Tokyo Xtreme Racer’s convoluted history explained

Between the late 1980s and early 2000s, Japan’s Shuto Expressway was infamous for its underground racing scene, with the notorious Midnight Club hosting illegal races on the Bayshore Route (known natively as the Wangan) between Tokyo and Yokohama.

This inspired Wangan Midnight, a popular racing manga series from 1992 to 2008, which was written and illustrated by Michiharu Kusunoki. Japan’s underground racing scene would also inspire Tokyo Xtreme Racer, a video game series focusing on highway racing, Japanese car culture and customisation.

It’s a simple premise, so you may be surprised by the overwhelming number of Tokyo Xtreme Racer games released over the last 30+ years, with the series gaining a loyal following.

With the cult classic highway racing series returning after a nearly 20-year break, you might not be familiar with Tokyo Xtreme Racer’s incredibly convoluted history, or Shutokō Battle as it’s known in Japan. Adding to the confusion, some titles have alternative Western titles, like Tokyo Highway Challenge, Import Tuner Challenge and Street Supremacy.

If that wasn’t already bewildering, the first Tokyo Xtreme Racer game is technically the eleventh entry in the long-running series. Still with us?

Genki’s genesis

Before it became best known for Tokyo Xtreme Racer, Japanese developer Genki, founded in 1990, dabbled with different genres, first publishing the 1991 action game Devilish for the Game Gear in Japan before developing the Kileak first-person shooter series for the PlayStation in the mid-’90s.

Even in its early years, Genki had a penchant for racing, initially focusing on licensed motorsport titles. Its first foray into racing came in 1992 with the eponymous Aguri Suzuki F-1 Super Driving (known as Redline F-1 Racer in North America), a Formula 1 simulator for the Super Nintendo and GameBoy.

Based on the 1992 season, it featured Mode 7 graphics and appearances from Japanese driver Aguri Suzuki, who raced in Formula 1 between 1988 and 1995. Customisation was surprisingly in-depth, with the ability to adjust wings, brakes and suspension, hinting at the developer’s future aspirations for Tokyo Xtreme Racer.  

Switching from four wheels to two, Genki also helmed a couple of MotoGP titles: GP-1 (1993) and GP-1: Part II (1994), though the latter wasn’t released in Europe.

The early Shutokō Battle games

Genki soon found its niche with the release of Shutokō Battle ’94: Keiichi Tsuchiya Drift King, paving the way for what would become Tokyo Xtreme Racer.

A Japanese exclusive, the first entry sped onto the Super Famicom (Japan’s version of the Super Nintendo) in May 1994. As the title suggests, it was named after real-life professional racer and drifting legend Keiichi Tsuchiya. Better known as the ‘Drift King,’ Tsuchiya is often credited for popularising the art of sideways driving and appears as an opponent in the final head-to-head race. 

Like the original SNES classic Top Gear (also known as Top Racer in Japan), Shutokō Battle ’94 is played in split-screen even in single-player, with players racing modified Japanese cars across Japanese highways, circuits and mountain roads. With a focus on drifting and manual shifting, the driving experience was unforgiving.

The game’s modest car selection included four unlicensed replicas of legendary cars like the Nissan Skyline GT-R R32 and Toyota Supra MKIV. A scenario mode saw you start with a stock car before upgrading it with new parts purchased using money won in races.

The first entry was popular enough in Japan to spawn two Super Famicom sequels: Shutokō Battle 2: Drift King Keiichi Tsuchiya & Masaaki Bandoh (1995) and Tōge Densetsu: Saisoku Battle (1996).

While the first three entries were never released outside of Japan, the series would make its Western debut with Tokyo Highway Battle on the PlayStation, released in 1996 and 1997 in North America and Europe, respectively. It was later ported to the Sega Saturn in Japan, where it was known as Shutokō Battle ’97: Drift King Keichii Tsuchiya & Masaaki Bandoh.

Featuring 72 fictional cars, Tokyo Highway Battle saw players race and weave through traffic across three circuits based on the Tokyo Expressway, with a dedicated drift button making the game more accessible for newcomers. Car customisation was more comprehensive than any other PlayStation racer – until Gran Turismo arrived one year later in Japan.  

