Uploaded August 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Splendor Blast is a futuristic arcade racing/shooting hybrid developed and published by Alpha Denshi in 1985. It mixes pseudo-3D racing, shooting, obstacle avoidance and resource management into a surprisingly ambitious package for its era. Although it is largely forgotten today, it stands out as one of those unusual mid-80s arcade games that experimented with ideas long before futuristic combat racing became a familiar genre.
Rating: 7.5/10
You pilot a small spacecraft from a behind-the-vehicle perspective, racing through twisting courses filled with rival ships, barriers, hazards and alien enemies. The objective is not simply to reach the finish line. You also have to manage your energy, avoid unnecessary collisions and make smart use of weapons and power-ups along the way.
The energy gauge is one of the most important mechanics. It works as both a health meter and a soft time limit, steadily putting pressure on the player while mistakes drain it even faster. Energy pickups can restore some of what you have lost, but a bad sequence of crashes can leave you struggling for the rest of the race. This gives each run a strong survival element that separates Splendor Blast from more conventional racing games.
Shooting becomes increasingly important as the courses progress. Missiles can be used against obstacles, enemies and dangerous sections of the track, while ammunition pickups keep your supply going. The game gradually shifts from straightforward racing into something closer to a hybrid between a racer and a shoot ’em up, with more environmental hazards and combat-heavy sections appearing later.
Rival racers also play a major role. They constantly crowd the track, get in the way of useful items and make clean overtaking difficult. Placement and overall performance matter, so simply surviving is not always enough. Gates and power-ups can temporarily improve your capabilities, adding another tactical layer to the races.
The strongest aspect of Splendor Blast is its sense of speed. The road and scenery rush toward the player, objects rapidly grow as they approach, and the screen often becomes crowded with racers and hazards. For a 1985 arcade game, the pseudo-3D effect is impressive and gives the game a distinctive identity. It may look crude in screenshots, but it works much better in motion.
The visuals have plenty of character as well. Bright tracks, alien landscapes, strange creatures and distinctly 1980s spacecraft create a colorful science-fiction atmosphere. The presentation is rough compared to later arcade racers, but there is a lot of imagination behind it.
The downside is the difficulty. Steering can feel loose at high speed, rivals are aggressive, and some hazards give very little reaction time. Once your energy drops too far, recovery can be difficult, so memorization quickly becomes important. The game can feel unfair at times, especially when several obstacles appear in quick succession.
Despite these frustrations, Splendor Blast remains an interesting and entertaining arcade curiosity. Its blend of racing, shooting and survival mechanics gives it far more personality than its obscurity might suggest. It is not as polished as the major Sega racing games that would follow, but its ambition is impressive.
For fans of obscure arcade titles, early pseudo-3D experiments and futuristic racers, Splendor Blast is well worth experiencing. It feels like an early glimpse of concepts that would become much more common years later, delivered in a fast, chaotic and unmistakably 1980s style.
Splendor Blast is a futuristic arcade racing/shooting hybrid developed and published by Alpha Denshi in 1985. It mixes pseudo-3D racing, shooting, obstacle avoidance and resource management into a surprisingly ambitious package for its era. Although it is largely forgotten today, it stands out as one of those unusual mid-80s arcade games that experimented with ideas long before futuristic combat racing became a familiar genre.
Rating: 7.5/10
You pilot a small spacecraft from a behind-the-vehicle perspective, racing through twisting courses filled with rival ships, barriers, hazards and alien enemies. The objective is not simply to reach the finish line. You also have to manage your energy, avoid unnecessary collisions and make smart use of weapons and power-ups along the way.
The energy gauge is one of the most important mechanics. It works as both a health meter and a soft time limit, steadily putting pressure on the player while mistakes drain it even faster. Energy pickups can restore some of what you have lost, but a bad sequence of crashes can leave you struggling for the rest of the race. This gives each run a strong survival element that separates Splendor Blast from more conventional racing games.
Shooting becomes increasingly important as the courses progress. Missiles can be used against obstacles, enemies and dangerous sections of the track, while ammunition pickups keep your supply going. The game gradually shifts from straightforward racing into something closer to a hybrid between a racer and a shoot ’em up, with more environmental hazards and combat-heavy sections appearing later.
Rival racers also play a major role. They constantly crowd the track, get in the way of useful items and make clean overtaking difficult. Placement and overall performance matter, so simply surviving is not always enough. Gates and power-ups can temporarily improve your capabilities, adding another tactical layer to the races.
The strongest aspect of Splendor Blast is its sense of speed. The road and scenery rush toward the player, objects rapidly grow as they approach, and the screen often becomes crowded with racers and hazards. For a 1985 arcade game, the pseudo-3D effect is impressive and gives the game a distinctive identity. It may look crude in screenshots, but it works much better in motion.
The visuals have plenty of character as well. Bright tracks, alien landscapes, strange creatures and distinctly 1980s spacecraft create a colorful science-fiction atmosphere. The presentation is rough compared to later arcade racers, but there is a lot of imagination behind it.
The downside is the difficulty. Steering can feel loose at high speed, rivals are aggressive, and some hazards give very little reaction time. Once your energy drops too far, recovery can be difficult, so memorization quickly becomes important. The game can feel unfair at times, especially when several obstacles appear in quick succession.
Despite these frustrations, Splendor Blast remains an interesting and entertaining arcade curiosity. Its blend of racing, shooting and survival mechanics gives it far more personality than its obscurity might suggest. It is not as polished as the major Sega racing games that would follow, but its ambition is impressive.
For fans of obscure arcade titles, early pseudo-3D experiments and futuristic racers, Splendor Blast is well worth experiencing. It feels like an early glimpse of concepts that would become much more common years later, delivered in a fast, chaotic and unmistakably 1980s style.
