"Don’t hang on, it's not so super."

I honestly would've given this game a 6.5, but it doesn't quite deserve a 7, so a 6 it is. Anyways, this is your basic Motorcycle racing game. I found this one (like many other of my Genesis titles) at a local pawn shop, so I popped it into the machine to give it a try. At first I was pretty impressed. The overall game wasn't too bad. After a few more hours though, it made me hate the world of BMX and everything close to it. In short: this game will bore you to death. But in the small chance you can look past that, this isn't quite as bad as you think.

Story:
There is a small attempt at a story here that involves you getting new managers and tougher rivals as you become a better racer. This however is easy to look past considering how overall dull and difficult everything else is. Your manager obviously gets you more money for your victories but also consults your wins/losses after a race and pays you depending on how you did.

Graphics:
The graphics are decent, but awful choppy and repetitive at times. It's understandable considering the age of Super Hang-On, but I still believe there was room for improvement here. I thought that all of the detail given to the racers and scenery could have made up for the choppy quality of it all, but I am wrong again. The menus and shop screens are nice though, so that's a plus. Overall Graphics: C+

Sound:
The sound is a monster that feeds on annoyance. I would much rather listen to my CD player, and you should too. There is a music selection which does give a variety, but still not much as a lot of the tracks are short and bland for a racing game. Music for Super Hang-On is nothing compared to the demonic screeching known as the Sound Effects. I would really appreciate an option to turn it off completely. Maybe there is and I just couldn't find it due to my bleeding ears. Who knows? Anyways, if the sound of motors and mufflers falling off is fun to you, you will be right at home. Overall Sound: D+

Controls:
I just don't want to discuss this. The bikes cannot be controlled even for the most adept gamers. If you see a sign on the road, don't hit it. If you do, you will automatically go to last place. This is just bad. Overall control: D

Replay Value:
There isn't much to replay here. There are two possibilities here: 1: My save feature doesn't work, or 2: There is no save feature. This game is very painful without being able to save so replaying at all just doesn't feel right. I don't know weather or not my game is defective, but judging by the way the rest of the game goes, I wouldn't be surprised that this just isn't a game you can replay. Overall Replay: C-

Conclusion:
While I tried to like this game, Super Hang-On just does not live up to my expectations for racing games on the Genesis. The system has been through hard times, and this one doesn't help it at all. Overall rating for Super Hang-On (Sega Genesis): 6 out of 10.

Reviewer's Score: 6/10, Originally Posted: 09/05/04