Storia. Tutto inizia con le Wacky Races (Le corse pazze), un cartoon ideato e prodotto nel 1968 da Hanna & Barbera ampiamente ispirato al film-commedia La grande corsa di Blake Edwards (1965).

"La serie ha pertanto un’impronta marcatamente paradossale e umoristica, grazie soprattutto alla presenza dell’eterno perdente, il cattivo Dick Dastardly. È questo uno dei personaggi di maggior fortuna di Hanna & Barbera, che subito dopo lo ripresero per un’altra serie di successo (Dastardly e Muttley e le macchine volanti)." (Wacky Races - Wikipedia)

"La caratterizzazione del personaggio era fortemente ispirata ai "cattivi" di alcuni film di grande successo dell'epoca, come Quei temerari sulle macchine volanti (Those Magnificent Men in Their Flying Machines, 1965; film in cui recita anche un giovane Alberto Sordi, NdB) e La grande corsa (The great race, 1965). In particolare, il personaggio di Dick Dastardly deve molto al Professor Fate, di cui richiama anche l'abbigliamento." (Dick Dastardly - Wikipedia)

Muttley è semplicemente un personaggio divertentissimo e ben caratterizzato (soprattutto nella serie Lo squadrone avvoltoi) se si tiene conto che non parla ma mugugna e sghignazza solamente. Lo stile semplice e il tratto essenziale era una caratteristica dei cartoni Hanna & Barbera (famosi per i precedenti The Flintstones* e The Jetsons, rispettivamente Gli Antenati e i Pronipoti in italiano) e rispecchiano moltissimo lo stile fumettistico di quegli anni. Altri esempi incredibili (che mi hanno ispirato e che tuttora mi affascinano) sono la Pantera Rosa, i Looney Tunes (gli originali con la sigla che finiva con lo slogan "That's all folks!"), la Linea di Cavandoli (leggete il post che ho scritto in proposito!) e lo stile del mio idolo Paul Campani, ovvero il creatore del 90% delle animazioni del Carosello italiano. Insomma, tutto materiale degli anni '60 che decreto da tempo come la mia decade preferita in assoluto.

Traduzioni. Se c'è una cosa che mi disturba è notare quanto la fantasia dei traduttori italiani tenda a storpiare certi titoli di film stranieri fino a mutarne completamente il significato. Incredibilmente i nomi originali dei personaggi non sono stati tradotti in italiano, per fortuna, mentre in altre lingue si possono  leggere notevoli cambiamenti. Dick Dastardly si chiama, rispettivamente tradotto in:

• Brasile: Dick Vigarista (trad. Dick Imbroglione)
• Portogallo: Dick Detestável (trad. Dick Detestabile)
• Francia: Satanas (trad. Satana…?!? ma perchè?)
• Ungherese: Gézengúz Guszti
• Spagna: Pierre Nodoyuna ("Nodoyuna" sta per "no doy una" che significa "non ne azzecco una". Il nome Pierre è dovuto all'accento francese affidatogli nella versione spagnola)
• Catalogna: Dick Destraler (gran polemica linguistica anche con i cartoni vedo…)
• Messico: El Barón Rojo (trad. Il Barone Rosso)
• Giappone: ブラック魔王 (Burakku Maō, trad. "Re demone nero", o "Re Nero")
• Danimarca: Dan Døgenigt
• Svezia: Urban Usling, Baron Knäck e altri (?!? non gli bastava un nome solo…)
• Polonia: Dick Wredniak, Dick Dastardly
• Turchia: Hain Baron
• Olanda: Dick Draadnagel, Dick Dastardly

Muttley si chiama, rispettivamente tradotto in:

• Brasile: Rabugento (trad. un misto tra "schizzinoso" e "di cattivo umore")
• Portogallo: Muttley
• Germania: Promenaden-Pluto; anche Meutrich
• Spagna: Patán (trad. rozzo, maleducato)
• Messico: Pulgoso (trad. Pulcioso)
• Giappone: Kenken（ケンケン）
• Polonia: Bałwan
• Francia: Diabolo (Satanas e Diabolo…vagamente fissati con l'inquisizione sti francesi ;-) )
• Serbia: Draguljče o Dragoljupče
• Ungheria: Mardel
• Turchia: Değerli
• Danimarca: Møghund

Concludo con: fanatico io?!? Semplice appassionato dilettante direi…perchè questi sono i veri geek:

Se volete vedere il resto andate alla pagina personale di Nick Lawes su Flickr!

