Interstate '76
Encyclopedia
Interstate '76 is a vehicular combat video game for Windows
. It was developed and published by Activision
and released in March 1997
.
version of the game; "Auto Melee", a deathmatch with computer-driven cars; and "Scenarios", short free-standing adventures featuring the game's protagonists. The primary difference between the scenarios and the T.R.I.P., length of play aside, is that the player has a much broader choice of vehicles in the scenario mode, while the player is limited to only one car during most of the T.R.I.P. mode. The game's vehicles are faithful reproductions of various cars and trucks from the era, both in appearance and driving characteristics, though the names have been changed.
The game is based on the engine used for Activision's MechWarrior 2: 31st Century Combat, and requires a fair amount of strategy through the course of the game, as the player must balance the vehicle's armor and weapon load-outs appropriately in order to successfully complete the various missions. In the game's story mode, the player must also manage and repair equipment salvaged from the wrecks of opponents.
. All the in-game vehicles in Interstate '76 are based on actual automobile
s, including many period American muscle car
s.
Whilst set in an alternative timeline, in which the 1973 oil crisis
is still ongoing, the game progresses through real towns and locations in the south-western United States including Lubbock
, Seagraves
, Seminole
and Pecos
in Texas
and Roswell
and Carlsbad
in New Mexico
. The game's final showdown takes place at Fort Davis, Texas
.
. Taurus recruits a reluctant Groove to the cause, with Groove operating Jade's heavily armed Picard Piranha. The game follows Groove and Taurus' quest for revenge and the truth.
Taurus serves as mentor and partner to Groove in the first few missions, until he is seriously wounded in an ambush. His own car ("Eloise") is destroyed and he spends the rest of the T.R.I.P. riding along in the team's van with Skeeter. This allows Groove, the player's character, to take center stage.
The trail leads to Antonio Malochio, a smuggler with a questionable past. Malochio has purchased a hydrogen bomb on the black market and plans to use it to destroy the West Texas Federal Stock - the largest oil reserve in North America. If he succeeds, the gas crisis would become a gas panic, leading to anarchy, during which time Malochio and his army of auto-villains (secretly backed by OPEC
) would seize power.
In the course of the T.R.I.P., Groove's driving and shooting skills are put to the test against members of Malochio's organization (some of whom, like Cloaker and Disco Cat, are quite colorful for minor characters); the creeper Patriot and his cronies, former foes of Jade's who may actually be ghosts; a corrupt county sheriff and his deputies (the "fuzz") who've been paid off by Malochio; and even the Jeep-driving operators of a mysterious desert testing range.
Groove and company finally arrive at Fort Davis, Malochio's hideout, just as he has armed the bomb and is preparing to leave; however, Groove taunts Malochio into one last duel. When the player wins, Groove kills Malochio and disarms the bomb, saving the oil supply and completing the game.
Because of the limitations of the game's engine, the characters are only seen in prerendered cutscenes, and then as figures constructed of colored but untextured ("flat") polygons. This simple design was chosen to make them easy to animate and to fit in with the overall look of the game. Part of Interstate '76s introduction takes the form of opening credits
for a television action series; in this cutscene, each of the characters is credited to a fictional actor.
who would later achieve fame as a founding member of Third Eye Blind
. The music was performed under the name "Bullmark" with Salazar on bass, Santana
-alumni Tom Coster
on keyboards, and Bryan Mantia
, who among his performing credits previously played with Primus
and Guns N' Roses
, on drums. Eric Valentine
(who also produced, engineered and mixed for Third Eye Blind at the time) mixed and engineered for the soundtrack. The soundtrack recreated the funk sound of '70s' film and television theme music. Some are sly variations of popular '70s' funk
tracks, such as "Never Get Outta The Car"'s pastiche
of The Brothers Johnson's 1976 hit "Get The Funk Out Ma Face". The soundtrack was recorded using vintage instruments and recording technology in order to as closely reproduce this sound as possible. Activision released a separate official soundtrack CD which contained all tracks from the game and unreleased tracks from the recording sessions. Versions of the background music tracks can also be found on the game play disc as redbook
audio.
/stand alone expansion pack, Nitro Pack
(known as Nitro Riders in some territories) and a direct sequel, Interstate '82
, as well as spin off the Vigilante 8
series for home video game consoles. A graphically enhanced version of the original game, Interstate '76: Gold Edition, was also released. The Gold Edition was later bundled with the Nitro Pack expansion as Interstate '76 Arsenal. On Feb 18, 2010 Good Old Games released a version of Interstate '76 and Arsenal in a bundle playable on modern operating systems and hardware.
