Exhaust Heat

Exhaust Heat (エキゾースト・ヒット) is an F-1 racing game developed and published by SETA, released for the Super Famicom on February 21st, 1992. It is the third racing game on the system, and the second one to use Mode-7. It was published by Ocean Software in PAL territories and published under the name F1 ROC: Race of Champions in the US. It received a sequel titled Exhaust Heat II: F-1 Driver no Kiseki about a year later, featuring more content, a special chip for AI behavior, and very different handling.

Gameplay
Despite Jaleco's Big Run releasing 5 months prior, Exhaust Heat is the second game to use Mode-7, the graphics mode used by launch title F-Zero. Compared to F-Zero though, the tracks in Exhaust Heat are very barren. Differences between tracks only show in the layout and horizon visuals. Only 1 car is playable throughout the game, compared to F-Zero's 4. There are no on-track slip zones. Instead, a grassy offroad extends from the track to shortcut-stopping walls. The track is of constant width, and turns are simple in construction. Handling is also very different to F-Zero. Turning is stiffer, and more grounded to the track. Handling also changes based on the weather, with different levels of rain changing how the car drives.

Through the main "Gran Prix" mode, the player drives through a season of F-1 races. After each race, money is awarded based on position and damage incurred to the vehicle. Between races, the player can upgrade various parts of their vehicle, changing how the car drives. There is also a training mode, allowing the player to drive any of the game's 16 tracks at any time.