11
Jul 2012
The Best Retro Games Haul of all Time
Across the vast, digital plains of the Internet there is any number of websites that you shouldn't enter whilst tired or under the influence.
The bane of my existence is eBay - many a time I've woken up in the morning, the stench of shame and whiskey on my breath, to find that I've accidentally ordered five He-Man action figures and a purported 'ghost in a jar' from the strange and miscellaneous section.
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None of my midnight shopping trips have ever involved me parting with the best part of a £1 million though. None of my midnight shopping trips have been for a hotly sought after and possibly legendary eBay listing. None of my midnight shopping trips have ended with me purchasing an absolutely colossal video games collection; one which probably takes up more room than my apartment.
Take a look at that link, really, go take a long hard look at what this seller was doing. He was practically giving away what is possibly the greatest video game collection to grace the globe. That's obviously a lot of money that somebody has spent to purchase said collection, however, it's nothing compared to what they're getting in return.
Whilst browsing the full list of video games in the MotorTorque office we came across some brilliant old classics. Names like Road Rash, Super Mario Kart, Micro Machines and a variety of Sega Rally Championship games instantly stood out as being firm favourites. Who would have thought it? The writers for an automotive website love racing games, shocking.
Out of all the games listed, one in particular caught my eye, a very special game that I hold dear to my heart. Outrun was first released as an arcade game in 1986, then made the transition to home consoles. The creator, Yu Suzuki, has described Outrun as a 'driving' game, not a 'racing' game; a distinction that is definitely important.
Playing as a child, Outrun introduced me to supercars - one supercar specifically. The Ferrari Testarossa was the car being driven throughout the game, a vehicle that is simply striking in every single way. Outrun led me into my current sordid affair with automotive journalism, if it wasn't for my need to learn more about the Testarossa I probably wouldn't be writing this.
The Sega Rally Championship games on the list have been fawned over in the office non-stop. It featured cars like the Toyota Celicia and the beautifully retro Lancia Stratos HF. The Sega Rally Championship games paved the way many future titles and releases in the video game world. The makers of Colin McRae Rally games have openly admitted how influential they were upon their game.
More accessible games like Super Mario Kart and Micro Machines have shown how racing, driving and vehicles in general can be fun for the whole family. I'm willing to bet that a fairly large portion of the casual gamer population will have spent countless evenings throwing bananas and turtles at each other in good-natured bouts between friends and family.
The Need for Speed video game series is represented quite well in the mammoth eBay listing; a whole bunch of Nintendo GameCube releases can be found in the description and images. The Need for Speed games are well-known as fantasy fuel, a virtual dream for boy racers everywhere.
However, they're adored worldwide for the use of a plethora of real-world cars. Everything from the Renault Clio V6 to the Mazda RX-8 can be bought and customised in-game. Ever wanted to add a spoiler and oversized rims to a Ford Mustang GT? Ever wanted to tune and mod a Pontiac GTO beyond recognition? The Need for Speed series is a must-have if you answered yes to any of those questions.
All-in-all we're extremely pleased we found this eBay listing. Not only was it amazing to look at and read through, it also allowed us to reminisce and recall fond memories of classic racing and driving games. This huge eBay sale may well go down in history as being the biggest collection ever, so why not take a look through the listing and see what games you remember?
Written by Jake Higginson.