★★★☆☆ — a collector review of Daytona USA (Saturn) by @HollowOwl (verified collector) on 2026-07-04
Can the fun factor of the arcade original shine through?
Daytona USA is one of the finest racing games ever created... well the arcade version at least.
Trying to bring this beautiful arcade racer to the living room was obviously a very difficult task, and it doesn't completely succeed.
Compared to the solid 60 FPS of the arcade original, the Saturn claws through this game at a disappointing 20 FPS. This completely changes the sense of speed and the responsiveness of the controls. Draw distance has also been scaled back considerably. Players will see the track appearing almost right in front of the car, but this does not effect gameplay as much as you might think. Seasoned Daytona players will also notice general control changes and collision differences. The cars don't feel quite as solid in this version and can sometimes phase through each other a bit before colliding.
So with such major downgrades to the experience is there **any** fun to be had with the Saturn version? Well if for some reason this is the only way you have to play Daytona, then yes. Even with those disadvantages the game still has some redeeming qualities. The original three racetracks from the arcade are included with slightly updated layouts, music tracks, a new mirror mode, and an extra long 60 lap endurance mode. There are more car options with different performance stats and colors, and some unlockable "vehicles". There's even a karaoke mode that strips out the vocals of the songs and displays the lyrics at the bottom of the screen! These features make the Saturn version stand out against the arcade original.
This specific version of the game does **not** support the 3D control pad, so all steering is handled using the D-Pad. Check out the **Championship Edition** for it's updated analog controls and new racetracks. There is also a quick reset shortcut by pressing the X,Y, and Z buttons at the same time, which I genuinely wish was added to the later arcade ports on Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3.
These days copies of Daytona USA can be found at a very low price. This version of the game is closer to the arcade original than the Championship Edition [CE] and is typically preferred by Daytona purists. Despite the upgrade to 30FPS and increased draw distance, Daytona CE drastically changes the handling of the cars and has a different soundtrack, so keep that in mind when picking one.
That said, hopefully you purchased the arcade version on Xbox or PlayStation before it was delisted.