Can Crap Turn To Gold? – The Crazy Cars Trilogy + 1 And A Reboot

You really have to wonder sometimes — Titus released three different game series using more or less the same engine, and yet every single one of them was well below average, even by the standards of the time. The culprits? Crazy Cars, Fire and Forget, and Offshore Warrior.

So the real question is… how on earth did they manage to stay in business?

The Beginning Of Something Fantastic…

I’ve always had a soft spot for driving games — even the crappy ones can be oddly enjoyable at times. But there’s one game that never managed to win me over: the original Crazy Cars.

To be honest, I hated it so much back in the day that I probably gave it no more than a minute or two before quitting. It just never clicked with me.

Well, this week, I decided to give it another go, spent a bit more time with it… and yeah, yuck. Still not a fan.

Love The Opening and Game Over Screens…

Crazy Cars was one of the first driving games to hit the Amiga, and I’ll give it this — it had a pretty impressive intro, with a cool sound and image combo that definitely caught your attention. Even the game over screen stood out (as seen above).

But let’s be honest here — none of that could save the game from being an absolute mess.

I don’t even know where to begin… You start off with what might be the least exciting car possible — a Mercedes. Yep, sounds “Crazy,” right?

The handling is downright terrible — it feels like you’re steering a boat on ice. Every corner ends in a crash, and when you hit something, the car awkwardly jumps and grinds to a halt. Lovely…

That said, I’ll give it this: there’s a decent sense of speed, and the game runs smoothly. But sadly, that’s just not enough to save it.

Long Live Piracy?

I’ll admit it — I never owned Crazy Cars legally. I pirated it back in the day on both the C64 and Amiga, and honestly? No regrets. The floppy pictured above was actually a gift from a friend who was leaving the Amiga scene in the early ’90s.

Crazy Cars was and still is rubbish. It had two decent audio samples (the intro and game-over screen), both in mono, of course. The game-over screen itself is actually kind of cool, but that’s about where the praise ends.

How Titus decided this game deserved a sequel is beyond me… but hey, that in itself is an achievement.

Next up: Crazy Cars II — let’s see if they managed to fix anything.

Crazy Cars II – Almost Open World?

Titus took their time with the sequel — it was well over a year and a half after the release of the original before Crazy Cars II finally landed. The previews looked promising, and the screenshots made it seem like we were in for a real treat.

And in true Titus fashion, the game kicks off with a nicely done intro image and a solid sound sample — definitely a step up from most of their earlier efforts. Things were starting to look sweet… or so it seemed.

What many might not realize is that Crazy Cars II was actually a very ambitious project for its time. While it missed the mark in several areas, it absolutely nailed the concept — a concept we now refer to as open-world or sandbox-style gameplay.

That’s right — this game, way back then, was essentially a limited open-world racer. No joke.

This Could Have Been So Good!

Sadly, this is where Crazy Cars II takes a sharp turn — from promising to an absolute disaster.

Once you discover the map screen, it hits you: this isn’t your typical arcade racer. Not even by the standards of its time. It tries to do something different — and fails hard.

If the first game handled like a boat, then this one? It handles like a dog on roller skates. Seriously, it’s barely playable.

You’ve got this surprisingly ambitious engine, complete with a GPS-style system that asks you to navigate junctions, switch lanes, and follow specific routes… but the controls are so bad that all of that ambition goes to waste.

And yes, the screenshots look great — but don’t be fooled. In motion, the game is choppy, painfully slow, and just plain frustrating. Add in the excessive borders and odd screen resolution choices, and you’ve got a game that looks like it’s bugged — but nope, that was just the design.

The Box, In Good Titus Spirit Screams – BUY ME!

Crazy Cars II definitely looks the part — both the box art and in-game visuals are a massive step up from the original. But then you actually play it… and realize it somehow controls even worse than the first game. You have to wonder — did Titus learn anything at all from the first one?

And then there’s the audio. Or rather, the complete lack of it.

Seriously, there’s no music, no ambient sounds — just a grating police siren (that’ll haunt your dreams) and the occasional explosion sound when your car inevitably blows up… which it does roughly every 4 seconds.

Yep, style over substance once again. Classic Titus.

What The Hell…

The game-over screen in the original Crazy Cars was one of the standout features, a true highlight. Unfortunately, the sequel’s game-over screen is the complete opposite. Titus, what were you thinking?

Crazy Cars II is undoubtedly one of the worst driving games to ever grace the Amiga, and trust me, I’ve experienced more than my fair share of them.

By this point, most of us were sure there would never be a third game, right? Well… wrong.

The Jag’s A Drag And You Won’t Notice Lotus, The boldest Claim Ever On Amiga?

Crazy Cars III was released in 1992, and to be honest, I wasn’t expecting much. But, as a driving game enthusiast, I had to check it out. And honestly, the advertisement (pictured above) got me hyped. I mean, just seeing that poster was enough to convince me to buy the game — even if it turned out to be a complete dud.

What’s truly epic is how Titus and Crazy Cars III openly mock the Lotus franchise and Core’s Jaguar XJ220 all in one poster. That’s some bold marketing, for sure. Simply epic.