Tokyo Highway Battle allowed players to buy and manually install upgrades such as turbochargers, exhausts and suspensions among others, with every modification affecting your car’s performance or handling – a remarkable feat for an early PlayStation racer. You could even modify the ECU to remove the top speed limit.    

Although the 3D texture-mapped graphics were impressive for the time, the title doesn’t leave a great first impression. In the early stages, the cars are painfully slow and horrible to drive until you install upgrades. This is surprising considering that Tsuchiya and Masaaki Bando, who went on to found Japan’s Super GT series, helped finetune the driving physics. Tokyo Highway Battle is worth revisiting alone, however, for the quintessentially 1990s FMV intro featuring a Nissan Silvia being thrashed around Tsukuba Circuit.

Four more Japanese-only sequels launched in the 32-bit era: Shutokō Battle Gaiden: Super Technic Challenge – Road To Drift King (1996), Shutokō Battle ’97: Drift King Keichii Tsuchiya & Masaaki Bandoh – New Limited Ver.97 (1997), Shutoku Battle R (1997) and the Kattobi Tune spin-off (1998).  

The mainline Tokyo Xtreme Racer games

Tokyo Xtreme Racer (1999)

It wasn’t until 1999 that the Tokyo Xtreme Racer name was introduced to the West, with the first entry simply called Shutokō Battle in Japan and Tokyo Highway Racer in Europe. A launch title for the ill-fated Dreamcast, it introduced the signature SP Battle system that would define the series.  

A Quest mode saw you cruise Tokyo’s sprawling Shuto Expressway at night, challenging rivals to impromptu duels by flashing your headlights. Each team and driver have memorable names and backstories, from ‘Lonely Jackal’ to ‘Death Panther’ and ‘Alluring Fairy’, with many rivals returning in future instalments.

What also makes SP Battles unique is how they blend racing and fighting games. Highway battles are always head-to-head, and there are no finish lines. Rather than finish in first place, the aim is to defeat your opponent.

Both rivals have a ‘Spirit Point’ bar – think of it like a health meter in a fighting game. If your rival falls behind or crashes, their SP bar drains. Races are won if you stay ahead and your rival runs out of SP points, rewarding you with cash for new cars or upgrades. With 141 rivals to race, it’s a simple yet captivating gameplay loop.

With its dimly-lit highways and thumping drum and bass soundtrack, Tokyo Xtreme Racer superbly captured the urban street racing vibe, predating the influential Need for Speed Underground games and The Fast and the Furious. Its floaty car handling leaves a lot to be desired, but the first true Tokyo Xtreme Racer game set the blueprint for the series going forward as it started gaining traction.

Tokyo Xtreme Racer 2 (2000)

The turn of the millennium saw Genki release a sequel for the Dreamcast, known as Shutokō Battle 2 in Japan, Tokyo Xtreme Racer 2 in the US and Tokyo Highway Racer 2 in Europe, where it was released in January 2001. While the gameplay wasn’t dramatically different, the visuals were a huge step up, with highly detailed car models for the time. Before Gran Turismo 3 would raise the bar, it was one of the best-looking racing games on console.

Whereas the first game restricted you to the C1 Loop and Yaesu, the expanded sequel added the Shinkanjo, Wangan Line and Yokohane Line routes, resulting in over 100 miles of road to tear up. There was also a new sense of freedom. Instead of driving in loops, you could change routes by using interchanges and off-ramps to find new locations.

Elsewhere, the number of rivals more than doubled, with over 370 opponents to challenge. These included the introduction of ‘Wanderers,’ who would only appear if you meet strict requirements like driving a specific car or during a particular time of day.

With 65 cars to drive, Tokyo Xtreme Racer 2’s car count also doubled, but car manufacturers were seemingly still reluctant to license their cars for a game about illegal street racing. Since it’s a late Dreamcast game, the PAL version isn’t cheap: be prepared to pay around £80 in CEX for a used copy of Tokyo Highway Racer 2.

Tokyo Xtreme Racer Zero (2001)

With the Dreamcast discontinued following disappointing sales and Sega pulling out of the console market, 2001 marked the first PlayStation 2 entry, called Tokyo Xtreme Racer Zero in the US, Shutokō Battle 0 in Japan and simply Tokyo Xtreme Racer in Europe, where it was published by Ubisoft.

