Things were different for racing back in the early 90's. The closest thing you could find to the equivalent of a 3-D racing game experience would be Nintendo's F-Zero for the SNES, allowing gamers to race along futuristic tracks thanks to well-inputted Mode 7 graphics and sharp gameplay. Sega managed to keep up on the Genesis, however, with the release of Formula One by Domark for the system, which revolutionized the racing circuit. Virtua Racing wasn't far behind, packing a SVP chip- and a $100 price tag.

Still, if any game caused a quantum leap in the racing genre in the 90's, it was Daytona USA, which still stands today as a crowning achievement in the racing field by attracting players in multiplayer units at different centers, like Dave and Buster's. Released back in 1994, Daytona USA rebirthed the gaming franchise with its blazing graphics, its innovative camera angles, and the feel that you were in fact driving in a stock car, accepting its damage and still trying to maintain your high speed around corners to get first place. Of course, the crashes were questionable (like how you can miraculously land on all four wheels after a devastating blow to the wall), and the game really isn't as exciting in solo mode as it is with other friends, but it did bring forth a new kind of racing feeling. It came across as the real thing, not something created by facsimile with graphic tricks.

The Daytona legacy continued on the Sega Saturn with the release of the game during the system's launch in 1995, which took place a few months before the Sony PlayStation's. The home conversion was acceptable, but lacked the gorgeous graphics, instead accepting rushed, 30-frames-per-second presentation that made the game a bit lackluster. The game was still fun to play, and included unlockable tracks and other goodies, but you could tell something was holding it back. A couple of years later, Sega tried to correct the error by releasing Dayonta USA: Championship Circuit Edition, featuring more tracks and cars and a much more vivid graphic engine, but by then players had turned away the Saturn, leading to its departure from shelves.

In 1998, following their thrilling Sega Super GT game (which followed in Daytona's footsteps but without the stock cars), Sega tried again to dominate arcades with the release of Daytona USA 2: Battle On the Edge, an all new arcade game that brought even more exquisite graphic details to the table, as well as the same great gameplay that the series was known for. It became a phenomenal success, especially with multiple units hooked up for players to race against each other. To this day, it remains a top attraction at arcades everywhere.

Then the year 2000 came around, and a whole new console from Sega was enjoying prosperous success, despite Sega's announcement that they would soon be abandoning it for third-party development pastures. But they still managed to release Daytona USA 2001 for the console, which allowed players to link up online for races via SegaNet and take in the beautiful graphics, finally emulating the beauty that the arcade games were known for. The additional tracks weren't as enjoyable as the original ones, and the gameplay seemed a bit sticky in parts, but the game still enjoyed good sales before the Dreamcast eventually faded away into history.

Now, the Daytona license has all but disappeared. Despite rumors of a GameCube version surfacing, the game hasn't seen a new release since the Dreamcast days. It still enjoys healthy circulation in arcades, and remains a big draw for players of all types, so it's good to see that it's getting the attention it deserves. Yet, you can tell that gamers out there certainly wouldn't mind a release for PlayStation 2, Xbox, or even the forthcoming next-gen systems that will allow gamers to feel the rush of Daytona all over again. The franchise may be over ten years old, but it's still got tires to spin and miles to burn.