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Side by Side Special

Side by Side Special logo

An extended port of Side by Side 2 for the original PlayStation with cars and tracks from the first Side by Side also thrown in. Originally released in December 1997 only in Japan, with a re-release version called Side by Side Special 2000 (referring to then-forthcoming year of 2000 and its discounted price of 2,000 yen) releasing in late 1999. (The Arkanoid Returns port for the same console also received a similar treatment, named Arkanoid R 2000.)

WIP

Builds

This game and its arcade counterpart, Side by Side 2, appears to be developed simultaneously, as an mistake caught in an flyer for Side by Side 2 was present here and never fixed in Special 2000.

Product Code Build Date Release Date Title Notes
SLPM-80145 1997-08-23 1997-??-?? Side by Side Special Taikenban Demo version limited to three cars and two tracks. TCRF page
SLPS-01150 1997-10-30 1997-12-18 Densha de GO! Demo version present in Densha de GO!'s Omake menu. Built ten hours before the 1997 retail version, judging by its executable (SBS\SLPS-011.75). Same as the standalone demo disc but with assets from the final game. Product code here refers to main Densha de GO! disc. TCRF page
SLPS-01175 1997-10-30 1997-12-04 Side by Side Special Initial retail release.
SLPM-86344 1999-08-18 1999-11-11 Side by Side Special 2000 Budget re-release with DualShock vibration support added and some other changes (see below). Apart from the executable file, most other files are dated 1997-11-04, just a month prior to the release of the original.

Cars

See the SBSS Cars page.

Tracks

See the SBS Tracks page.

Changes

Arcade games vs Special

  • Bug: As mentioned earlier, due to the game being developed simulatenously with Side by Side 2, the swapped SBS2 July (Professional) and October (Ace Driver) track month label bug is present, much like it did in an SBS2 flyer. (This error was never fixed in Special 2000.)
  • Due to PlayStation hardware limitatons, some on-track objects have been removed, most notably the lighthouse in SBS1 Summer track and the fireworks in the SBS2 July (night) track.
  • Some of car colors and wheels have been changed from the arcade games (see the cars page).
  • Tracks from the first Side by Side now has start/checkpoint/finish signs and track maps from Side by Side 2. (According to the files in the standalone demo disc build, SBS1 tracks originally would have kept track maps based in style of the original game.)
  • Car specifications are not shown during attract mode - only lap leaderboards are shown.
  • The "3, 2, 1, go!" annoucer voice is different, compared to that present in Side by Side 2.

Special vs Special 2000

  • Support for DualShock has been added, but only for vibrations - analog steering is not supported.
  • The Densha de GO! trailer ("Information" in main menu) has been removed.
  • Default lap records has been adjusted to be harder.
  • The starting time limit for the Special course from the first Side by Side was made harder.
  • The "SIDE BY SIDE SPECIAL" text logo before the Taito logo and the opening movie has been removed.
  • If the track has been won in Arcade Mode, the track can be played in reverse by pressing L1 or R1, although only in the Time Attack mode. (Records are shared between normal and reverse layouts.) This feature was a carryover from Side by Side 2 Evoluzione RR update, although not restricted to time attacks in the arcade game.
  • Some text has been decapitalized (eg "PUSH START BUTTON" becomes "Push START button", as well in options menu)
  • Whenever a memory card access occurs, "Memory Card Access" graphic has been replaced with standard "Checking MEMORY CARD" message.
  • Two of secret vehicles have their names corrected: Taito Ban to Taito Van and Taito Track to Taito Truck.
  • If you attempt to restart or quit a race from the pause menu, the game now confirms if you want to do so.
  • A credit for Tetsuya Watanabe, with listed car code of NA6, has been added under "2D 3D Graphic Modelling".
  • Some text, such as options menu headers and the "READY?" text in the beginning of a race, are now rendered using standard in-game font.
  • Bug: If you race on a night track, the shading colors of the digital speedometer and gear indicator turns red.