* Curiosità: leggevo da qualche parte che Fred e Wilma dei Flintones sono stati la prima coppia sposata mai mostrata a letto insieme nella storia della TV…;-)

Link:

• Wacky Races (Wiki; ITA);
• Cinema & Sport, in questo caso Wacky Races (post su essekappa di F. Granaro, 28.03.2007)
• Dastardly e Muttley e le macchine volanti (Wiki; ITA);
• Dick Dastardly (Wiki; ITA);
• Muttley (Wiki; ITA);
• Spezzoni e puntate su YouTube;

Say hello to the world’s most expensive, but worthwhile demo

Top Gear. What a show, eh? The Beeb’s premier motoring magazine is a triumph for many reasons. Middle-aged men indulging in car challenges of Wacky Races' lunacy, Richard Hammond’s insanely white teeth, and of course, the Stig’s mechanical motoring mastery. But, let’s face it, as a piece of consumer programming it’s almost utterly redundant. C’mon, how many slovenly students can actually afford a Bugatti Veyron? That’s where Gran Turismo comes in. Melding with the power of PS3 for the first time, Prologue – the diet version, with a cut-down quota of cars and courses, from the full-fat GT 5 experience due next year - delivers graphics more pristine than the most whitened teeth. And car handling so realistic you’d swear Top Gear’s tame racing driver was behind the wheel. Hell, you can even download free episodes of Clarkson and co. through its GT TV service. Now, if only Polyphony Digital could find some way to throw in Mutley.

Let's start off by looking at the - somewhat meager - six tracks included in the game. All told, they're a bit of a mixed bunch. Some have already featured in the PS2 titles, like the Fuji Speedway. While the Eiger Norwand course is available in GT Concept – which has been a free download on the PS Store for over a year. This and the Suzuka Circuit offer the most challenging and rewarding drives, with Norwand containing a couple of killer hairpins. It’s GT’s take on London, though, that really shows the kind of graphical grunt PS3 has under its bonnet. And you’ll be treated to some ‘squint and it could be real’ moments, as the course weaves its way past such tourist-luring sites as Trafalgar Square and Nelson’s Column, all running in glorious, silky-smooth 1080p. As a visual showpiece it laps every other racing game with ease.

Cars in their eyes

The real stars, though, are the cars. Basic controls for accelerating and braking are handled through x and square – although, with customizable controls, we’d suggest switching those to R2 and L2 for more precise steering. Prologue features a garage stuffed with more motors than a dodgy chop shop. Everything from glorified micro-machines like the Suzuki Cappuccino, macho muscle cars in the Dodge Viper, to dream machines like Ferrari’s F2007 Formula One car are covered over the game’s 30 dealerships. And that’s without even mentioning the game’s array of concept cars. Which feature rides – like the Nissan-inspired Gran Turismo 35OZRS – so achingly beautiful, they’ll have petrolheads dribbling over them like Homer Simpson at an all-you-can-eat buffet.

Gran Turismo has always flirted with the tag of ‘car porn’ and in this sense Polyphony’s first real foray into PS3 delivers. And then some. Real or imaginary, every single car has been rendered with a staggering level of detail. Every curve, bonnet and bumper has been recreated with so many miniscule details we’re sure most of the game’s developers have probably gone blind making them. Nothing demonstrates this incredible attention to detail more than the new dash cam. Not only does it make driving more immersive, but it’s also rammed full of lovely incidental touches. Your driver’s hands will actually reach for the clutch to shift gears and each pair of mitts sport the most painstakingly rendered racing gloves we’ve ever seen – you can actually see the individual stitches.

Our real-world car experience might be limited to the Ford Focuses and Minis of this world. But, judging by how uniquely accurate those cars feel in Prologue, we’re pretty certain it’s take on the Ferrari 599 - the first time the legendary Italian manufacturer has appeared in the series – and Aston Martin DB9 are bang on too. Of course, if we had the dosh to have driven either of them we’d be sunning ourselves in Tahiti instead of writing this review, wouldn’t we? Anyway, each of the game’s 71 cars are so drastically different and full of their own handling quirks that driving remains constantly fresh and engaging.

