International Track & Field

International Track & Field
(Hyper Athlete)

European PAL cover art
Developer(s) Konami
Director(s) Satoshi Kushibuchi
Artist(s) Keiichiro Toyama, Shigeru Kobayashi
Platform(s) PlayStation, Arcade, PlayStation Network
Release date(s)

PlayStation

  • JP: May 31, 1996
  • NA: June 28, 1996
  • PAL: June, 1996

Arcade

  • JP: June, 1996

PlayStation Network

Genre(s) Sports

International Track & Field is a 3D update of Konami's Track & Field series, in which up to four players compete in eleven different Olympic events. The game was released for the PlayStation and the arcades in 1996. The arcade version was released only in Japan as Hyper Athlete.[3] In 2008 the game was released on PlayStation Network. All six events from the first game, 1983's Track & Field, are included, but only three events (swimming, pole vault and triple jump) are taken from the sequel, Hyper Sports. International Track & Field uses the three-button control system of its predecessors (two run buttons and one action button per player) and the eleven disciplines can be attempted in any order. The available events are:[4]

  1. 100m Sprint
  2. Long Jump
  3. Shot Put
  4. 100m Free style
  5. 110m Hurdle
  6. High Jump
  7. Hammer
  8. Triple Jump
  9. Javelin
  10. Pole Vault
  11. Discus

Reception

Reception
Review scores
PublicationScore
EGM7/10[5]
IGN7/10[6]
The Electric Playground9/10[7]
Maximum[8]

International Track & Field received generally positive reviews, with the four-player competitive mode drawing the most praise. The two sports reviewers of Electronic Gaming Monthly both gave the game a 7 out of 10. Dindo Perez said that the game is fun, especially with four player multiplayer, but loses its appeal after extensive play, while Tood Morwatt commented, "They don't have an official Olympics license, but the game has a good assortment of Olympic-style events and a strong graphic look that should satisfy die-hard track and field fanatics."[5] Writing in Maximum, Daniel Jevons remarked that as with most games in the genre, the gameplay is fairly simple, but that the fierce competitiveness of four-player sessions makes the game one of the best social experiences on the PlayStation.[8] Johnny Ballgame of GamePro summarized that "Revamped from its glory days in the arcades, International Track & Field triumphs with terrific traditional gameplay that's enhanced by gold-medal 32-bit graphics." He particularly noted the easy to learn but difficult to master gameplay, fiercely competitive multiplayer, and dramatic animations.[9] IGN praised the graphics as "awesome".[6]

References

  1. ↑ C, Alex (2008-08-21). "PSN Store Update: 21/08/08". TheSixthAxis. Retrieved 2010-01-06.
  2. ↑ Sinclair, Brendan (2009-11-25). "PSN Store stuffed for Thanksgiving". Industry Gamers. Retrieved 2010-01-06.
  3. ↑ "Hyper Athlete". Killer List of Videogames. Retrieved 2010-01-06.
  4. ↑ "International Track and Field: Run the Guantlet with Konami's Sports Sim". Maximum: The Video Game Magazine. Emap International Limited (7): 36–43. June 1996.
  5. 1 2 "Box Score: International Track and Field". Electronic Gaming Monthly. Ziff Davis (84): 115. July 1996.
  6. 1 2 "International Track & Field". IGN. 1996-11-25. Retrieved 2010-01-06. |first1= missing |last1= in Authors list (help)
  7. ↑ "International Track & Field". GameRankings. Retrieved 2010-01-06.
  8. 1 2 Jevons, Daniel (June 1996). "Maximum Reviews:International Track and Field". Maximum: The Video Game Magazine. Emap International Limited (7): 120.
  9. ↑ "Konami's Off and Running with Killer Track Action". GamePro. IDG (95): 77. August 1996.
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