Final Lap
Final Lap is a video game released by Namco and Atari Games (for the Americas) in December 1987 which was the official sequel to the popular Pole Position games.
In many ways this game can be considered Pole Position 3, as it improved upon its original formula and bears much similarity to its predecessor.
In Final Lap, up to eight players would simultaneously race on the Suzuka circuit in a Formula 1 race. There was also a single player mode, in which your score was based on how far you traveled until time ran out or if you completed four laps, which was close to impossible.
Never before had eight players been able to race each other simultaneously in any racing game. It also had pseudo-3d graphics which were revolutionary for its time. The player either piloted the Williams/Lotus or McLaren/March F1 cars on the Suzuka track, rendered perfectly, even down to sponsor billboards. The only music is the theme when you start a race, which plays for three seconds and sounds like the Pole Position start music, only more late '80s synth style.
It ran on Namco's System 2 Hardware, which was composed of:
In 1990, Philip Morris, the tobacco conglomerate, filed a lawsuit claiming copyright infringement against Namco, Atari Games (the Final Lap distributor in the U.S) and Sega on behalf of their Super Monaco GP game because both of these games featured a Marlboro billboard, which was found on the real-life Suzuka and Monaco tracks.
Philip Morris was under investigation at the time for their role in preteen smoking, and the appearance of one of their brands in games aimed towards children and teens did not help their image. Namco was forced to pay a settlement and Sega had to edit their game to remove all Marlboro signs.
Referenced By
List of computer and video games by category | List of computer and video games by name | Namco | Pole Position | Racing game
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