The film rights to the game were acquired in March 1998 by 20th Century Fox
and Davis Entertainment
with Todd Smith and Danny Simonds producing. There have been no reports since then and as of 2010 the project has likely been consigned to development hell
.
Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal...
. It was developed and published by Activision
Activision
Activision is an American publisher, majority owned by French conglomerate Vivendi SA. Its current CEO is Robert Kotick. It was founded on October 1, 1979 and was the world's first independent developer and distributor of video games for gaming consoles...
and released in March 1997
1997 in video gaming
-Events:*October 4 — Gunpei Yokoi dies after a double car accident.*November – Interactive Entertainment Merchants Association launched.*3rd annual E3...
.
Gameplay
There are four play modes available in the game: the "T.R.I.P." (an acronym for "Total Recreational Interactive Production"), which follows the game's protagonists in an episodic story; "Multi Melee", an on-line deathmatchDeathmatch (gaming)
Deathmatch or Player vs All is a widely-used gameplay mode integrated into many shooter and real-time strategy computer games...
version of the game; "Auto Melee", a deathmatch with computer-driven cars; and "Scenarios", short free-standing adventures featuring the game's protagonists. The primary difference between the scenarios and the T.R.I.P., length of play aside, is that the player has a much broader choice of vehicles in the scenario mode, while the player is limited to only one car during most of the T.R.I.P. mode. The game's vehicles are faithful reproductions of various cars and trucks from the era, both in appearance and driving characteristics, though the names have been changed.
The game is based on the engine used for Activision's MechWarrior 2: 31st Century Combat, and requires a fair amount of strategy through the course of the game, as the player must balance the vehicle's armor and weapon load-outs appropriately in order to successfully complete the various missions. In the game's story mode, the player must also manage and repair equipment salvaged from the wrecks of opponents.
Synopsis
The game is set in the south-western United States of America in an alternate history of the year 1976, during a prolonged oil crisisEnergy crisis
An energy crisis is any great bottleneck in the supply of energy resources to an economy. In popular literature though, it often refers to one of the energy sources used at a certain time and place, particularly those that supply national electricity grids or serve as fuel for vehicles...
. All the in-game vehicles in Interstate '76 are based on actual automobile
Automobile
An automobile, autocar, motor car or car is a wheeled motor vehicle used for transporting passengers, which also carries its own engine or motor...
s, including many period American muscle car
Muscle car
Muscle car is a term used to refer to a variety of high-performance automobiles. The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines muscle cars as "any of a group of American-made 2-door sports coupes with powerful engines designed for high-performance driving." Usually, a large V8 engine is fitted in a...
s.
Whilst set in an alternative timeline, in which the 1973 oil crisis
1973 oil crisis
The 1973 oil crisis started in October 1973, when the members of Organization of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries or the OAPEC proclaimed an oil embargo. This was "in response to the U.S. decision to re-supply the Israeli military" during the Yom Kippur war. It lasted until March 1974. With the...
is still ongoing, the game progresses through real towns and locations in the south-western United States including Lubbock
Lubbock, Texas
Lubbock is a city in and the county seat of Lubbock County, Texas, United States. The city is located in the northwestern part of the state, a region known historically as the Llano Estacado, and the home of Texas Tech University and Lubbock Christian University...
, Seagraves
Seagraves, Texas
Seagraves is a city in Gaines County, Texas, United States. The population was 2,334 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Seagraves is located at .According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , all of it land.-Demographics:...
, Seminole
Seminole, Texas
Seminole is a city in and the county seat of Gaines County in west Texas, United States. The population was 6,430 at the 2010 census. It is the birthplace of Country music singers Larry Gatlin and Tanya Tucker...
and Pecos
Pecos, Texas
Pecos is the largest city in and the county seat of Reeves County, Texas, United States. It is situated in the river valley on the west bank of the Pecos River at the eastern edge of the Chihuahuan Desert and the Trans-Pecos region of west Texas and near the southern border of New Mexico...
in Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
and Roswell
Roswell, New Mexico
Roswell is a city in and the county seat of Chaves County in the southeastern quarter of the state of New Mexico, United States. The population was 48,366 at the 2010 census. It is a center for irrigation farming, dairying, ranching, manufacturing, distribution, and petroleum production. It is also...
and Carlsbad
Carlsbad, New Mexico
Carlsbad is a city in and the county seat of Eddy County, New Mexico, in the United States. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 26,138. Carlsbad is the center of the designated micropolitan area of Carlsbad-Artesia, which has a total population of 55,435...
in New Mexico
New Mexico
New Mexico is a state located in the southwest and western regions of the United States. New Mexico is also usually considered one of the Mountain States. With a population density of 16 per square mile, New Mexico is the sixth-most sparsely inhabited U.S...