I, slowbot
Unfortunately, the game’s basic AI means that, as a racing title, Prologue is never that exciting. And, against a more action-packed grid made up of Burnout, MotorStorm and DIRT, GT is left struggling for a podium place. Your biggest enemies are your own car and losing focus, not the rest of the pack. Although driving lines and indicators that suggest specific speeds for corners are helpful features for GT noobs, this is still a game that demands constant concentration. And the slightest lapse on even the tamest straight will send you careening off course. For casual drivers this ain’t. So if you’re seeking easy thrills and excitement you might be better looking elsewhere.

As a driving game, though, GT is still very much in pole position. This is because it remains such a pure, tactile experience. You actually feel like you’re controlling a complex, unpredictable machine with hundreds of moving parts, all working together in tandem. It’s the simple thrill of turning into a corner at just the right time. The feel of your car’s weight shifting from side to side. Or the sensation of all the horses under your motor’s bonnet going from a plod to a gallop as you shift up through the gears. And these are the things that ultimately keep Prologue valid in a world of exploding cars, finger-flipping bikers and HD mud physics.

It’s a relief that the core driving experience is so enjoyable, because there’s no way you'd sit through the game’s archaic single player structure if it wasn’t. Progression through Prologue is depressingly linear and straightforward at times. A combination of a mere 30 samey races and time trials, spread out over three difficulty classes, means you’ll likely be able to drive every course blindfolded by the time you buy your tenth motor. There are some events which stand out, though. A harrowing time-trial in the aforementioned dodgem-like Cappuccino against a gird of ‘proper’ cars is a particular highlight. But all too often you’ll be struck by déjà vu, as you round the High Speed Ring for the 200^th time.

Online with the show
Thankfully, racing against actual humans online spices up this repetitive single player structure. And competing against people rather than the game’s gormless AI provides tenser, more immersive races. Although, we have to admit, the action is spoiled a bit by Schumacher-style unsporting behaviour - we lost count of how many times fellow players tried to shunt us off track or into the advertising boards. Things are handled more fairly if someone spins out on the middle of the course, though, as the unfortunate soul becomes transparent, allowing others to drive right through them. And with another 30 events online, and a Cadillac full of credits to be earned for winning, there’s plenty of incentive to keep going, even when you’ve faced McLaren levels of cheating.

While the GT series has constantly pushed the envelope forward in breaking technological boundaries for each of Sony’s platforms, in other ways it’s barely moved forward since 1997. The same bugbears that have haunted the series for over a decade still remain. The graphics, while technically stunning, feel sterile and plastic. Much of this is because there's still zero car damage in Prologue – though Polyphony have hinted that a future download, possibly ready as soon as August, will introduce it into GT for the first time. But, honestly, these remain minor annoyances. Because this isn’t a game about car-wincing crashes. It’s not about gimmicky open-ended worlds – cough, Burnout Paradise, cough. It’s about the simple thrill of mastering a machine. Taking that machine on the road. And then tearing up the tarmac to Timbuktu with it. The sensation of judging a corner to perfection in Prologue is akin to scoring a great goal in PES or strumming out a perfect solo in Guitar Hero. It's this pure pleasure that'll keep you coming back until GT5 proper. And, for 20 notes, not even a mangy mongrel could spoil this drive.

Overall

A glorified demo it may be, but this is still the tightest, most responsive driving game on PS3.

80

Dave Meikleham

]]> http://skullcull.wordpress.com/?p=169 Tue, 11 Mar 2008 18:52:20 +0000 insomnihack http://skullcull.wordpress.com/2008/03/11/television-whitenoise-wacky-races/

I suppose as a child I was pretty lucky in that my dad's taste in programmes pretty much matched mine and my brothers -- he was into all the sci-fi stuff and the cartoons (he still plays with lego for chrissakes). Anyway -- to the point, as if it is important and in any way vaguely interesting -- Wacky Races was a classic. Dick Dastardly and Mutley, the Anthill Mob and Penelope Pitstop and the various others were a staple part of my viewing diet. Now I just watched it reframed for the kids of today with Dexter as the lead. I like Dexter's Laboratory, but I like it because it is its own thing -- here they go trying to shoehorn one idea into another one, and why? A lack of their own ideas? A way to capitalise on an established franchise, or nostalgia? Same old same old. OR to be having thoughts like this have I crossed that threshold where I have truly become old? I don't think the latter is true -- it's not as if I am desperately hanging onto some notion of youth. The original cartoon worked because they were each individuals and they were only trying to be themselves; they weren't trying to fill someone else's shoes. Oh well, let them have their crap cartoon -- I can get mine on DVD if I so desperately need to watch it.

