Mario Andretti Racing

Mario Andretti Racing is a video game that was released in 1994 on the Sega Genesis/Mega Drive. It was an early title in the newly created EA Sports line, and was developed by Stormfront Studios. The game was produced by famed sports game developer Scott Orr as part of his collaboration with Richard Hilleman in the creation of EA Sports. Race driver Mario Andretti personally guided the development of the AI used by the non-player drivers in stock cars, Indy style open wheel racing, and dirt track racing.

The game uses different physics and AI for three kinds of racing.

The success of Mario Andretti Racing led Orr and Hilleman to work with Stormfront to launch the highly successful NASCAR Racing series.

Andretti Racing
In 1996 EA Sports released another game starring Andretti, called Andretti Racing, for the Sega Saturn and PlayStation. A PC version for Microsoft Windows followed in 1997.

Reviewing the PlayStation version, the two sports reviewers of Electronic Gaming Monthly praised the accurate racing, four-player compatibility, animation, and controls. Air Hendrix wrote in GamePro that the graphics are below-average for the PlayStation and the game lacks a good sense of speed, but the outstanding controls and "enjoyably deep, addictive gameplay that challenges far more than your twitch steering skills" outweigh these flaws. A reviewer for Next Generation was more pleased with the graphics, commenting that "Andretti Racing doesn't match the richness and detail of Psygnosis's Formula 1, but it can be considered one of the better looking racing games in recent memory. A challenging computer AI, well-balanced control system, and two-player split-screen mode round out this deep title." He also praised it for having far more tracks and replay value than the arcade ports which were then the staple of console racing games.

Johnny Ballgame of GamePro compared the graphics of the Saturn version unfavorably to both the PlayStation version and contemporary Saturn racer Daytona USA: Championship Circuit Edition, but found that the responsive controls, wide selection of tracks, numerous features, and realistic sounds made the game extremely fun to play. He concluded, "Saturn owners who are looking to buy one racing game this year, look no further." Lee Nutter of Sega Saturn Magazine also found the large number of tracks and features impressive, but described the track designs as "dull and indistinguishable from one another." Additionally criticizing the weak sense of speed, occasional graphic glitches, lack of detail in the cars, and poor PAL conversion, he concluded that "Andretti Racing does remain very playable with the various options and huge amount of tracks providing a very lengthy challenge but it seems to be a victory for quantity over quality." Electronic Gaming Monthly's sports reviewers found the graphics of the Saturn version to be unexceptional but solid, and highly praised the numerous options, licensing, responsive controls, and overall realism. Dean Hager went so far as to call it "the best true 32-bit racing simulation on the market."