Notably, this was the first time the Tokyo Xtreme Racer name was used outside of Japan and the US.

Zero was effectively an enhanced port of Tokyo Xtreme Racer 2, with improved graphics, refined handling and an enhanced sense of speed, infusing a sense of danger as you hurtled down the highway while narrowly missing traffic. The number of cars also increased to 165, though many were custom variants of existing models.

For most people outside of Japan, however, this entry seems to be the game that acted as an introduction to the series, helping its global popularity.

Tokyo Xtreme Racer 3 (2003)

Known as Shutokō Battle 01 in Japan, Tokyo Xtreme Racer 3, released in 2003 for the PS2, is often revered as a fan favourite, particularly in America. Unlike Tokyo Xtreme Racer Zero, however, it never had a European release.

Notably, this was the first game in the series with licensed cars, with the roster featuring over 100 vehicles from 18 manufacturers, including Mazda, Mitsubishi, Nissan and Toyota. In another series first, Western manufacturers were represented, with cars such as America’s Ford GT (which was still a concept previewing the 2004 production model), the UK’s sleek Lotus Esprit and Germany’s Mercedes-Benz 500 E performance saloon joining the Japanese manufacturers.

Porsche, however, was noticeably absent, with EA holding exclusivity rights for the Stuttgart manufacturer. To get around this, Genki added the Gemballa GTR 750, a modified version of the 996-generation Porsche 911 by German car tuner Gemballa tuned to produce over 850 horsepower. Honda was also missing, despite its predecessor featuring Civic Type R, NSX and S2000 replicas.  

Alongside Western cars, Tokyo Xtreme Racer 3 introduced weather effects, with rain showers making the surface slippery to drive on. Car management also added an extra layer of depth and challenge. As you race, you must monitor your water and oil temperature, which affects your car’s performance if it gets too high and could be cooled down by either returning to your garage or stopping in a pit area. Coupled with tyre wear and oversteer-handling handling, the cars were more lively to control.           

The visuals were another leap forward, with higher-quality car models, lighting and reflection effects, while customisation expanded with engine swaps. These had to be earned, however, unlocking after you’ve clocked up over 2,000 kilometres (1,242 miles) in the car you want to modify.  

Compared to its predecessors, Tokyo Xtreme Racer 3 was enormous in scope. While previous games let you cruise around Tokyo’s highways, Genki faithfully recreated the highways of Osaka and Nagoya for the third entry.

Tokyo, meanwhile, was expanded to incorporate the Yokohama route, bringing the total road length to a whopping 200 miles combined with over 600 rivals. This came at a cost, though, with sparse traffic making the highways feel empty. In this alternative universe, every road user in Tokyo drives a yellow Toyota Hiace minivan.

There’s even a light story with the most mid-2000s cut scenes you’ve ever seen, giving context to the lore and rival street racing gangs. Tokyo Xtreme Racer 3 is not only the most feature-packed game in the series to date, but it’s also the best-selling entry to date. 

Tokyo Xtreme Racer Advance (2005)

Conversely, the following main entry was downsized. With handheld gaming on the rise in the early 2000s, the series made its way onto Nintendo’s GameBoy Advance with Tokyo Xtreme Racer Advance, released in 2005 and 2006 in the US and Europe, respectively.

It was not only the first game in the series not developed by Genki, with David A. Palmer Productions helming the GBA entry but the first to feature locations outside of Japan, with courses set in LA and London alongside Tokyo. This may explain why it bizarrely never saw a release in Japan.

Aside from the terrible draw distance, the 3D graphics were impressive for a GameBoy Advance game, ranking alongside other technical marvels like the ports of V-Rally 3 and Stuntman.

Street Supremacy (2005)

Nintendo dominated the handheld gaming scene in the mid-2000s with the GameBoy Advance and Nintendo DS selling in huge numbers. But that didn’t stop Sony from trying to compete with its first handheld console, the PlayStation Portable. With it came a new platform-exclusive Tokyo Xtreme Racer in the form of Street Supremacy, known as Shutokō Battle in Japan.

While the Japanese name may imply it’s simply a port of Tokyo Xtreme Racer 3, this is not the case. It’s one of the most unique entries in the franchise – and not just because of its PSP exclusivity.