----------------
Now playing: The Fall - Pay Your Rates
via FoxyTunes

I used to play football in the Glasgow Catholic Primary schools league. I do believe I was also the first player to be sent off in that league. I was 10 years old and outraged by a decision so I called the referee a 'speccy (bespectacled) wank'. I was also sent off in another game for a tackle which could probably be justly described as assault. A waist-high two footed lunge. In my own defence, we were already losing three-nil and I didn't want the little bastard to score a hat-trick. It's contrition central here today eh?

The story is from a different game though.

I think I was 11 and I was the goalkeeper and was standing in goals watching the play, which was at the other end of the pitch.

I heard a thud on my right side and turned round and couldn't see what had made the noise so I looked back to the game. There was a bit of action at my side of the pitch and then when it was back at the other side I looked around and saw a dead pigeon lying just to the right of my goal.  I was a bit surprised by this - after all, they don't just drop out of the air when they die do they?

I kicked it off the pitch and got back on with the game.

Ten minutes later there was another thud and I saw another pigeon lying a few metres away from the first.

Right, what the f*ck is going on here?

Obviously during the game was not the time to begin investigations but I was trying to look around whenever I got the chance. I was racking my brains wondering if I had heard anything on the news about a pigeon disease or something.

After ruling out this possibility I started scanning the side of the pitch and the sky in general but came up with nothing.

Later on I heard a couple of people arguing somewhere but couldn't see them.  Then I heard a crack over to my right side. I looked up at the building on the right side of the pitch and there were two teenagers with an air rifle taking shots at the pigeons.

When they noticed that I had noticed them they waved and were very cheerful about it.

It is not at all that I am upset about the loss of a couple of pigeons that makes me think about this story, nor is it the wanton cruelty.

It is 2 things.

The first is simply how strange I thought the episode was at the time and the second is that that is someones idea of fun.

(More photos after the break) 

Last of the big names is Konami. I have to say thier stand was a bit on the sparse side. Guitar Freaks  & Drum Mania V4 where present and attracting a lot of attention from players. Wacky Races also made an appearance on the stand, although, as I have said already this was on various stands around the show. Finally Silent Hill rounded off the rest of the big games on the Konami stand.

As you may remember I'm already familiar with two of these game from the location tests I checked out last year. For those of you who missed these posts, which included photos, videos and my impressions, why not check them out;

[Silent Hill Arcade Photos & Impressions]

[Silent Hill Arcade Videos]

[Wacky Races Photos]

[Wacky Races Impressions & Videos]

[Discuss on the Forum]

Silent Hill at ATEi seemed the same as what I played at the location test in Finchley, and Wacky Races again was pretty much the same from what I'd could tell.

The only other game on the Konami of note was a Eledees (or Elebits in the US) redemption game which was pretty neat. I'm sure this style of game has been done before, but it is a nice use of one of thier console IP's. For those of you who aren't familiar with this Wii title hit this link to find out more and check out the picture below of the cabinet.

Lastly I want to put out a question to you all (this isn't the first time either). Has anyone seen any Pro Evo Aracdes out and about? There was  no sign of it at this years ATEi and I'm wondering what the hell happened to it?

Guitar Freaks V4

Drummania V4

Wacky Races

Now this one confused me. The game is made by Gamewax and Banpresto (Banpresto is owned by Namco, well that's what I thought ?). However Wacky Races was on the Konami stand as well as 3 other distributors stands? Either way Wacky Races was at the show and it was good fun. Some of you may remember that I played this a few months ago when I found it at the Trocadero on secret location test. You can watch that video here.

[Discuss on the Forum]

While we weren't sure about it at first, The Stinger Report confirms that Wacky Races will be at ATEI this year at booths U2240 and U2110. And also thanks to TSR we have the flyer for this game, click on the thumbnail to see the full thing along with a nice look at the cabinet. Just that in itself should can the attention of a lot of people.

