Tokyo Xtreme Racer, known as Shutokō Battle (首都高バトル) in Japan and Tokyo Highway Challenge in Europe, is a racing video game for the Sega Dreamcast. Released in 1999 as one of the console's launch titles, the game was one of the first mission-based racing games. The gameplay involves the player challenging other drivers on the Shuto Expressway in order to gain money to modify and enhance his or her car. The game features a wide variety of Japanese cars and tuning parts to purchase as the player progresses through rivals.
When released in Japan, Shutokō Battle was one of the best selling Dreamcast title at this time. The game is based on illegal highway racing in Tokyo's Wangan highway with custom tuned cars.
Since its introduction in the mid 1990s, like similar games, the "Shutokō Battle" series never used licensed cars but the usual type designation such as "TYPE-86" and later "TYPE-AE86L3". Nicknames were used instead in the "Wangan Dead Heat" sidestory (e.g. "Rapid Fire" for the "Nissan Skyline GT-R R33"). These "types" are actually the real chassis code used by the Japanese makers to designate the various grades of a lineup. As the graphics quality was improving with each release, from 16-bit 2D to 3D/CG 128-bit, the featured cars were becoming more and more similar to the actual cars appearance. In a similar way, the chassis codes became longer and more precise, allowing the player to determine each grade and to use the "rename car" feature. The game, on becoming a solid best seller, the Japanese makers forced Genki to buy the license of their cars.
Source: Wikipedia, "Tokyo Xtreme Racer", available under the CC-BY-SA License.
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