To adapt the series for PSP, Street Supremacy was smaller in scope, abandoning the free-roaming highways in favour of a new team battle mode where you take control of specific areas ruled by street racing gangs.

In a departure for the series, you join a team and rise the ranks by battling other members and the team boss. Defeating them sees you take over as team boss, allowing you to recruit rival street racers onto your team by winning races and lowering their loyalty. It’s a unique system that sets Street Racer apart from other entries and has yet to return.

Reviews for the PSP entry were harsh, criticising the game’s clunky handling, long loading times and broken multiplayer. IGN scored it a 2.5/10, with the reviewer calling it “one of the worst racing games I’ve ever laid my hands on” and so devoid of fun it “should be illegal.” Ouch.

Import Tuner Challenge

After the PSP spin-off, Tokyo Xtreme Racer returned to home consoles with Shutokou Battle X for the Xbox 360, otherwise known as Import Tuner Challenge, outside of Japan. While the jump to the HD generation brought expected visual upgrades, other aspects were downgraded.

Chiefly, the car roster was downsized to a paltry 18 drivable cars excluding unlockable boss vehicles, though this is likely because they were rebuilt for the Xbox 360 with higher-quality textures. They also featured fully modelled interiors, showcased in a new cockpit camera. Western import cars were removed, putting Japanese manufacturers back at the forefront, as were the weather effects.

Although new rivals were added, several mainstay characters were removed, with Wanderers no longer having specific requirements.

Likewise, the locations were also scaled back. Unlike the last mainline game, Import Tuner Challenge is only set in Tokyo and omits the Nagoya, Osaka and Yokohama routes, with Wangan route shortened to only incorporate the Shinkanjo section. In their place were two new routes: Shibuya and Shinjuku.

There were a few improvements, however. Customisation was even more comprehensive, with new licensed body kits and nitrous returning from Street Supremacy. When installing upgrades, you can see the components visually change under the bonnet in the tuning menu – a neat touch you often don’t see in modern racing games. Interiors were also fully customisable, allowing you to change the trim colour, seats and steering wheel, and the Western game boasted a visceral sense of speed thanks to blurring and camera shake effects.         

While the core SP Battles returned, a more traditional time attack mode, where you must reach the goal before your rival, added some much-needed variety. Parking areas were also repurposed as a meeting point where you could talk to rivals, challenge them to races and learn their backstories, enriching the series’ lore. Moreover, vehicle handling was grippier, making the cars feel more natural.

Import Tuner Challenge received lukewarm reviews, ending the mainline series on a whimper rather than a bang. With Genki’s Racing Project division shut down, it looked like Tokyo Xtreme Racer had reached the end of the road after a long run. But Genki’s journey doesn’t end here.    

Fast forward 19 years later, and Tokyo Xtreme Racer made a surprise return, with the Steam Early Access game launching in February 2025…

But before we delve into this, we must touch upon related spin-offs.

The spin-offs

Accompanying the main games were multiple spin-offs, which took the series in new directions. The first was Wangan Dead Heat, released in 1995 for the Sega Saturn in Japan and known as Highway 2000 in the West.

Set on the Shuto Expressway’s Wangan route, you not only had to win races but impress one of ten female “co-drivers,” played by women models, who appear in sexually objectifying live-action cut scenes that haven’t aged well. Western actresses replaced the Japanese women in the European version, but the female models were cut altogether in the North American release.

An enhanced version, Wangan Dead Heat + Real Arrange, was released in Japan the same year, featuring improved handling and a second disc containing video clips of women models. Two more Japan-only Wangan sequels followed in 1998: Wangan Trial for the PlayStation and the truly bizarre racing and dating hybrid Wangan Trial Love for Sega Saturn, though Genki was not involved in these projects.

1997 saw the release of Kattobi Tune, a circuit racing spin-off released exclusively in Japan for the Super Famicom. Developed in collaboration with Japanese tuning magazine Rev Speed, it featured an array of licensed tuners, including Spoon, Mine’s and Jun Auto.

In 2003, Tokyo Xtreme Racer’s success led to the formation of Genki Racing Project, a division dedicated to the series. GRP’s first title would be the 2003 online MMO racer Shutokou Battle Online. Released only in Japan for PC, the project was short-lived, with the servers shutting down only two years later. A fan project attempted to revive it on a private server, but progress seems to have stalled over the last few years.   