[Discuss on the Forum]

We've already heard from Sega and Konami so it was only a short time before Namco threw their hat into the ring of what to expect from them at ATEI.

From the press release it is obvious that redemption is quite important to Namco, and they will be showing off a number of new redemption titles including games with titles like 'Barber Cut', 'Battle Forge', 'Hollywood Reels', 'NFL 2 minute challenge', '3-in-a-row', and 'Crazy Typhoon'. From the looks of it, the redemption titles will outnumber the video selection but that doesn't mean that there won't be little to look forward to on that front.

Namco will of course be showing off the popular Maximum Tune 3, Time Crisis 4 and the highly anticipated Tekken 6 (which when I was talking with my local distributor today apparently still has no set release date here in the States). But Raw Thrills' will finally be demonstrating one of their new 2008 titles - 'Safari' which is "an African-themed shooting game modelled on the proven Big Buck Hunter phenomenon." This is the first time Raw Thrills' will be debuting a title outside of the US. Whether this is one of the titles that Specular Interactive was working on or not remains to be seen but at least it's not another Fast and Furious game. There is no word in the press release if they will be showing off Wacky Races but we'll know soon enough.

[Via CoinOPToday.com] [Discuss on the Forum]

Hit the break for the press release.

Namco Bandai Games ‘power portfolio’ gets 2008 boost

On the eve of ATEI 2008, Namco Bandai Games has announced a number of new additions to its Fun Factory line-up with over a dozen new products making their world or European debuts at the London show on stands U2340/U2334.

The European distributor – which holds key exclusive distribution rights for some of the best marques in the business including Namco Bandai Games, Benchmark Games, Betson, Fantasy Entertainment, ICE, IMotion!, PopNoggins, Raw Thrills, Universal Space, Yubis and 5 Star Redemption, as well as its own collection of Brent Sales-branded games – is aiming to build on huge successes recorded across several product sectors over the past 12 months.

Prize merchandising is one of the company’s key growth areas with skill-based vending games and ticket redemption being spearheaded by the well received introductions of Clena-Flex, Japan’s current leader in the prize vending field, Sweet Land Premia and Deal or No Deal. Joining them for the first time at ATEI are: Barber Cut, a two-player prize vendor of crane-sized proportions; Battle Forge, a redemption game that turns coin/token firing into a virtual video world; Hollywood Reels, a new coin roll-down redemption game; NFL 2 minute challenge, an American football-themed adaptation of ICE’s popular basketball redemption game NBA Hoops; 3-in-a-row, a new spin on the traditional alley roller; and Tickets to Prizes, an all-in solution designed to help operators introduce redemption into their estates. Crazy Typhoon makes its world debut at ATEI. This single-player game, themed on coins spiralling down a funnel to land on prize areas, has been designed specifically for the European market by Namco Bandai’s Japanese development team and is available in both coin-in/coin-out and ticket redemption formats throughout Europe.

The company’s line of photo-imaging booths, which currently includes Fantasy Entertainment’s Foto Cube and Portrait to Anywhere, is being expanded to incorporate the brand new Pop Noggins, a booth which places photographed faces onto singing and dancing cartoon characters – all dispensed to the customer via DVD.

Videogames, remain the company’s hallmark as Namco Bandai Games’ Maximum Tune 3 continues its reign as the highest income earning driver and Time Crisis 4 heads the field in video shooting cash box whilst Raw Thrills enjoys its current status as the world’s biggest selling brand of coin-op video. New for 2008 is BNG’s Tekken 6, the latest instalment in the ultra popular combat video series, and Raw Thrills’ Safari, an African-themed shooting game modelled on the proven Big Buck Hunter phenomenon. The Illinois-based games developers have combined with Namco Bandai Games to stage its launch at ATEI 2008, marking the first time a Raw Thrills game has made its debut outside of the United States.

Highlighting its ‘Fun Factory’ status as a total supplier of family entertainment games, the company will also feature a brand new range of kiddie rides on its ATEI stand.

I'll have to apologize for the shakiness of the video. This is not down to me being on a bender last night, more to do with the fact that I was on my own so I had to play the game and film and not get caught doing so. Funland is a bit funny about people taking pictures, so I had to be discrete.

