Road Trip and the Choro Q series in the U.S.?

[josekortez]

I just opened Road Trip for PS2 and tried it. I know that this game is part of the Choro Q series in Japan. This is an exceptionally good game for a budget release. I'd even venture to call it a "Car-P-G," since the racing is only part of it. It's pretty simple and not as flashy as a lot of games on the system but it reminds me of Harvest Moon with the amount of side quests. It even has real radio stations like Grand Theft Auto III/Vice City (only two, but the first one is pretty good).

Anyway, can anyone tell me how many of the Choro Q series games actually made it to the U.S.? I'm looking for more of these to try, if they play like Road Trip does. Here's the ones I know so far:

Penny Racers (N64) (I think...)
Gadget Racers (GBA)
Gadget Racers (PS2)
Road Trip (PS2)
Seek and Destroy (PS2) (which I have, and it's good too)

[Oobgarm]

I think you've covered it. I am unaware of any other Choro-Q games, although I did not know that Seek & Destroy was in that lineage. :hmm:

[davidbrit2]

I think you've covered it. I am unaware of any other Choro-Q games, although I did not know that Seek & Destroy was in that lineage. :hmm:

Ditto.

And is Road Trip a recent release? I've been wanting to find a copy.

Oh, and one more unrelated question, since you seem to be a Choro Q fan, Kortez...
PS2 Gadget Racers seems to have about 5 of the last events still locked, and I've come in 1st in everything else. Have you ever gotten them open?

[Oobgarm]

I think Road Trip has been out for about a year or so, I'd check TRU for it in the bargain bin, it goes for $19.99 or less.

[klimatron8]

yes i am waiting for the gcn version of roadtrip -there was a recent GMR review of it 8/10. Gameplay was compared to Beetle Racing -my all time favorite. There is a website for the producing studio-Conspiracy games.com :-P

[davidbrit2]

Ooh, a Gamecube version? Want!

[josekortez]

Sorry, davidbrit, I don't own Gadget Racers yet. I was merely listing a rundown of the Choro Q titles to find out how many there are. I wish I could help you. Anyway, I would definitely recommend Road Trip and Seek and Destroy.

According to James Mielke's Retro-Active article in GMR 7, these are the Japanese names of Gadget Racers, Road Trip, and Seek and Destroy:

Gadget Racers = Choro Q HG
Road Trip = Choro Q HG 2
Seek and Destroy = Shin Combat Choro Q

He recommends both Road Trip and Seek and Destroy, giving them both 8's. He even goes on to say that Seek and Destroy is hard to find, although I would disagree...

[davidbrit2]

I'm definitely going to have to keep my eyes open for Seek and Destroy. Does it mostly play like other Choro Q games, but with weapons available?

[josekortez]

Pretty much. You drive up against other vehicles to talk to them, add parts ("including flamethrowers, missile launchers, jet boosters, and night vision") and you can customize the paint of the vehicles, even to the point of spraying them for certain missions (i.e. white for arctic battles). However, in Seek and Destroy, you "attempt to liberate the people of the Proton Kingdom from the forces of the Q-Stein empire."

Credit to James Mielke from GMR for both quotes. Sorry, I'm an English major...

Here's another funny quote...

"Road Trip came out at precisely the same time as Grand Theft Auto: Vice City. To put it nicely, Road Trip got owned." LOL

[Britboy]

Three great games. You can find Road Trip in any Toys R Us bargain bin. Seek and Destroy is great fun but really short. Gadget Racers is the best of the three, is basically a complete port of GT3 into ChoroQ land. I havent played it in a while, I'll have to check to see if I opened all the events.

[dreamcaster]

There is also Penny Racers for PlayStation 2.

I saw it brand new in a game store a few months ago, and I was intending to buy it. Unfortunately when I returned it had gone. :(

And don't tell me it's the PAL version of Road Trip, as we also got that game here - so, I'm clueless as to where Penny Racers (PS2) fits into the series.

[Retro Pro]

Well, this is a perfect opportunity for me to shill my Road Trip review (#6 in the DP Amply Reviewed contest - woo hoo!).

http://www.digitpress.com/reviews/contest/roadtrip.htm

:D

[DrunkenMonkeysRule]

Well, this is a perfect opportunity for me to shill my Road Trip review (#6 in the DP Amply Reviewed contest - woo hoo!).

http://www.digitpress.com/reviews/contest/roadtrip.htm

:D

Retro Pro,

I read your review during the contest and rated it very high. I think it was and still is the best one there. You were ROBBED! ROBBED BY "THE MAN"!!!!!

BTW: I want Road Trip!

[davidbrit2]

There is also Penny Racers for PlayStation 2.

I saw it brand new in a game store a few months ago, and I was intending to buy it. Unfortunately when I returned it had gone. :(

And don't tell me it's the PAL version of Road Trip, as we also got that game here - so, I'm clueless as to where Penny Racers (PS2) fits into the series.

I think that's the Euro/PAL release of Choro Q HG/Gadget Racers. Check Game FAQs if you want to be more certain.

[josekortez]

Kick-ass review, Retropro. I didn't participate in the contest because I do professional reviews on a freelance basis, but I think you covered everything anyone would need to know about the game...

[dreamcaster]

I just remembered! There is also Penny Racers for the PSX. Although, it doesn't appear in the DP guide, so it may be released under a different name in the US...or perhaps not at all?

[zmweasel]

N/A

[josekortez]

It's just the city newspaper here in town, but I didn't want to get disqualified. I do at least one game review per week, and the games are free. 8-) I do other articles about tournaments and game-related events in the surrounding area. I'm pretty excited today because I had a meeting with the higher-ups yesterday, and they told me they want to increase the video-game coverage. Gotta satiate that 18-24 market...

[Retro Pro]

Kick-ass review, Retropro. I didn't participate in the contest because I do professional reviews on a freelance basis, but I think you covered everything anyone would need to know about the game...
Thanks for the positive feedback, Jose.

The next time there's a contest, you should definitely enter. I'm positive that having professional writing experience didn't disqualify anyone from the last contest. Quite a few people with professional writing experience (including me) entered.

BTW, if any of you still haven't played Road Trip, get it NOW. :D

[davidbrit2]

Yay, I found Road Trip for $15 at CompUSA. Good LORD is this game weird. And I mean that in the best of ways. It's like a mix of Final Fantasy, Animal Crossing, and Choro Q. I just played it for about 3 or 4 hours. My eyes are glazed over pretty nicely. Gotta love that roulette. ;-)