. The game's final showdown takes place at Fort Davis, Texas
Fort Davis, Texas
Fort Davis is a census-designated place in Jeff Davis County, Texas, United States. The population was 1,050 at the 2000 census and 1,041 according to a 2007 estimate. It is the county seat of Jeff Davis County...
.
Plot
The game focuses on the daring exploits of Groove Champion, his partner Taurus, and their mechanic, Skeeter. A powerful but shadowy figure is recruiting autovillains (also known as "creepers") from around the country for a private army. Groove's sister, Jade, and Taurus are investigating the movements of the army when, on the night of July 3, 1976, Jade Champion is murdered outside Lubbock, TexasLubbock, Texas
Lubbock is a city in and the county seat of Lubbock County, Texas, United States. The city is located in the northwestern part of the state, a region known historically as the Llano Estacado, and the home of Texas Tech University and Lubbock Christian University...
. Taurus recruits a reluctant Groove to the cause, with Groove operating Jade's heavily armed Picard Piranha. The game follows Groove and Taurus' quest for revenge and the truth.
Taurus serves as mentor and partner to Groove in the first few missions, until he is seriously wounded in an ambush. His own car ("Eloise") is destroyed and he spends the rest of the T.R.I.P. riding along in the team's van with Skeeter. This allows Groove, the player's character, to take center stage.
The trail leads to Antonio Malochio, a smuggler with a questionable past. Malochio has purchased a hydrogen bomb on the black market and plans to use it to destroy the West Texas Federal Stock - the largest oil reserve in North America. If he succeeds, the gas crisis would become a gas panic, leading to anarchy, during which time Malochio and his army of auto-villains (secretly backed by OPEC
OPEC
OPEC is an intergovernmental organization of twelve developing countries made up of Algeria, Angola, Ecuador, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Libya, Nigeria, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Venezuela. OPEC has maintained its headquarters in Vienna since 1965, and hosts regular meetings...
) would seize power.
In the course of the T.R.I.P., Groove's driving and shooting skills are put to the test against members of Malochio's organization (some of whom, like Cloaker and Disco Cat, are quite colorful for minor characters); the creeper Patriot and his cronies, former foes of Jade's who may actually be ghosts; a corrupt county sheriff and his deputies (the "fuzz") who've been paid off by Malochio; and even the Jeep-driving operators of a mysterious desert testing range.
Groove and company finally arrive at Fort Davis, Malochio's hideout, just as he has armed the bomb and is preparing to leave; however, Groove taunts Malochio into one last duel. When the player wins, Groove kills Malochio and disarms the bomb, saving the oil supply and completing the game.
Characters
Opening credits
In a motion picture, television program, or video game, the opening credits are shown at the very beginning and list the most important members of the production. They are now usually shown as text superimposed on a blank screen or static pictures, or sometimes on top of action in the show. There...
for a television action series; in this cutscene, each of the characters is credited to a fictional actor.
- Groove Champion (played by "Everett MannEverymanIn literature and drama, the term everyman has come to mean an ordinary individual, with whom the audience or reader is supposed to be able to identify easily, and who is often placed in extraordinary circumstances...
", voiced by Andrew Heckler) - The protagonist of Interstate '76 and middle Champion child, Groove reluctantly accepts the responsibility of the auto-vigilante lifestyle, takes the CBCitizens' band radioCitizens' Band radio is, in many countries, a system of short-distance radio communications between individuals on a selection of 40 channels within the 27-MHz band. Citizens' Band is distinct from the FRS, GMRS, MURS and amateur radio...
handle of "Swinger" and drives with Taurus to fight against Malochio's goons. He inherits his sister's 1971 Picard Piranha at the start of the game.
- Taurus ("James W. StylesWild StyleWild Style is a 1983 hip hop film produced by Charlie Ahearn. Released theatrically in 1983 by First Run Features and later re-released for home video by Rhino Home Video, it is regarded as the first hip hop motion picture...
