Sega hasn't always had a perfect record when it comes to updating its popular franchises. We may praise Sonic Generations, After Burner: Climax and Streets Of Rage 4, but then we remember Shinobi X, Golden Axe: Beast Rider and Sonic Boom: Rise Of Lyric. Such potential for disaster is surely why Sega waited 17 years before it dared to release OutRun 2. It wasn't the first follow- up to the revered 1986 original, but it was the first in which original creator Yu Suzuki and his AM2 team could update the game for a new generation – both in terms of hardware and audience.
Their trick was to look at the original and consider what worked – the sense of freedom offered by the branching route, the amazing multi-tune soundtrack, the whole breezy blue sky vibe – and ensure that was all replicated in the sequel. But crucially they also looked at what didn't work.