I’m pretty sure this kind of advertisement would be illegal in many countries and, in today’s market, would probably backfire terribly.

They Did The Impossible!

Crazy Cars III took everything it learned from the first two games… and threw it all out the window. As harsh as that sounds, it actually worked out for the best. This is the game that Crazy Cars should have been from the start.

But now the big question: Was all that hype and advertising actually true? Does the game live up to the epic poster? Is it really as good as Titus claimed it would be during development?

A Proper Intro This Time Around…

Crazy Cars III finally kicks off with a proper introduction. Gone are the days of that basic opening screen and a single looping sound sample. In its place, we get a proper intro tune — and it’s actually a good one, I’ll admit.

However, while the intro does its job, it’s far from perfect. It’s too short and honestly a bit boring if you have to watch it too many times.

That same intro music also doubles as the loading and menu music, so you’ll hear it quite a lot throughout the game. Fair warning: you’ll probably grow tired of it pretty quickly.

Love the Presentation Here. Really good…

The game is set up on a map of America, with stars marking the races. Along the way, you’ll encounter various screens like the repair menu, upgrade menu, betting screen, and more.

It seems like Titus might have been a fan of Street Racer because it included a betting system. It works decently and adds a fun layer to the game, letting you speed up your upgrades by winning bets. You can place bets on races and win them by beating the opponent you bet on.

The upgrade system is well done, too. There’s a good variety of items to buy, and they actually affect gameplay, making it feel rewarding as you progress.

Action Packed, Feature Packed And Fun…

This game is packed with so many cool features, it’s hard to remember them all, but here are just a few highlights:

• Weather effects like rain and snow

• Day/Night cycle

• Over 80 courses

• Betting system

• Upgrade system

• Optional races

• Non-linear race progression

• Flawless framerate

• Police radars and cop chases

• A huge variety of scenery

• Manual or automatic gearbox options

• Boost/Turbo

• Configurable buttons

• 50Hz refresh rate

• And plenty more…

Another Fantastic Titus Box…

All these features and more make Crazy Cars III one of the best racing games on the Amiga 500. It’s impressive how Titus managed to transform the series from terrible to awesome.

But Crazy Cars III isn’t just a fun game — it’s also a technical marvel, with one of the best advertisements of its time. Yes, that counts, too.

The box design is also pretty solid. Although I initially got the game through piracy (like many others at the time), I eventually bought it once I could afford it. Being young with limited funds meant it took me years to get some games in my collection, but I always made sure to buy the ones I loved.

Titus Is One Of The Big Guys Now…

Titus wasn’t exactly known for including many extras in their game boxes, so these advertisements were a welcome surprise. They actually convinced me to buy those two games, with Blues Brothers being another Titus gem. I might write an article about that one soon.

Crazy Cars III was initially thought to be the final game in the series on the Amiga… or so we thought at the time…

Let’s Do It All Again, Except That Now We Add Multiplayer…

Lamborghini American Challenge (L.A.C. from now on) was released two years after Crazy Cars III, and at first glance, it seems almost identical to its predecessor. And that’s not far from the truth—L.A.C. is essentially a rebranded version of Crazy Cars III.

The rising trend of licensing real cars and brands likely played a major role in the decision to change the title. However, the name swap wasn’t the only update in this release.

Was the change purely cosmetic? Not quite. In fact, L.A.C. introduced new features that many gamers had been requesting. Along with all the content from Crazy Cars III, the game added a much-welcome two-player split-screen mode. For many players, this was the key factor that made Lotus 3 stand out over Crazy Cars III.

Not The Best Box Design; it’s The Worst From Titus On Amiga…

Lamborghini American Challenge marked Titus’s swan song on the Amiga—it was both their final release and one of their greatest achievements. It remains one of the key reasons I still hold Titus in such high regard today.

However, this updated version does have a few drawbacks. The framerate in two-player split-screen mode can be quite choppy at times, and the limited draw distance, due to the smaller screen, is noticeable. But these are really the only notable negatives.

Well, there is one more thing—L.A.C.‘s box art doesn’t pack the same punch as Crazy Cars III’s, and, to be honest, it feels somewhat lackluster and uninspired.

A Full CD Of Possibilities, Yet Only 1 MB Used—Now That’s A Missed Opportunity!

Lamborghini American Challenge was also released for the Amiga CD32, and perhaps the best part—it was offered as a freebie! Yes, it was completely free. The game was bundled with an issue of the Amiga CD32 Gamer magazine, which, of course, hailed it as a masterpiece. However, they conveniently forgot to mention that the game was identical to the floppy version, with absolutely no changes whatsoever. Still, it’s a nice freebie!

Never played the Crazy Cars series? Do it; do it now.

As a footnote, Titus released another Lamborghini game in 1997 across various platforms, but not for the Amiga. Since I’ve never tried it, I won’t comment on it for now.

Additionally, the Crazy Cars series was revived in 2012 for mobile (iOS/Android) and PC. I haven’t played these games, but they look a lot like the Asphalt series—check out the screenshot below.

And with that bombshell, Thanks for your time.

Thanks to Hall Of Light for the screenshots.