Outrun 2: My ultimate car

[chitoryu12]

This is the story of an arcade racing game called Outrun 2, and my experience with the ultimate car, and the moment that defined it's power.

Many of you may not have heard of Outrun 2, but it's very common in Disney World arcades. It has a few modes. There's Outrun mode, where you drive through multiple zones with a hot chick on your arm, Heart Attack mode, where you must pass cars and drift along turns(which I have mastered) to gain hearts, which act as points.

But the best by far, is Vs. mode. It pits you against up to 3 other racers. You don't necessarily have to finish the race, just staying ahead of the other cars when time runs out will snag you the gold. You have a number of sports cars at your disposal, including the Enzo Ferrari, Dino convertible, and 280 GTO. But I have one car that I always use: The Ferrari Testarossa.

I originally used the FSO, but I lost quite a few races in that baby(I was at Disneyquest, so all the games were free). I tried the GTO, and the Enzo, but none of them had enough flair to get me a win every time. Then, I saw it, the Ferrari Testarossa. A flashy convertible with high speed and the best handling in the game. I always use the yellow color scheme, maybe because the other racers are piss-poor compared to me? Hehehehh(okay bad joke)...

Anyways, this car is the best EVER. At the end of the first zone, before a fork in the road in which the lead car must choose a path, is a tight S turn, that starts at the bottom and continues to the top of the S shape. Many racers are casualties of this turn, being sent flying through the air as their chick slaps them around. It's really funny, as every time you lose a race or crash, the girl starts hitting you. I mastered the art of drifting through turns, allowing me to fly sideways through the turns with ease, rarely hitting a thing. The Testarossa is so amazing, that I drifted through the whole S turn, and never hit anything.

So now we come to the defining moment: The racer showdown.

Sitting in the semi-comfortable seat of the Outrun booth, was a boy about 10 years old. He was slightly overweight, short, and with curly, dirty blond hair. Looks only a mother could pretend to love. He used a black Dino(to avoid giving a huge description, refer to the Comet from Grand Theft Auto: Vice City or San Andreas). Now the Dino is a beginner's car, with easy handling and above average speed. It was the only car that didn't have to drift through turns, but drifting gives an advantage, allowing you to seemlessly zoom through even the tightest turn while losing hardly more than 10 MPH in speed. He had gotten first place, and was cheering, dancing in his seat, acting like he was King of the World, when all he had done was beat a few inexperienced people and a guy that spoke Spanish. I was determined to show him that me and my Testarossa never lose. Never.

I sunk into the seat, adjusting it slightly for my 5'9 13 year old body. He looked pleased with himself, ready to race and win. Over the cacaphony of noise of over 22 gaming machines in one spot, I shouted, "You won't win this one!". He just gave me a "Yeah, right" look and prepped his Dino.

I chose my usual Testarossa with yellow colors, and when it came time to select music to pipe through the machine, I selected my personal favorite, "Risky Ride", a tune perfect for high speed driving through tight turns and high straightaways. He selected a light song, better for highway driving in a station wagon than a race from a beachside town to a desert filled with ancient ruins, with a forest around a lake and a snowy mountain along the way.

The game began, the three second countdown barely audible over the whine of the sports cars' engines. I was also facing two boys around my age, who chose FSOs.

Beep, beep, bing!

As soon as I saw the words "GO" flash on my screen, I slammed the gas down so hard the machine shuddered ever so slightly. I learned that it's a bad idea to hold down the gas during the countdown, as hitting it just as the race starts gives you an extra speed boost. My Ferrari took off first, and I made sure to slip in front of fat boy to block him from passing me.

The beginning was far to easy, as I cheered and whooped as the scenery flew by me. I shouted "Too easy!" as I drifted through the tight S turn without a scrath on my shiny new car. He also had little trouble, though he scraped the sides slightly. The FSOs were a bit farther behind.

I decided to give him a challenge, and muttered "Let's try this" as I turned left. The right fork was soon blocked off by flashing red arrows, which acted as a wall, making sure that everyone followed me.

The zone I had chosen was Deep Lake, which, as it's name says, is a deep lake, with multiple bridges built along it. My opponent didn't even bother drifting through the tight turns and high speed hairpins. I chose the Coniferus Forest as my next zone, with the fat opponent close behind.

I entered a short, straight road, taking my hands off the wheel(yes, both hands) to wipe my brow.

I had my first run in with Mr. wall at the end of the zone, accidently slamiing into it with my nose, sending me spinning into the right lane. As I was beat over the head by the hot chick next to my virtual driver, the Dino zoomed past me, just under the speed of sound. I said "You won't win this" as I floored the pedal to keep up with him.

I prooved that a squat black sprots car won't beat my driving skills and a Ferrari. He clipped a car, causing him to slow down to 3/4 of his original speed. I took the chance to dodge the near wreck and blow his hair around with my pure speed as my yellow bullet shot past him. He didn't look at all happy as he sped back up.

We were now entering the Snowy Mountain, which has many tight turns and slick surfaces along the mountainside. I, of course, easily flew through each turn as the black Dino and FSOs continued the chase. It was a contest, with us vying for control of the Outrun circut.

We were now entering the final zone, The Ruins. This desert, as it's name says, has a path that weaves through the ruins of old times. We were running low on time, and with ten seconds left on the clock, I jammed the pedal straight down into the floor and drifted as much as possible. The beeping slowly grew rapid as the clock counted down.


3....2....1.....TIme Up!

I had done it. I had shown this loser that when my driving skills are paired with that one car, I cannot be beat. He put his hands on his head and groaned, gaping at his loss. As I got up to leave, I turned to him and shouted "When I'm in my Testarossa, I always win!".