Mere months later, GRP released Kaidō Battle: Nikko, Haruna, Rokko, Hakone in Japan for the PS2, renamed Tokyo Xtreme Racer: Drift in the US, where it was delayed until 2006 and published by Crave Entertainment.

Whereas the main Tokyo Drift Racer games focused on highway racing, Kaido Battle was inspired by togue battles, a form of drift racing originating in Japan where competitors drive on twisty mountain roads. Togue races typically involve two cars with a set gap between them. The front car wins if the gap widens, but the back car wins if it closes the gap.

Five game modes introduced players to the world of precision sideways driving, including a career mode featuring official daytime events alongside underground night races, with five mountain courses replacing Tokyo Xtreme Racer’s highways and around 200 rivals to defeat.

The Japanese version introduced licensed cars to the series several months before Tokyo Xtreme Racer 3, with European manufacturers such as Audi, Alfa Romeo and Volkswagen appearing alongside Japanese and US manufacturers, with over 150 cars to unlock. A handful of Hondas also featured in the roster.

Here’s where things get confusing. The first Kaido Battle was released in the US as Tokyo Xtreme Racer Drift but never saw a European release. Its two sequels changed this, with PAL versions published by Konami. Kaidō Battle 2: Chain Reaction launched in Japan in 2004, with the European version, renamed Kaido Racer, released in 2005. Conversely, the sequel wasn’t released in the US. In a record for the series, the car count increased to nearly 300, but changes to the handling were not well received.

A third togue racing spin-off arrived in 2005, 2006 and 2007, depending on the territory. This time, the US wasn’t excluded. Although technically the third entry, the US version was branded Tokyo Xtreme Racer: Drift 2 since the previous game didn’t get an American release. Outside of the US, it was known as Kaido Battle: Touge no Densetsu (translation: Kaido: Legend of the Mountain Pass) and Kaido Racer 2 in Japan and Europe, respectively.

The third game featured 218 licensed cars from Japan and Europe (US manufacturers were removed), along with laser-traced togue courses based on real roads and input from professional drifters Manabu Orido and Nobuteru Taniguchi to make the driving physics more realistic. Good luck to collectors trying to find the PAL games unless you’re willing to pay over £100.

2005 saw another departure for the series. Dubbed a “car tuning RPG,” Racing Battle: C1 Grand Prix was Genki’s attempt at a semi-realistic circuit racing instead of illegal street racing. Effectively Genki’s answer to Gran Turismo, the spin-off let you race on real-world tracks like Tsukuba, Suzuka, Nikko and TI (now known as Okayama International Circuit). Traditional SP Battles also returned, with the C1 Expressway repurposed as a race course with no traffic. Naturally, there was also a detailed tuning system featuring aftermarket parts from Japanese tuners, including Amemiya, HKS and Jun.

Among the 117 vehicles were competition-spec cars like the HKS Genki Toyota Altezza drift car built and driven by Nobuteru “Nob” Taniguchi in the 2005 D1 season among others. These were accompanied by domestic Japanese kei and sports cars, as well as outlandish rides ranging from a Nissan Cube Limousine to an Eunos Roadster (Japan’s version of the Mazda MX-5) drag car.         

20 years on, Racing Battle: C1 Grand Prix is an interesting anomaly in the long-running series. It’s a shame that few people could play it, though, because it was never available outside of Japan. Happily, however, you don’t need to learn Japanese to navigate the complicated menus anymore, as a modder released a handy English language patch last year, allowing more players to discover this hidden racing gem.  

Beyond the Tokyo Xtreme Racer games, Genki also developed three titles directly based on the Wangan Midnight anime: Wangan Midnight for arcade / PS2 in 2002 plus an HD game of the same name for PS3 and Wangan Midnight Portable for PSP in 2007. While not directly linked to Tokyo Xtreme Racer, these games follow a familiar formula, combining SP Battle-style highway races with story modes and characters from the manga series – plus exaggerated on-screen ‘speed’ lines.

Then there’s the myriad of mobile spin-offs. Genki released 14 Japanese-only mobile games between 2001 and 2017, starting with Shutokō Battle H and culminating with Shutokō Battle Xtreme for Android and iOS.

