Rail Chase 2
Rail Chase 2 (レールチェイス2) is a rail shooter video game developed and published by Sega for arcades in 1995. It is the sequel to the original Rail Chase arcade game from 1991.
| Rail Chase 2 | |
|---|---|
 Rail Chase 2 arcade cabinet | |
| Developer | Sega AM3 |
| Publisher | Sega |
| Director | Tomosuke Tsuda |
| Producers | Hisao Oguchi Mie Kumagai |
| Designer | Kimio Tsuda |
| Programmer | Takeshi Goden |
| Artist | Tetsu Okano |
| Composers | Maki Morrow Seiichiro Matsumura |
| Platform | Arcade |
| Release | |
| Genre | Rail shooter |
| Modes | Single-player, multiplayer |
| Arcade system | Sega Model 2 |
Rail Chase 2 (レールチェイス2) is a rail shooter video game developed and published by Sega for arcades in 1995. It is the sequel to the original Rail Chase arcade game from 1991.
Gameplay
[edit]![[icon]](/en/wiki/File:Wiki_letter_w_cropped.svg){kind=small} | This section needs expansion. You can help by adding missing information. (April 2025) |
Rail Chase 2 is a game set in a coalmine cart racing along its set tracks through various environments as players shoot at everything they see.[3][4][5][6]
Development
[edit]Rail Chase 2 was developed by Japanese studio Sega AM3, led by producer Hisao Oguchi. This was the first game worked on by assistant producer and future AM3 head Mie Kumagai, who had recently transferred from Sega's amusement park division. Kumagai stated she had brought in because AM3's staff had grown to about 100 people at this point, making it difficult for Oguchi to oversee projects directly.[7] Kumagai also shared an ideology with AM3 that arcade games should be created to appeal to not just boys, but to girls, couples, and families. She worked closely with programmer Takeshi Goden on the project.[8] The game is a sequel to 1991's Rail Chase, which was built on the sprite-based Sega System 32. Rail Chase 2 utilizes the Sega Model 2, which allowed for 3D, texture mapped polygons.[5][9][10][11] The sequel also follows Rail Chase: The Ride, an attraction featured at Sega's Joypolis theme park in Yokohama from 1994 to 2001.[12][13] Sega of America's vice president of sales and marketing, Ken Anderson, described Rail Chase 2 as an extension of AM3's popular rail shooter Jurassic Park.[14] Rail Chase 2 was released in Japan in June 1995.[1] It was displayed prominently at the Amusement & Music Operators Association (AMOA) show that September alongside other Sega arcade cabinets including Virtua Fighter 2, Virtua Striker, and Indy 500.[14][15]
Reception
[edit]| Publication | Score |
|---|---|
| Next Generation |   [3] |
| Sega Pro | 85/100[4] |
| Super GamePower | 4.5/5[16] |
In Japan, Game Machine listed Rail Chase 2 in their August 15, 1995 issue as the fourteenth most-successful dedicated arcade game of the first two weeks of that month.[17] It rose to ninth place during the next two weeks and continued to chart at certain points throughout the rest of the year.[18][19][20][21][22]
Critical reception for Rail Chase 2 was favorable. Nick Roberts of Sega Pro lavished the game with praise, scoring it 85 out of 100. Considering it a fusion of Jurassic Park and Virtua Cop, he summarized, "Iťs fast paced, iťs slick, iťs pretty dam good! You’ll be so mesmerised by the great graphics and sound plus the constant bombardment of cronies to shoot that you’ll just háve to keep playing!"[4] The Spanish magazine Última Generación likewise drew positive comparisons to the Virtua line and Jurassic Park when referencing the visuals and moving arcade cabinet of Rail Chase 2. The writer called it a "Sega Indiana Jones makeover" that is "worth spending a few games to understand how Harrison Ford felt."[23] Next Generation rated the game three stars out of five and stated, "The levels vary greatly – the icelandic and jungle stages are especially imaginative and fun – various tracks can be chosen by shooting at the train stop sign, and the action never stops. This game is simple fun, just like the arcades used to be."[3] Game Players similarly described it as "just plain fun," finding the polygon graphics "beautiful" when compared to its sprite-based predecessor and saying that its "speed is captured so well that you lose your stomach going over some of the hills."[24]
References
[edit]- ^ a b "レールチェイス2" [Rail Chase 2] (in Japanese). Sega. Archived from the original on October 25, 2022. Retrieved October 25, 2022.
- ^ Akagi Masumi (October 13, 2006). Arcade TV Game List Japan and Overseas (1971-2005). Amusement Press. p. 132. ISBN 978-4-99-025121-5.
- ^ a b c Next Generation staff (October 1995). "Finals". Next Generation. No. 10. Imagine Media. p. 130. ISSN 1078-9693.
- ^ a b c Roberts, Nick (November 1995). "Review: Ooo, chase me! Rail Chase 2". Sega Pro. No. 51. Paragon Publishing. p. 63. ISSN 0964-2641.
