is a flat, usually thumb-operated directional control with one button on each point, found on nearly all modern video game console gamepads, game controllers, on the remote control units of some television and DVD players, and smart phones...
controls the car's steering. The game requires the player to master the powerslide technique to skid around corners and to reduce their lap
Lap
A lap is a surface created between the knee and hips of a bipedal being when it is in a seated or lying down position.-Consumer products for laps:...
time.
Graphics
Plane (mathematics)
In mathematics, a plane is a flat, two-dimensional surface. A plane is the two dimensional analogue of a point , a line and a space...
, which allows the game to progress at a smooth rate, but makes it harder for the player to see upcoming turns in the road. The problem can be remedied by playing through a track multiple times to gain familiarity with the turns in a course. The cars are rendered through sprite
Sprite (computer graphics)
In computer graphics, a sprite is a two-dimensional image or animation that is integrated into a larger scene...
frames, giving the impression of 3D graphics
3D computer graphics
3D computer graphics are graphics that use a three-dimensional representation of geometric data that is stored in the computer for the purposes of performing calculations and rendering 2D images...
in the game.
Save System
The Japanese version of the game, Advance GTA, had save support. However, THQTHQ
THQ Inc. is an American developer and publisher of video games. Founded in 1989 in the United States, the company develops products for video game consoles, handheld game systems, as well as for personal computers and wireless devices...
pulled the battery RAM
Random-access memory
Random access memory is a form of computer data storage. Today, it takes the form of integrated circuits that allow stored data to be accessed in any order with a worst case performance of constant time. Strictly speaking, modern types of DRAM are therefore not random access, as data is read in...
out of the North American and European releases of the game, and utilized passwords to save data instead. The system forces players of the North American and European releases to enter a sixteen digit code consisting of upper and lowercase letters, numbers, and symbols into the game to retrieve their data. Many critics blamed THQ
THQ
THQ Inc. is an American developer and publisher of video games. Founded in 1989 in the United States, the company develops products for video game consoles, handheld game systems, as well as for personal computers and wireless devices...
for what was perceived to be a cost-cutting measure. It was the only major change from the Japanese version of the game.
Development
MTOMTO (video game company)
MTO, which stands for Motorsports Software Technical Office, is a Yokohama-based video game developer and publisher founded in May 1996. The company is most known for the GT series of games that it has released and the more recent pet games such as Dogz and Catz.-Games developed:-Games published:...
began development on GT Advance Championship Racing about a year before the release of the game in Japan. The game was first announced on August 18, 2000, under the name of Pocket GT Advance. With the exception of a new password save system, tweaking was kept to a minimum for the North American version of the game. The choice was made in the Japanese version to use mostly English in the game so it would be playable outside of Japan.
The Japanese version of the game, Advance GTA, was praised by critics and the anticipation for the North American and European releases of the game grew. A reported bidding war between United States publishing companies
Video game publisher
A video game publisher is a company that publishes video games that they have either developed internally or have had developed by a video game developer....
to release the game in the US began after the positive feedback from the Japanese version. It was reported a month afterwards that THQ had gained the publishing rights for the game's North American and European releases.
Reception
GT Advance Championship Racing garnered praise from critics for its overall gameplay, but the inclusion of a password save system by THQ into the North American and European releases of the game was heavily criticized. IGNIGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
's Craig Harris praised the high quality graphics engine
Graphics engine
Graphics engine may refer to:*Game engine: a physics model typically implemented in software for use in computer games*Graphics engine : a specialized computer hardware device, typically integrated with a framebuffer or other video display circuitry, for performing graphics calculations...
and the entertaining powerslide system, but observed that with regards to the password system, "... some players (myself included) just might throw their hands up in disgust with what THQ has done to the game." GameSpot
GameSpot
GameSpot is a video gaming website that provides news, reviews, previews, downloads, and other information. The site was launched in May 1, 1996 by Pete Deemer, Vince Broady and Jon Epstein. It was purchased by ZDNet, a brand which was later purchased by CNET Networks. CBS Interactive, which...
observed that, "GT Advance is, at its core, a very robust and graphically impressive racing game." Despite praising the gameplay, however, GameSpot recommended that players buy a Japanese import
Import
The term import is derived from the conceptual meaning as to bring in the goods and services into the port of a country. The buyer of such goods and services is referred to an "importer" who is based in the country of import whereas the overseas based seller is referred to as an "exporter". Thus...
version of the game instead, since it was in English and included a battery save feature. Eurogamer
Eurogamer
Eurogamer is a Brighton-based website focused on video games news, reviews, previews and interviews. It is operated by Eurogamer Network Ltd., which was formed in 1999 by brothers Rupert and Nick Loman. Eurogamer has grown to become one of the most important European-based websites focused on...
wrote that even though GT Advance was hampered by passwords, "... you should definitely own GT Advance one way or another, as current gripe excepted; it's a sterling example of handheld racing done properly."
Responding to criticisms of the password save system, THQ
THQ
THQ Inc. is an American developer and publisher of video games. Founded in 1989 in the United States, the company develops products for video game consoles, handheld game systems, as well as for personal computers and wireless devices...
later re-instated the battery save feature into the two sequels of the game, GT Advance 2: Rally Racing, and GT Advance 3: Pro Concept Racing
GT Advance 3: Pro Concept Racing
GT Advance 3: Pro Concept Racing is a racing game developed by MTO and published by THQ for the Game Boy Advance. It was released in Japan on April 26, 2002, in North America on February 6, 2003, and in Europe on May 23, 2003...
.
External links
- GT Advance Championship Racing at MobyGamesMobyGames-Platforms not yet included:- Further reading :* Rusel DeMaria, Johnny L. Wilson, High Score!: The Illustrated History of Electronic Games, McGraw-Hill/Osborne Media; 2 edition , ISBN 0-07-223172-6...