In 1986, Konami brought the racing simulator WEC Le Mans 24 to arcades, inspired by the famous endurance race in Le Mans, France. The game offered a behind-the-car view and focused on the feeling of high speed and smooth gear shifting, continuing the era's wave of arcade racers striving for the most convincing simulation of real motorsport possible. Sit-down cabinets with a gear shifter and steering wheel gave the experience a physical dimension missing from a standard upright cabinet, and drew crowds of onlookers waiting for their turn.
The player raced along a track inspired by the Le Mans circuit and had to handle not only rivals but also changing track conditions and gear-shifting strategy, an emphasis on more technical driving that was fairly unusual for arcade racers of the time. Successive time-limited sections forced the player to maintain a high pace, while the graphical rendering of the scenery along the track was among the best Konami offered in the mid-1980s. The track's night and day sections also changed visibility and overtaking strategy, so the game couldn't be beaten with a single memorized routine.
WEC Le Mans 24 became one of the notable representatives of the second generation of arcade racing simulators and paved the way for later, even more elaborate titles in the genre. For fans of racing arcade history, it's an important stop between purely arcade races and the more technically demanding simulations of the 1990s, when the emphasis on gear shifting and driving technique was only beginning to take hold.
Why play it: For the authentic feel of the Le Mans endurance race and a technical approach to gear shifting that was exceptional for arcades of its time.
Game 134 of 258 for Arcade
