For me, it's been really fun growing up alongside most of the development of commercial video games. As a kid, seeing each new wave of arcade machines coming along and outperforming the ones before them was especially cool. And although Sega was already a name I knew well from their earlier games like Monaco GP, Turbo, and Subroc 3D, something seemed to happen in the mid-80s that propelled them to a league of their own. Although it wasn't until years later that I learned about many of their internal development divisions and designers, it's clear to me now that it was AM2 that was revolutionizing the arcade experience. Hang-On was probably the first AM2 game I encountered, and its ride-able bike cabinet was certainly novel, it was soon after this time that I remember seeing Out Run.
Those were different times. Back in those days, we were blessed to have multiple arcades scattered throughout the medium-sized city I grew up in. And, unlike the current era of parental hypervigilance, it wasn't unusual at all for my mom to send me off to play games in an arcade by myself while she attended to more serious errands elsewhere. On this particular occasion, I meandered through the arcade to see what new games had shown up recently. Like I mentioned before, Hang-On had been around for about a year, and although it was cool, it was pretty reminiscent of Pole Position in its overall presentation, aside from the cabinet. But I remember turning the corner and seeing a new racing game's attract mode that immediately broadcast that things had changed forever. It was the stand-up cabinet of Out Run, and unlike any driving game before it, the road that the car was on twisted and turned with silky smooth movements, up and down over hills. I was mesmerized watching it and knew I had to play it immediately. That was when I noticed another surprise - it actually cost 50 cents instead of just one quarter! ...a significant consideration for a kid without many quarters. I knew I had to make my coins count.
That first playthrough held so many unprecedented moments... The car has a radio? I can choose the background music?! Then, weaving from lane to lane, realizing that the traffic could change lanes, too... crashing and laughing out loud at the Ferrari flipping end over end through the air as the steering wheel shook vigorously... coming to a fork in the road - I can actually choose which way to go?! It was absolutely amazing to me. And then came the most memorable moment to me: as I chose the left route and entered the stage I now know as "Big Gate." At first it looked like just another landscape, and then suddenly, rushing toward me - huge stone gateways that stood not only along the sides of the course, but also arched over it. I was literally startled by this. I'd never seen anything like it before, and as I zoomed through these tunnels of stone gates, I experienced an intense adrenaline rush that, to me, is the unique signature of Sega AM2. I didn't get much further than this stage in the game, but I even loved the mellow music and sunset of the high score table. My playthrough probably didn't last more than three minutes, but it was a complete road trip, with a beginning, middle and end. I was in love. With Out Run, with driving, with road trips, and with the endless summer in which it made its debut, and which it will forever evoke.
Not long after that, I got to experience the deluxe sit down Out Run cabinet, which was a revolution in its own right. Then, the next year, After Burner... then I was able to bring them both home in their lovingly miniaturized forms for the Sega Master System, where I encountered Space Harrier for the first time, long before ever seeing its arcade original counterpart... of course, AM2 continued to blaze trails for years to come, but for me that moment of surprise and adrenaline in Out Run is the reason why Sega AM2 is part of my gaming soul forever.
