Rad Racer (released in Japan as Highway Star) is a videogame developed by Square and released for the Nintendo Entertainment System in 1987. At the start of the game, players can choose between a Ferrari 328 or Formula 1 racing car. There's a normal acceleration and braking mechanic in place, but the defining feature of the game is the turbo button which can take players up to a top speed of 255km/h (158mph). Traffic and sharp turns can become hazardous if players collide with objects on the edge of the road (resulting in some terrific car flipping sequences by NES standards). An additional selling point came in the form of 3D glasses that players could use by toggling a button to switch to stereoscopic 3D visuals. Rad Racer later achieved some popular culture acclaim by being one of a handful of NES titles featured in The Wizard film (1989) where it was played...with a Power Glove.

Programmer Dan Kitchen recently unearthed and donated his source code for his long-lost Activision 2600 prototype, The Levee Game (1983). Also known as the Dam game, the object is to guide Keystone Kelly around this platformer style game while repairing cracks in the dam. Players can also maneuver barrels under the leaks to collect the water. The main object is to keep the rising water at the bottom of the screen from getting to the top. There aren’t too many unreleased Activision games, so let’s hope that Dan decides to revisit this game one day!

No new high scores this month. 

Keep at it, players!

One of the casualties of the 1983 North American videogame crash was the Arcadia 2001. Designed by Emerson, this system had a different concept than most other consoles on the market. Instead of solely manufacturing their own system, they licensed the technology to Bandai to be used in similar consoles all over the world. The Arcadia 2001 and its games exist under many different names - so when you see a Hanimex, Leisure-Vision or Leonardo console, it's an Arcadia 2001 inside. The system did not sell well in the US and was discontinued after just 18 months on the market.

Monetary donations are always appreciated as there are significant costs involved in managing, maintaining, building and displaying a collection as large as the NVM archive.

Even if you can't help monetarily, we are always looking for games and consoles to add to our library. Due to the highly interactive nature of the museum, systems go down all the time and are in need of replacement or repair parts. If you have any unused consoles, computers or games around the house, please drop them off at the museum or email us at [email protected] and we'll give them a good home!