Tokyo Xtreme Racer (2025)

That’s a lot to take in but this lineage has led us up to 2025’s new Tokyo Xtreme Racer reboot.

While the graphics are shinier with an upgraded engine under the bonnet, the reboot is a return to form, reprising SP Battles, customisation and a roster of Japanese cars.

With no online connection requirements, microtransactions or live-service trappings, Tokyo Xtreme Racer is refreshingly straightforward. You buy a car on a modest budget, hit the highway and look for rivals to race, upgrading your car or buying new ones with money won in races. It harks back to a simpler era of racing games.    

With glowing reviews and player numbers peaking at over 15,000 on launch week, Tokyo Xtreme Racer shows there’s still a demand for single-player-focused arcade driving games, despite the rise of realistic sim racers.

Do you have fond memories of the Tokyo Xtreme Racer series? Let us know in the comments below.

Tokyo Xtreme Racer release timeline 

1994

• Shutokō Battle ’94 Keiichi Tsuchiya Drift King (Super Famicom, Japan only)

1995

• Shutokō Battle 2: Drift King Keiichi Tsuchiya & Masaaki Bandoh (Super Famicom, Japan only)
• Wangan Dead Heat / Highway 2000 (Sega Saturn)

1996

• Wangan Dead Heat + Real Arrange (Sega Saturn, Japan only)
• Tōge Densetsu: Saisoku Battle (Super Famicom, Japan only)
• Shutokō Battle: Drift King – Keichii Tsuchiya & Masaaki Bandoh / Tokyo Highway Battle (PS1)
• Shutokō Battle Gaiden: Super Technic Challenge – Road To Drift King (PS1, Japan only)

1997

• Shutokō Battle ’97: Drift King Keichii Tsuchiya & Masaaki Bandoh – New Limited Ver.97 (Sega Saturn, Japan only)
• Shutoku Battle R (PS1, Japan only)
• Kattobi Tune (PS1, Japan only)

1999

• Shutokō Battle / Tokyo Xtreme Racer / Tokyo Highway Challenge (Dreamcast)

2000

• Shutokō Battle 2 / Tokyo Xtreme Racer 2 / Tokyo Highway Challenge 2 (Dreamcast)

2001

• Shutokō Battle 0 / Tokyo Xtreme Racer: Zero / Tokyo Xtreme Racer (Dreamcast)
• Shutokō Battle H (Mobile, Japan only)

2002

• Shutokō Battle I (J) (Mobile, Japan only)
• Shutokō Battle EZ (Mobile, Japan only)
• Shutokō Battle (Mobile, Japan only)

2003

• Shutokō Battle Online (PC, Japan only)
• Kaidō Battle: Nikko, Haruna, Rokko, Hakone / Tokyo Xtreme Racer: Drift (PS2, Japan and US only)
• Shutokō Battle 01 / Tokyo Xtreme Racer 3 (PS2, Japan and US only)

2004

• Kaido Racer / Kaidō Battle 2: Chain Reaction (PS2, Japan and Europe only)  

2005

• Tokyo Xtreme Racer Advance (GameBoy Advance, US and Europe only)
• Shutokō Battle / Street Supremacy (PSP)
• Racing Battle: C1 Grand Prix (PS2, Japan only)
• Kaidō Battle: Tōge no Densetsu / Tokyo Xtreme Racer: Drift 2Kaido Racer 2 (PS2)
• Kaidō Battle Cross Action First Stage (Mobile, Japan only)    
• Shutokō Battle Evolution (Mobile, Japan only)
• Shutokō Battle Evolution Plus (2) (Mobile, Japan only) 

2006

• Shutokō Battle X / Import Tuner Challenge (Xbox 360)
• Shutokō Battle Evolution (Mobile, Japan only)
• Kaidō Battle Cross Action Second Stage (Mobile, Japan only)

2007

• Shutokō Battle Car Sensor Version (Mobile, Japan only)        

2008

• Shutokō Battle Neo (Mobile, Japan only)

2011

• Shutokō Battle (Mobile, Japan only)
• Shutokō Battle A (Mobile, Japan only)

2017

• Shutokō Battle Xtreme (Mobile, Japan only)

2025

• Shutokō Battle / Tokyo Xtreme Racer (PC)