Days of Thunder (1990 video game)

Days of Thunder is a 1990 NASCAR racing simulation video game loosely based on the 1990 movie Days of Thunder. The game utilized elements from the movie, using a movie license from Paramount Pictures for its graphical elements, plot, and music soundtrack. It was released for the PC, the NES, the Game Boy, and many other formats. It was created by Argonaut Software and distributed by Mindscape Group. In 2009 Freeverse released an updated version for iOS.

Days of Thunder
NES cover art
Developer(s)Beam Software (NES)
Creative Materials Ltd. (Amiga, Atari ST)
Tiertex Design Studios (Commodore 64)
Argonaut Software (other platforms)
Publisher(s)Mindscape Group
Producer(s)Gary Liddon
Programmer(s)Trevor Nuridin
Andrew Bailey
Carl Muller
Andrew Carter
Jamie Rivett
Artist(s)Parrish Haywood
Composer(s)Tania Smith (NES)
David Whittaker (Game Boy)
Platform(s)Amiga, Atari ST, C64, MS-DOS, Game Boy, NES, iOS, Xbox Live Arcade, PlayStation Network, ZX Spectrum
Release1990, 1992
Genre(s)Racing
Mode(s)Single-player, multiplayer

Gameplay
During-game image. Note cracked dashboard.

In the PC version, gameplay consisted of setting up the car, qualifying, and then the actual race event. If the player finished in a high enough position, they would progress to the next circuit. Damage was calculated not by realistic damage displayed on the car but a "cracked dashboard" bar indicator, with cracks appearing along the dashboard when the player hits something (the same as that used in the 1989 release Stunt Car Racer).

Development

Prior to the version developed by Beam Software, a version of the game was in development at Mindscape by Chris Oberth. At some point, Oberth's version was cancelled and the work transferred to Beam Software. Oberth's version was recovered from floppy discs in 2020 after his death by the Video Game History Foundation and its source code was made available in June 2020 with permission of Oberth's estate.[1]

Additional versions of Beam Software's game were ported to the PC in 1990 and to the Game Boy in 1992.

Reception
  • According to website Lemon64, Commodore 64 magazine Zzap!64 gave the C64 version of Days of Thunder a 52 out of 100.[2]
  • On a scale of 1 to 10, the C64 version of this game, as of July 2006, has received a 2.9 rating among the members at Lemon64.

See also

References
  1. Carpenter, Nicole (June 1, 2020). "Video game preservationists reconstruct decades-lost, never-released NES game". Polygon. Retrieved June 1, 2020.
  2. Lemon - Commodore 64 Heaven!: Days of Thunder, Retrieved on August 10, 2006
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