Slalom (video game)

1986 NES game

Slalom, originally released as VS. Slalom, is a skiing sports video game developed by Rare and published by Nintendo in 1986 for the Nintendo VS. System in arcades. It was then released for the Nintendo Entertainment System in North America in March 1987 and in Europe later that year. The player races in a series of downhill slalom skiing runs while navigating past flags and obstacles before time expires. It was developed by Tim and Chris Stamper and its music was composed by David Wise. Slalom is the first NES game developed outside Japan and the Stamper brothers' first game released under the Rare brand. Reviews from the 1980s found Slalom unrealistic, but largely appreciated its graphics and animations, and the original arcade version received praise for its innovative ski controls. In contrast, AllGames retrospective review called the game poorly made and rushed. Slalom was released in Rare's 2015 Rare Replay compilation for Xbox One.

Slalom is a single player game in which players race downhill in a series of slalom skiing races. There are 24 downhill runs total that are evenly spread across three mountains. Before the game starts, players choose their mountain based on difficulty: Snowy Hill for beginners, Steep Peak for intermediate players, and Mount Nasty for experts. The goal for each run is to reach the finish line within the allotted time. Players must dodge obstacles including trees, flags, snowmen, sledders, and other skiers on their way downhill, or else they will tumble and lose time. Rare had been looking to develop games for consoles in the wake of rampant computer game piracy in the United Kingdom. They chose the NES for its nascent popularity, The NES version was released by Nintendo in North America in March 1987 and in Europe on October 15, 1987. Slalom was Rare's first video game developed as a new company. It is the Stamper brothers' first video game console release. He had to first code the HEX values for each note by hand before converting them into subroutines with a computer. Wise recalled thinking that his first NES projects sounded like doorbells. He was humbled that others continue to remix his tracks.

Upon its original release in arcades, VS. Slalom was reviewed by Clare Edgeley in British magazine Computer and Video Games. She praised the innovative ski controls, but said it lacked "staying power" and considered it an "above average" game without the ski controls. The NES version of Slalom received preview coverage in early 1987 in the first issue of Nintendo Fun Club News – the predecessor to the company's official monthly magazine Nintendo Power – citing the arcade conversion to the NES. It was featured in the following Summer 1987 issue with a brief overview and expert tips. French magazine Tilt appreciated the game's graphics and sound, but thought its animation did not fare as well. Power Play