Out Run

1986 · Racing · Arcade

Overview

Out Run (1986) is Yu Suzuki's Sega driving game: cruise a red convertible through branching European scenery to one of five goals, with a choice of radio tunes.

Deep Dive

Out Run is about the drive rather than beating rivals. A red Ferrari Testarossa convertible, with a passenger beside the driver, races the clock through traffic, and at the end of each stage the road forks — so any single run passes through five of fifteen stages, finishing at one of five destinations. Players pick their music from three tracks by Hiroshi Kawaguchi on the car radio. Built on Sega's sprite-scaling hardware, with a deluxe hydraulic cabinet, it became the definitive feel-good racing game.

Developer Story

Out Run was designed by Yu Suzuki at Sega in 1986. Suzuki drove across Europe for research, photographing roads, landscapes, and architecture for the game's backdrops. The game was the first to offer a branching route system — five different finish lines reached by choosing at each fork. A radio-cassette player in the cockpit let players choose between three musical tracks at the start. Out Run became the definitive "feel-good" racing game.

Did You Know?

Suzuki drove across Europe in a Ferrari Testarossa specifically to research Out Run's visual style and road feel.
The branching route system — five different endings — was the first racing game to offer genuine choice of destination.
Players chose their soundtrack from three Sega original compositions at the start — unprecedented player control over game music.
The car is unmistakably a Ferrari Testarossa, but Sega did not license it — Ferrari's name appears nowhere in the original arcade game.
Out Run's "travel as lifestyle" concept — driving with a blonde passenger, choosing scenic routes — was revolutionary compared to competitive racing games.

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