", voiced by Greg EaglesGreg EaglesGreg Eagles is an American voice actor whose talents have been used for numerous TV shows and video games...
) - Taurus isn't his real name- it's what people call him. He lived as a poet in New EnglandNew EnglandNew England is a region in the northeastern corner of the United States consisting of the six states of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut...
with a wife and daughter, who were killed by criminals. He helps Groove to adjust to being a vigilante, guiding him along his quest. His poetry could be sampled by pressing the 'C' key while in driving mode. He goes by the handle "Stampede" and drives a 1966 Jefferson Sovereign he has named "Eloise".
- Jade Champion ("Katherine Knolls", voiced by Lisa Picotte) - For many years, Jade lived a secret life as an Auto-Vigilante. The rest of her family never knew a thing, presumably because Jade wanted to protect them from her enemies. The game begins with Groove taking up her cause, symbolized by his inheritance of her car. Her handle was "Vixen."
- Skeeter ("Willard Dicot III", voiced by Tom KaneTom KaneTom Kane is a prominent American voice actor with over 25 years of experience. He is most widely known for his animation work...
) - Skeeter serves as the mechanic and Greek chorusGreek chorusA Greek chorus is a homogenous, non-individualised group of performers in the plays of classical Greece, who comment with a collective voice on the dramatic action....
for the series' heroes. He repairs the player's vehicles between missions and occasionally is the focus of the in-game missions. He goes by the handle "Monkey WrenchMonkey wrenchThe monkey wrench is an adjustable wrench, a later American development of eighteenth century English coach wrenches. It was popular in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries but is now used only for heavier tasks, having been mostly replaced by the lighter and sleeker shifting adjustable or...
." He drives a 1971 Street Van which acts as the team's support vehicle.
- Antonio Malochio ("Carlo DeFungi", voiced by John de LancieJohn de LancieJohn de Lancie is an American actor. He has been active in screen and television roles since 1977, though he is best known for his recurring role as Q on the various Star Trek series and as Frank Simmons in Stargate SG-1....
) - The primary villain of Interstate '76, a shady businessman with a history in Vietnam and Cambodia. Originally believed to be using the handle of "Cloaker", it is revealed that his codename is in fact "Giotto" and that "Cloaker" is merely one of his lieutenants. He drives a 1969 Courcheval MantaChevrolet Corvette C3The Chevrolet Corvette is a sports car produced by the Chevrolet division of General Motors for the 1968 through 1982 model years. Corvette chief Zora Arkus-Duntov wanted a striking new Corvette; although engines and chassis components were mostly carried over from the previous generation, its...
.
Soundtrack
The Interstate '76 soundtrack was composed by Arion SalazarArion Salazar
Arion Salazar is the former bassist for Third Eye Blind. Salazar was considered to be the most connected with the fans through the internet out of all the band members. He was previously in the Fremont, California band, Fungo Mungo.Salazar also played in a sessions band called Bullmark...
who would later achieve fame as a founding member of Third Eye Blind
Third Eye Blind
Third Eye Blind is an American alternative rock band formed in the early 1990s in San Francisco. The songwriting duo of Kevin Cadogan and Stephan Jenkins signed the band's first major label recording contract with Elektra records in 1996 resulting in two multi platinum albums. The band's lineup...
. The music was performed under the name "Bullmark" with Salazar on bass, Santana
Santana (band)
Santana is a rock band based around guitarist Carlos Santana and founded in the late 1960s. It first came to public attention after their performing the song "Soul Sacrifice" at the Woodstock Festival in 1969, when their Latin rock provided a contrast to other acts on the bill...
-alumni Tom Coster
Tom Coster
Tom Coster is an American keyboardist and composer. Detroit-born and San Francisco-raised, Coster played piano and accordion as a youth, continuing his studies through college and a productive five-year stint as a musician in the U.S...
on keyboards, and Bryan Mantia
Bryan Mantia
Bryan "Brain" Mantia is a contemporary rock drummer. He has played with bands like Primus, Guns N' Roses, Praxis and Godflesh, and with other popular performers such as Tom Waits, Bill Laswell, Bootsy Collins and Buckethead...
, who among his performing credits previously played with Primus
Primus (band)
Primus is an American rock band based in San Francisco, California, currently composed of bassist/vocalist Les Claypool, guitarist Larry "Ler" LaLonde and drummer Jay Lane. Primus originally formed in 1984 with Claypool and guitarist Todd Huth, later joined by Lane, though the latter two departed...
and Guns N' Roses
Guns N' Roses
Guns N' Roses is an American hard rock band, formed in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, in 1985. The band has released six studio albums, three EPs, and one live album...
