Dirt Fox/Walkthrough



The track of Namco's Japan-only 1989 arcade game Dirt Fox is divided into six different sections, and the boundaries between each of them are marked upon the overhead maps, shown in the top-right corner of the screen; they are also marked by the text SS (next section number) on the track itself, and once your car has passed over the text, the text "EXTENDED! SS (next section number)" will appear and then flash up in the centre of the screen, as the race continues, before eventually disappearing. Each of the players starts out with fifty seconds to complete the first section of the track, and for each section of the track that they successfully complete, they will be rewarded with forty-five extra seconds to complete the next section of the track - but if one of the players should run out of time his game will instantly end and the race will continue without him. If any of the players manage to make it to the end of the track, they may each have a chance to enter their initials (on the "best times" table); as with Namco's own Pole Position, Final Lap and Metal Hawk, the game will start immediately as soon as you insert your coin and the three-script text Ta kuruma entorī wo omachi kudasai. (他車エントリーをお待ち下さい.) appears on the screen; however, if you're using MAME to play this, you should be aware of the fact that that you will not be able to steer your car through the game's default settings, and will only be able to drive around in circles at the starting line while all seven purple CPU-controlled cars that had started out with you speed away (as with Final Lap, the emulator doesn't support link plays either). You must put the game into Service Mode by pressing F2 while pressing and holding the cabinet's Service Switch ("9") to calibrate its virtual steering wheel and solve this problem.

Section SS1
Once the traffic light in the top-left corner of the screen has changed from red to 2nd red to blue, step on the gas pedal to accelerate your car, then push your gear shifter down into "MID" gear once you have reached 150 km/h; once you have done so, push the gear shifter down again into "TOP" gear once you have reached 175 km/h, as an arrow pointing to the right appears in that top-left corner of the screen. Once you have steered to the right, a second arrow pointing to the left will appear in the top-left corner of the screen - and once you have steered to the left, a third arrow pointing to what is known as the "northern diagonal right" will appear, in that top-left corner of the screen. Once you have steered to the "northern diagonal right", a fourth arrow pointing to the right will appear in the top-left corner of the screen as you catch up with four purple CPU-controlled cars that somehow managed to get ahead of you; once you have passed them all, and steered to the right, a fifth arrow pointing to the left will appear up in that top-left corner of the screen. Once you steer to the left and pass over the section boundary text SS-2, the text "EXTENDED! SS-2" will flash up upon the screen for a few seconds.

Section SS2
Once the text "EXTENDED! SS-2" has disappeared from the screen, your car will drive up a ramp and get catapulted into the air for a split-second; once you've landed, a sixth arrow pointing to the left will appear in the top-left corner of the screen. Once you steer to the left, a seventh arrow pointing to the right will appear in the top-left corner of the screen as you'll catch up with a fifth purple CPU-controlled car that somehow managed to get ahead of you - and once you have passed it and steered to the right, your car will drive over seven speed bumps and be gently lifted into the air for seven split-seconds, as you're catching up with three more purple CPU-controlled cars that somehow managed to get ahead of you. Once you have landed and passed them all, an eighth arrow pointing in a left U-turn will appear, in the top-left corner of the screen; once you have steered to the left, a ninth arrow (pointing to the right) will appear in the top-left corner of the screen. Once you have steered to the right, your car will drive up another ramp and be catapulted up into the air (for another split-second) - and, once you have landed, a tenth arrow pointing to what is known as the "curved northern diagonal left" will appear in the top-left corner of the screen. Once you have steered to the "curved northern diagonal left" and passed over the second section boundary text of SS-3, the text "EXTENDED! SS-3" will flash up on the screen for a few seconds, as you are again rewarded with forty-five more extra seconds.

Section SS3
Once that text "EXTENDED! SS-3" has disappeared from the screen, an eleventh arrow pointing to the right will appear in the top-left corner of the screen; once you have steered to the right, a twelfth arrow pointing in a left U-turn will appear in the top-left corner of the screen. Once you have steered to the left, a thirteenth arrow pointing in a right U-turn will appear, in that top-left corner of the screen - and once you have steered to the right, four more purple CPU-controlled cars that somehow managed to get ahead of you will pass by (on the other side of the wall), as a fourteenth arrow pointing in a left U-turn appears in the top-left corner of the screen. Once you have steered to the left a fifteenth arrow pointing in a right U-turn will appear in the top-left corner of the screen; once you steer to the right, a sixteenth arrow pointing to the "curved northern diagonal right" will appear up in the top-left corner of the screen. Once you have steered to the "curved northern diagonal right" (and then passed over the third section boundary text SS-4), the text "EXTENDED! SS-4" will flash up upon the screen for a few seconds as you are once again rewarded with forty-five more seconds for the next section.

Section SS4
Once the text "EXTENDED! SS-4" has disappeared from the screen, a seventeenth arrow pointing to the "curved northern diagonal left" will appear in the top-left corner of the screen; once you have steered to the "curved northern diagonal left" (which is not easy to do in the snow), an eighteenth arrow pointing to the left will appear in the top-left corner of the screen. Once you have steered to the left (which, once again, is not easy to do in the snow) and passed over the fourth section boundary text SS-5, the text "EXTENDED! SS-5" will flash up on the screen for a few seconds, and you will be rewarded with forty-five more seconds in which to complete that penultimate section of the track - and this is by far the shortest section of the track in the game, but it is also the most snow-covered.

Section SS5
Once that text "EXTENDED! SS-5" has disappeared from the screen, your car will drive over five bales of hay, then get gently lifted into the air (for five more split-seconds); once you've landed, your car will drive over a slatted wooden bridge before driving over four more bales of hay and being gently lifted into the air for four more split-seconds. Once you have landed, a nineteenth arrow pointing to the right will appear, in the top-left corner of the screen - and once you have steered to the right, four more purple CPU-controlled cars that somehow managed to get ahead of you will pass by on the other side of the wall as a twentieth arrow that is pointing to the "curved northern diagonal left" appears inn the top-left corner of the screen. Once you have steered to the "curved northern diagonal left", your car will drive over a second slatted wooden bridge before driving over five more bumps and getting gently lifted into the air for five more split-seconds; once you have landed, your car will drive over fourteen more speed bumps then get gently lifted into the air for fourteen more split-seconds. Once you have landed, a twenty-first arrow pointing to the right will appear, in the top-left corner of the screen - and once you have steered to the right, then passed over the fifth section boundary text SS-6, the text "EXTENDED! SS-6" will flash up on the screen for a few seconds, and you'll be rewarded with forty-five more seconds in which to complete the final section of the track - and you will have to be fast to win.

Section SS6
Once that text "EXTENDED! SS-6" has disappeared from the screen, a twenty-second arrow pointing to the right will appear in the top-left corner of the screen; once you have steered to the right, a twenty-third arrow pointing up to the "northern diagonal right" will appear in the top-left corner of the screen. Once you have steered to the "northern diagonal right", a twenty-fourth arrow pointing to what is known as the "northern diagonal left" will appear, up in the top-left corner of the screen - and once you have then steered to the "northern diagonal left", a twenty-fifth and final arrow pointing up to the left will appear, in the top-left corner of the screen. Once you have steered to the left, and passed over the text FINISH, your final position and total track time will appear in the centre of the screen; if your total time was lower than 4:05:99, the game will go into "best-time" mode and you will have the chance to enter your initials on that table with pride. Once you have done so, the game will go back into attract mode (ready for up to four other new players to insert a coin).