Wacky Wheels
Encyclopedia
Wacky Wheels is an MS-DOS
arcade
kart racing
video game released by Apogee Software
in 1994, with the emphasis on fun over realism both in looks and gameplay
. The game strongly resembles Super Mario Kart
from the Super Nintendo
, but the karts are described as lawn mowers and the eight playable characters are animals from a zoo.
s, bomb
s and other objects that can be used to shoot or distract opponents. The game features both single and multiplayer play, with split-screen, modem, or direct serial link. In multiplayer mode, two human players can either race against each other or battle in special arenas where the sole purpose is to hit the opponent a certain number of times with hedgehogs. This last gaming mode, called Wacky shoot-out, is similar to the classic deathmatch
mode from first-person shooter games or the Battle Mode of Super Mario Kart.
The game was and still is distributed as shareware
, with only a few characters and courses active. Registration is required to unlock the remaining characters and courses. It is also the first game to feature a Dopefish
cameo appearance
.
. The developers, Andy Edwardson and Shaun Gadalla, had been inspired by Super Mario Kart
, and wished to create a similar experience on the personal computer. During development, he sent out a playable demo that included its source code
to Copysoft to canvas interest in funding the project. They rejected it and instead Apogee
began funding development. However, just prior to the release of Wacky Wheels, Copysoft released a similar game titled Skunny Kart. Edwardson and Gadalla accused Copysoft of copyright infringement, noting the similarity in the games: however, no legal action was ever taken.
MS-DOS
MS-DOS is an operating system for x86-based personal computers. It was the most commonly used member of the DOS family of operating systems, and was the main operating system for IBM PC compatible personal computers during the 1980s to the mid 1990s, until it was gradually superseded by operating...
arcade
Arcade game
An arcade game is a coin-operated entertainment machine, usually installed in public businesses such as restaurants, bars, and amusement arcades. Most arcade games are video games, pinball machines, electro-mechanical games, redemption games, and merchandisers...
kart racing
Kart racing
Kart racing or karting is a variant of open-wheel motorsport with small, open, four-wheeled vehicles called karts, go-karts, or gearbox/shifter karts depending on the design. They are usually raced on scaled-down circuits...
video game released by Apogee Software
3D Realms
3D Realms is a current video game publisher and former video game developer based in Garland, Texas, United States, established in 1987...
in 1994, with the emphasis on fun over realism both in looks and gameplay
Gameplay
Gameplay is the specific way in which players interact with a game, and in particular with video games. Gameplay is the pattern defined through the game rules, connection between player and the game, challenges and overcoming them, plot and player's connection with it...
. The game strongly resembles Super Mario Kart
Super Mario Kart
is a go-kart racing video game developed by Nintendo EAD for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System . The first game of the Mario Kart series, it was launched in Japan on August 27, 1992, in North America on September 1, 1992, and in Europe on January 21, 1993. Selling eight million copies...
from the Super Nintendo
Super Nintendo Entertainment System
The Super Nintendo Entertainment System is a 16-bit video game console that was released by Nintendo in North America, Europe, Australasia , and South America between 1990 and 1993. In Japan and Southeast Asia, the system is called the , or SFC for short...
, but the karts are described as lawn mowers and the eight playable characters are animals from a zoo.
Gameplay
While racing, players can collect hedgehogHedgehog
A hedgehog is any of the spiny mammals of the subfamily Erinaceinae and the order Erinaceomorpha. There are 17 species of hedgehog in five genera, found through parts of Europe, Asia, Africa, and New Zealand . There are no hedgehogs native to Australia, and no living species native to the Americas...
s, bomb
Bomb
A bomb is any of a range of explosive weapons that only rely on the exothermic reaction of an explosive material to provide an extremely sudden and violent release of energy...
s and other objects that can be used to shoot or distract opponents. The game features both single and multiplayer play, with split-screen, modem, or direct serial link. In multiplayer mode, two human players can either race against each other or battle in special arenas where the sole purpose is to hit the opponent a certain number of times with hedgehogs. This last gaming mode, called Wacky shoot-out, is similar to the classic deathmatch
Deathmatch (gaming)
Deathmatch or Player vs All is a widely-used gameplay mode integrated into many shooter and real-time strategy computer games...
mode from first-person shooter games or the Battle Mode of Super Mario Kart.
The game was and still is distributed as shareware
Shareware
The term shareware is a proprietary software that is provided to users without payment on a trial basis and is often limited by any combination of functionality, availability, or convenience. Shareware is often offered as a download from an Internet website or as a compact disc included with a...
, with only a few characters and courses active. Registration is required to unlock the remaining characters and courses. It is also the first game to feature a Dopefish
Dopefish
The Dopefish is a fictional fish that originated in the fourth Commander Keen video game, Secret of the Oracle, released in 1991. The character has since evolved into a PC game industry in-joke, making appearances in games from Apogee's 1994 Wacky Wheels as well as titles as recent as the 2006 SiN...
cameo appearance
Cameo appearance
A cameo role or cameo appearance is a brief appearance of a known person in a work of the performing arts, such as plays, films, video games and television...
.
History
Wacky Wheels was not the first game to feature this type of gameplay, now known as go-kart or kart racingKart racing
Kart racing or karting is a variant of open-wheel motorsport with small, open, four-wheeled vehicles called karts, go-karts, or gearbox/shifter karts depending on the design. They are usually raced on scaled-down circuits...
. The developers, Andy Edwardson and Shaun Gadalla, had been inspired by Super Mario Kart
Super Mario Kart
is a go-kart racing video game developed by Nintendo EAD for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System . The first game of the Mario Kart series, it was launched in Japan on August 27, 1992, in North America on September 1, 1992, and in Europe on January 21, 1993. Selling eight million copies...
, and wished to create a similar experience on the personal computer. During development, he sent out a playable demo that included its source code
Source code
In computer science, source code is text written using the format and syntax of the programming language that it is being written in. Such a language is specially designed to facilitate the work of computer programmers, who specify the actions to be performed by a computer mostly by writing source...
to Copysoft to canvas interest in funding the project. They rejected it and instead Apogee
3D Realms
3D Realms is a current video game publisher and former video game developer based in Garland, Texas, United States, established in 1987...
began funding development. However, just prior to the release of Wacky Wheels, Copysoft released a similar game titled Skunny Kart. Edwardson and Gadalla accused Copysoft of copyright infringement, noting the similarity in the games: however, no legal action was ever taken.
External links
- Official Apogee site with shareware download (can also purchase full version as download)
- The Official Apogee FAQ (Andy Edwardson's paraphrased history of Wacky Wheels appears in section 2.8.9)