Published by California Dreams, Street Rod is a 1989 video game released for DOS, Amiga, and Commodore 64. Set in the swingin' sixties, you're a young man who has to buy and upgrade a car, then compete in races with cash...or your car...on the line. You can either do a drag race down a straight road, or do one on the winding streets...just be sure to watch out for cops, they don't take kindly to speeders around these parts. The goal of the game is to win two races against a champion driver known simply as "The King" before the summer ends. If you defeat him, you win his car and girlfriend. Take too long to beat him, get arrested without enough money to bail you out, or lose all your cars without enough money to get any more, and it's game over, man.
The second installment, Street Rod 2, was released in 1990. It was more like a stand-alone expansion as it added new cars, new parts, and a new race type, but didn't change the basic gameplay.
This series provides examples of:
- The Alleged Car: Some of the cars you can buy aren't exactly in the best of shape. You can still fix them up to be something special, though.
- All There in the Manual: The manual to the first game reveals that The King's girlfriend is named Becky Sue. The second one mentions that you're the younger brother of the first game's protagonist, and that The King's girlfriend is named Sherrie. (Whether or not it's the same King or someone new going by that name is unknown, but it's likely the latter since the two don't resemble each other.)
- Always Night: All the action takes place at night. Justified in that partaking in illegal street races during the day isn't the brightest idea.
- Badass Driver: Everyone, hopefully including you.
- Bathroom Stall Graffiti: The high score list for both games is written on the bathroom wall, surrounded by various graffiti.
- Cool Car: The game is full of them, all actual models from the 1930s to the 1960s. You can buy them from the classified ads, or beat other racers and take theirs.
- Cool Garage: Where you do most of your work, fixing up the cars and sifting through the newspapers.
- Copy Protection: The DOS versions of both games have it. The first game asks you what color the car on a certain page of the manual is, while the second game asks you what letter is on a certain line on a certain page of the manual.
- Do Well, But Not Perfect: The second game's Grudge Night drag races. You start by doing a race by yourself, and they note how fast you completed it, calling it your "breakout time". When it comes time to race your opponents, you not only have to beat them, but you have to do it slower than your breakout time, meaning you have to race a little more conservatively than usual.
- In-Universe Game Clock: Fixing up your car and competing in races takes time...and if you don't beat The King before the summer ends, you lose. The second game takes more advantage of the in-game clock with Grudge Nights, which only occur on Wednesdays.
- Malt Shop: Bob's Drive-In in the first game, Burger's Bungalow in the second. This is where you'll meet and challenge your fellow racers.
- Mission-Pack Sequel: Street Rod 2 plays identically to the first game, using a lot of the same graphics. Even the ending text for beating the game is the same! The sequel does mix it up slightly by introducing Aqueduct races, as well as Grudge Night drag race competitions.
- Product Placement: In addition to the cars all being real-world models, you can also see anachronistic billboards for Vegas Gambler and Blockout, two other late-80s PC games made by California Dreams.
- Riding into the Sunset: Inverted in the second game; defeat The King, and the game ends with the protagonist taking The King's car (and girlfriend) and driving off into the sunrise.
- The '60s: The first game is set between June 15-September 15, 1963. The second is set between June 14-September 14, 1969. You can check out newspapers all throughout, the headlines referencing actual events of their respective years.
- Timed Mission: Both games give you just 12 weeks to beat The King. Spend your time and money wisely!
- Totally Radical: The games make good use of 60s slang, and the manual for the second game is chock full of it.
- You ran a good race. You deserve to be King of the County!