- ^ a b Ogasawara, Nob (January 1996). "Hot at the Arcades: Rail Chase 2". GamePro. No. 78. IDG. p. 72. ISSN 1042-8658.
- ^ Ultimate Gamer staff (December 1995). "AMAO Expo '95: Rail Chase 2". Ultimate Gamer. No. 5. Larry Flynt Publications. p. 28. ISSN 1081-4582.
- ^ Denfaminicogamer staff (March 20, 2023). "出版社各社がなぜここに来て"ゲーム事業"に身を乗り出すのか？──KADOKAWAのゲーム事業が新体制になった背景には、異色の経歴を持つ女性プロデューサーの存在があった" [Why do publishers come here and lean into the "game business"? The reason behind the new system for Kadokawa's game business was the existence of a female producer with a unique background.] (in Japanese). Denfaminicogamer. Archived from the original on March 21, 2023. Retrieved October 14, 2023.
- ^ Kushida Riko (May 26, 2017). "ゲームプロデューサー熊谷美恵さんの「セガ入社秘話、そしてAM3研時代」⎯⎯ゲーム業界、彼女の履歴書" [Game Producer Mie Kumagai's "Secret Story of Joining Sega, and the AM3 Lab Era" Her Game Industry Resume] (in Japanese). Red Bull GmbH. Archived from the original on October 10, 2022. Retrieved October 10, 2022.
- ^ Kurt Kulata (December 7, 2016). HG 101 Presents: Sega Arcade Classics Volume 2. Hardcore Gaming 101. p. 145. ISBN 978-1-53-999217-2.
- ^ Hitech Hobby staff (October 1995). "Equipo de Mizuguchi continúa lanzando nuevos productos. Rail Chase 2, lo último de AM3" [Mizuguchi team continues to roll out new products. "Rail Chase 2," the latest from AM3.]. Hitech Hobby Magazine (in Spanish). No. 7. Hobby Press. p. 17.
- ^ Edge staff (May 1995). "News: AOU: coin-op houses unveil '95 line-up". Edge. No. 20. Future plc. p. 17. ISSN 1350-1593.
- ^ Beep! MegaDrive staff (August 1994). "BE-MEGA NEWS & INFORMATION". Beep! MegaDrive (in Japanese). SoftBank Group. p. 29. Archived from the original on 27 October 2021.
- ^ "レールチェイス オリジナルサウンドトラック" [Rail Chase Original Soundtrack] (in Japanese). Wave Master Co., Ltd. Archived from the original on October 26, 2022. Retrieved October 26, 2022.
- ^ a b Play Meter staff (September 1995). "Interview: Ken Anderson Vice president of sales and marketing Sega USA". Play Meter. Vol. 21, no. 10. Skybird Publishing. p. 164. ISSN 1529-8736.
- ^ Game Players staff (December 1995). "Special AMAO '95 Report: The Future of Arcades". Game Players. No. 59. Signal Research. p. 50. ISSN 1087-2779.
- ^ Super GamePower staff (February 1996). "Rail Chase 2". Super GamePower (in Portuguese). Editora Nova Cultural. p. 38.
- ^ "Game Machine's Best Hit Games 25 - 完成品夕イプのTVゲーム機 (Dedicated Videos)". Game Machine (in Japanese). No. 501. Amusement Press, Inc. August 15, 1995. p. 21.
- ^ "Game Machine's Best Hit Games 25 - 完成品夕イプのTVゲーム機 (Dedicated Videos)". Game Machine (in Japanese). No. 502. Amusement Press, Inc. September 1, 1995. p. 25.
- ^ "Game Machine's Best Hit Games 25 - 完成品夕イプのTVゲーム機 (Dedicated Videos)". Game Machine (in Japanese). No. 503. Amusement Press, Inc. September 15, 1995. p. 31.
- ^ "Game Machine's Best Hit Games 25 - 完成品夕イプのTVゲーム機 (Dedicated Videos)". Game Machine (in Japanese). No. 504. Amusement Press, Inc. October 1, 1995. p. 25.
- ^ "Game Machine's Best Hit Games 25 - 完成品夕イプのTVゲーム機 (Dedicated Videos)". Game Machine (in Japanese). No. 505. Amusement Press, Inc. October 15, 1995. p. 25.
- ^ "Game Machine's Best Hit Games 25 - 完成品夕イプのTVゲーム機 (Dedicated Videos)". Game Machine (in Japanese). No. 509. Amusement Press, Inc. December 15, 1995. p. 25.
- ^ Última Generación staff (November 1995). "Arcade: Rail Chase 2". Última Generación (in Spanish). No. 8. MV Editores. pp. 42–3. ISSN 1135-4135.
- ^ Game Players staff (November 1995). "Arcades: Rail Chase 2". Game Players. No. 58. Imagine Media. pp. 118–9. ISSN 1087-2779.