, on drums. Eric Valentine
Eric Valentine
Eric Valentine is an American record producer, who began his career as drummer and producer in the heavy metal band T-Ride and has subsequently produced albums for artists such as Good Charlotte, Lostprophets, Taking Back Sunday, Nickel Creek, Queens of the Stone Age, Third Eye Blind, Smash Mouth,...
(who also produced, engineered and mixed for Third Eye Blind at the time) mixed and engineered for the soundtrack. The soundtrack recreated the funk sound of '70s' film and television theme music. Some are sly variations of popular '70s' funk
Funk
Funk is a music genre that originated in the mid-late 1960s when African American musicians blended soul music, jazz and R&B into a rhythmic, danceable new form of music. Funk de-emphasizes melody and harmony and brings a strong rhythmic groove of electric bass and drums to the foreground...
tracks, such as "Never Get Outta The Car"'s pastiche
Pastiche
A pastiche is a literary or other artistic genre or technique that is a "hodge-podge" or imitation. The word is also a linguistic term used to describe an early stage in the development of a pidgin language.-Hodge-podge:...
of The Brothers Johnson's 1976 hit "Get The Funk Out Ma Face". The soundtrack was recorded using vintage instruments and recording technology in order to as closely reproduce this sound as possible. Activision released a separate official soundtrack CD which contained all tracks from the game and unreleased tracks from the recording sessions. Versions of the background music tracks can also be found on the game play disc as redbook
Red Book (audio CD standard)
Red Book is the standard for audio CDs . It is named after one of the Rainbow Books, a series of books that contain the technical specifications for all CD and CD-ROM formats.The first edition of the Red Book was released in 1980 by Philips and Sony; it was adopted by the Digital Audio Disc...
audio.
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Legacy
Interstate '76 spawned a prequelPrequel
A prequel is a work that supplements a previously completed one, and has an earlier time setting.The widely recognized term was a 20th-century neologism, and a portmanteau from pre- and sequel...
/stand alone expansion pack, Nitro Pack
Interstate '76 Nitro Pack
Interstate '76: Nitro Pack is a video game for Microsoft Windows. It was developed by Activision and released in 1997. A stand alone expansion pack and prequel for the original Interstate '76, it didn't require the original game be installed to play...
(known as Nitro Riders in some territories) and a direct sequel, Interstate '82
Interstate '82
Interstate '82 is a computer game for the PC. It was developed by Activision and released in 1999.-Synopsis:The game is set in the southwest United States of America in an alternate version of the year 1982, during the Reagan Administration. The game is less complex than its predecessor,...
, as well as spin off the Vigilante 8
Vigilante 8
Vigilante 8 is a vehicular combat video game released on June 4, 1998 for the PlayStation, Nintendo 64, and Game Boy Color. It is a spinoff of the PC game Interstate '76, and features several concepts carried over from that title.Vigilante 8 was developed with a team of only five people Vigilante...
series for home video game consoles. A graphically enhanced version of the original game, Interstate '76: Gold Edition, was also released. The Gold Edition was later bundled with the Nitro Pack expansion as Interstate '76 Arsenal. On Feb 18, 2010 Good Old Games released a version of Interstate '76 and Arsenal in a bundle playable on modern operating systems and hardware.
The film rights to the game were acquired in March 1998 by 20th Century Fox
20th Century Fox
Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation — also known as 20th Century Fox, or simply 20th or Fox — is one of the six major American film studios...
and Davis Entertainment
Davis Entertainment
Davis Entertainment is an American independent film production company, founded by John Davis in 1985.-Selected filmography:* Brewster's Millions * "Crocodile" Dundee * Predator * Superman IV: The Quest for Peace...
with Todd Smith and Danny Simonds producing. There have been no reports since then and as of 2010 the project has likely been consigned to development hell
Development hell
In the jargon of the media-industry, "development hell" is a period during which a film or other project is trapped in development...
.
External links
- Interstate '76 at GameFAQsGameFAQsGameFAQs is a website that hosts FAQs and walkthroughs for video games. It was created in November 1995 by Jeff "CJayC" Veasey and was bought by CNET Networks in May 2003. It is currently owned by CBS Interactive. The site has a database of video game information, cheat codes, reviews, game saves,...