As I said in my previous post the game has been made by Gamewax and Banpresto. The cabinet also had the Warner Bros. logo on it which is obviously down to the Wacky Races license.As far as I know this is the first showing of the game, it's strange that Wacky Races has not made an appearance at any of the recent shows. I suppose it was not in a showable state or they wanted to get some income figures and player feedback before showing it to the trade.

The only things that seem to be missing from the game were two of the tracks. The whole cast of Wacky Races seemed to be there, as well as the sound affects and one-liners from the cartoon. As you can see for yourself in the pictures the cabinets got some nice touches; the seat is modeled on Dastardly and Muttley's car for instance.

[Discuss on the Forum]

Now on to the game itself. It would be easy to write this off as a Mario Kart clone, but this would do it a great injustice. Obviously they share some similarities like cartoon graphics and power ups, but I think there is enough here to set itself apart from the Italian plumber's racing adventure. From what I played there are 3 regular powers ups; oil slick, rocket and speed boost. However each car has there own unique power up. The ones I saw were Muttley spinning around "The Mean Machine" knocking anyone out the way, "The Crimson Haybailer" has front mounted machine guns and "The Buzz Wagon" sprouts legs and moves at a faster speed than normal.The way one gets the power-up is the craziest and possibly the funniest thing I've seen in this type of game for a long time. Instead of having just a button to press, you have a big one arm bandit lever to pull. This sets off 3 reels on screen which spin in a power up. Also on the cabinet are 3 reels that tell you and onlookers whether you picked up a bad, ok or a good power up.

The races themselves are point to point affairs with what appeared t be alternate routes. I definitely prefer this because it means the whole race is completely different, although it does make it harder to learn the tracks as you aren't doing repeated laps in a race. The obligatory speed boost on the tracks were present, as well as massive jumps and drops. Races always seemed tight; I came 4th, 1st and 6th (I think), so I guess that shows it should be good for the first time player. Thier were 4 cabinets present at the Trocadero with link play. What will be interesting is if it supports more, there are 11 characters after all. Fingers crossed!Overall the game was great fun and I would definately come back to the game again. Which reminds me, it has a progress password system.

[Discuss on the Forum]

Received a great tip yesterday from site reader Jimmy Beech. Read on....

Yo arcade dudes!

Thought you'd wanna know that I saw a new racing game at Funland today, some guy there said it was on secret testing and it was Wacky Races. You know with Dasterdly and Muttley and it looks pretty cool. I was going to get you a photo with my phone but a guy told me I couldn't take photos. Dunno how long its going to be there so maybe you wanna check it out.

Well you'd be right there Jimmy, so I did.

Check out the photos I managed to grab below and above. The game is by Gamewax and Banpresto. For for those of you who don't know, Banpresto are owned by Namco Bandai. Stayed tuned because I managed to snag about 10mins of video too! Impressions of the game in the next post as well. Enjoy

[Discuss on the Forum]

Listen Here For Exclusive Commentary

[audio http://boxstr.com/files/398541_0x723/wacky.mp3 ]

WACKY RACES : Non è proprio della mia epoca :D ma grazie a canali semi-sconosciuti ho potuto godere di questo straordinario cartone!

YATTAMAN : Anche questo grazie alle repliche :D

SIAMO FATTI COSI : Globuli rossi, piastrine, virus.... siamo proprio fatti cosiiiiiii!!!!

 

“And now here they are!

The most daredevil group of daffy drivers to ever whirl their wheels in the Wacky Races.
Competing for the title of worlds wackiest racer.
The cars are approaching the starting line.

First, is the Turbo Terrific driven by Peter Perfect.
Next is Rufus Ruffcut and Sawtooth in the Buzzwagon.
Maneuvering for position is the Army Surplus Special.
Right behind is the Ant Hill Mob in their Bullet Proof Bomb.
Then there's ingenious inventor Pat Pending in his Convert-A-Car.
Oh! Here's the lovely Penelope Pitstop, the glamour gal of the gas pedal.
Next we have the Bouldermobile with the Slag Brothers, Rock & Gravel.
Lurching along is the Creepy Coupe with the Gruesome Twosome,
and right on their tail is the Red Max.
And there's the Arkansas Chug-A-Bug with Luke & Blubber Bear.
Sneaking along last is that Mean Machine
with those double dealing do-badders Dick Dastardly and his sidekick, Muttley.”