The year is 1963, rock'n'roll has just about hit the streets and it's time to be a rebel. You start out in your empty garage with 750 dollars, probably all your savings. So to get started you check out the local newspaper for used cars. You find a good looking one with a decent engine, and use the rest of the cash to tune it up to be a decent hot rod. This is this is where all the fun starts. Street Rod was a revolutionairy racing game. The first game to feature the ability to buy and modify your very own 'racing' car, featuring all those sexy old cars (and some which are very ugly). The more you race, the more money you get, and in the end, you will have a car that you can challenge the king with. The ultimate opponent.

This is the first racing game that really thrilled me. I used to play the Ford Simulator when I was smaller, but this one took my breath away, along with STUNTS and some formula 1 racing game that I can't remember the name of right now. What stood out with Street Rod however, was the fact that one could alter the parts and appearance of the vehicle. And such good looking vehicles at that. I had some trouble with the part names though, as they are quite technical and my english was awful, considering that I was about 5 years old when this game was released. After a while, and much patience from my older cousin, I learned how to pick the right ones. Best to do is to get some cash, then try and fail, I guess.

Graphics are quite good considering the time this game was made, and consists of 16 colour VGA (though you can choose several other graphical options at startup.) Sound is also endurable even though it only has PC Speaker support. If it gets annoying, you can turn off sound either by clicking the radio in the garage or the CTRL button on your keyboard. Driving is quite easy, using the arrow keys and the space bar to change gears. The interface itself is mostly in your garage, shaped as object that you would normally see in a garage. The save/load/quit menu is accessible by clicking on the clock. Buying parts and cars are done in the newspaper. Altering the car is done by clicking on the respective parts of the car. Fuel is aquired by clicking on the fuel container, and so on and so forth.

Racing itself is done in two different tracks. Drag race, or road race. Drag race enables you to test your top speed to the max, but only for money. If you want to race pink slips, you would have to race the road race. Pink slips is my favourite mode, as it gives you the losers car if you win. You have to win though. If not, your opponent gets your car and you are stuck with nothing. It's all or nothing. Winning it is quite easy though, if you pick the right opponents. You meet your opponents at the diner, and if you don't like one of them, you can just tell him to buzz off and wait for the next one. You can pop the hood of each opponent to check out their engine, and after a while you get an eye for how fast your opponents are. The drag race takes you out to the city limit, while the road race starts off with the drag track, then leads off to the county limit, thus including a more varied track with turns, slopes and obstacles.

This game will keep you entertained for a while but not forever, as you reach the top quite fast if your driving is as good as your car building skills. Still, it's great fun while it lasts. Still a bit limited though, as the game ends after a month of so in game. Take a look at your calendar in game to figure out how much time you have left to beat the king. He is quite hard to beat though, so I would race as much as possible before trying to beat him. Just be sure that your car is tuned up and has all the best parts when you race him, from there it's all up to your skills and luck. Get this game and become the next King of the County!