Chequered Flag (Japan) - MAME machine

Arcade Video game published 36 years ago:

Chequered Flag © 1988 Konami.

Chequered Flag is an overhead-view racing game featuring rotational sprite scaling. The player races over a series of twisting courses, trying to reach the finish line before the timer expires.

The game includes a Pit-stop facility, a feature that had appeared 2 months earlier in Taito's "Continental Circus". Should the player's car sustain too much damage, a pit-stop must be made to implement repairs. A 'damage meter' at the bottom of the screen shows the severity of the damage; highlighting what car components are in need of repair: engine, front tires, rear tires and brakes.

TECHNICAL
Game ID: GX717

Main CPU: KONAMI (@ 3 Mhz)
Sound CPU: Zilog Z80 (@ 3.579545 Mhz)
Sound Chips: Yamaha YM2151 (@ 1.789772 Mhz), (2x) K007232 (@ 3.579545 Mhz)

Players: 1
Control: 2 pedals (analog gas pedal and digital brake), limited-range steering wheel and high-low gear shifter
Buttons: 1 > start

TRIVIA
Chequered Flag was released in May 1988.

Another title is accessible via dipswitches: Checkered Flag. It doesn't change the speed unit into a mile per hour despite US-only spelling.

Some machines feature only a gas pedal.

Stage 1's circuit is a recreation of Suzuka circuit (east course), stage 2 is driven on a deformed Circuit De La Sarthe (holding 24 Heures Du Mans), where the last stage (#3) is nearly full layout of Suzuka circuit - GP course without Casio triangle.

King Records released a limited-edition soundtrack album for this game (Konami Game Music Collection Vol.1 - K30X7705) on August 5, 1988. This album was reprinted (KCIA-2309) on May 21, 1993.

UPDATES
Japanese version has the copyright notice forbidding to play outside Japan; it's shown after a few demo plays.

TIPS AND TRICKS

• Don't drive on dry tires on stage #2: you'll get a warning 'change to rain tires'. Disregarding this warning will make the tires too heavy to turn.
• Stage #3 doesn't require you to refuel, so drive into the pit only when tires, brake or engine are broken.

CONTRIBUTE
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