R.C. Pro-Am

R.C. Pro-Am is Rare's isometric radio-controlled car racer, and it is the game that established the studio's NES reputation. You race a miniature car around a track laid out on a tabletop, from an overhead angle that makes every corner a judgement of drift.

The obvious hook is the weapons: pickups on the track hand you missiles, bombs and a roll cage, and using them on the other three cars is expected rather than optional. Less obviously, the game is a career - finishing well earns you prize money and a better car, and the tracks get tighter and the field faster as you go. It also has one of the earliest implementations of a persistent championship structure on the console, and its 45-degree perspective was technically unusual. The soundtrack by David Wise is one of the most recognisable on the system.

• ▸Isometric overhead racing with drift-based cornering
• ▸Track pickups: missiles, bombs, roll cage and speed boosts
• ▸Career progression - prize money buys faster cars
• ▸A rival field that gets more aggressive as the championship advances