3-D Ultra Radio Control Racers

Last updated: January 9, 2026

Overview

3-D Ultra Radio Control Racers, developed by Dynamix, Inc. and published by Sierra On-Line in 1999¹, was part of Sierra’s budget-friendly 3-D Ultra series alongside titles like TrainTown and Cool Pool². The game put players in control of radio-controlled toy cars racing across eight unique tracks featuring hidden shortcuts and interfering animated creatures³.

As IGN noted in their contemporary review, this was “arcade style gaming at its very simplest — grab your car, get on the road, and go”⁴. The game featured four different RC vehicle types including Monster Truck, Stadium Truck, Baja Bug, and Buggy, along with six special weapons and various customization options³. Despite its simplicity, the game garnered a dedicated fanbase and even influenced some players to pursue real-world RC car hobbies⁵.

Game Info

Developer: Dynamix, Inc.¹ Designer: Richard Tunnell¹ Publisher: Sierra On-Line, Inc.¹ Platforms: DOS, PC, PC (Microsoft Windows), Steam, Windows⁶ Release Year: 1999 Series: 3-D Ultra Sierra Lineage: Core Sierra

Story Summary

Rather than featuring a traditional narrative, 3-D Ultra Radio Control Racers focused on pure arcade racing action with whimsical track themes. Players competed across diverse environments including a haunted graveyard, backyard complete with doghouse, plain dirt tracks, and mini-golf courses¹. The game’s marketing tagline captured its playful tone: “Objects in mirror are closer than they appear… and they just might eat you!”², while obstacles included “blobs of ectoplasm, angry Rottweilers, and sneaky lawn dwarfs”⁷.

Gameplay

Interface and Controls

The game featured a semi-isometric overhead perspective that presented both 2D and 3D viewing options⁸. Players could control their vehicles using keyboard or various game controllers⁸, though the perspective sometimes made corners difficult to judge during races⁸. The game supported both single-player racing and two-player split-screen multiplayer, though the two-player mode suffered from insufficient zoom-out causing frequent wall collisions³.

Structure and Progression

With only eight tracks available compared to competitors like Re-Volt’s fifty-plus offerings⁹, the game compensated with varied track designs and power-up systems. Players could choose from four distinct vehicle types and customize their appearance with six different paint options³. The tracks featured diverse themes from spooky graveyards to miniature golf courses, each with unique obstacles and hidden shortcuts³.

Puzzles and Mechanics

The racing mechanics emphasized arcade-style action over simulation, featuring six special weapons and power-ups to gain competitive advantages³. The game included two difficulty levels and supported custom paint jobs through 128x128 24-bit BMP files¹⁰. A notable feature was the R/C Battle mode introduced in later versions, which included soccer and battle ball mini-games that some consider an early predecessor to games like Rocket League¹¹.

Reception

Contemporary Reviews

Publication	Score	Notes
IGN	6.2/10	”Standard budget fare”4
GameSpot	7.1/10	”Good” - Deluxe Traxxas Edition8
Critics Aggregate	61%	MobyGames aggregate score1

IGN’s review was particularly critical, noting “The game reeks of simplicity, which is a shame, because with some added depth this could have been a plug-and-play game for all types of gamers”⁴. However, GameSpot’s later review of the Deluxe Traxxas Edition was more positive, stating “While the graphics and sound could have been better, the fast-paced gameplay and circuit options make the game interesting and enjoyable”⁸.

Modern Assessment

User ratings have been more favorable than professional reviews, with My Abandonware users giving it 4.53/5 stars based on 74 votes⁵. Retrospective reviews acknowledge the game’s limitations while appreciating its charm, with one reviewer noting it was “a hard game to review” because “while its graphics and depth aren’t nearly as great as Re-Volt’s, it has some strong points which still make it a fun game”⁹. The Collection Chamber blog observed that “3D Ultra has always valued entertainment value over depth of gameplay, and the lack of variety really shows here”².

Development

Origins

The game was developed by Dynamix, Inc. under the executive production of Jeffrey Tunnell, with Ken Embery as producer and Randy Thompson as project leader¹. The development team was led by David McClurg as lead programmer and featured notable contributions from artists Danny Ngan and Jonathan Faton¹. The overall artistic direction was handled by Jay Dee Alley with assistance from Doug Kelly¹.

Production

As part of Sierra’s 3-D Ultra budget series, the game was designed for broad appeal and accessibility¹². The development utilized a directory structure at c:\rcracing\Dev\ and included extensive debugging features and developer messages in the executable¹⁰. The game featured pre-rendered graphics with a realistic art style and bird’s-eye view perspective¹³.

Technical Achievements

The minimum system requirements included Windows 95 or NT 4.0, Intel Pentium 90 MHz processor, 32 MB RAM, 50 MB storage, and DirectX 6.1 compatible graphics¹³. The game supported various input devices including keyboard, mouse, and other controllers¹. Technical issues included inverted colors problems and joypad bugs that were later addressed in patch version 1.1¹³.

Legacy

Despite its budget origins, 3-D Ultra Radio Control Racers maintained a dedicated following among RC racing game enthusiasts. One user credited the game as “the reason why I got into hobby grade rc cars”⁵, while others expressed desire for modern rereleases, with Steam community requests noting it as “still gold of these 3D Ultra series and an awesome RC game”¹¹. The game’s car-soccer elements have been recognized as an early innovation in the genre that would later influence titles like Rocket League¹¹.

The game received several post-launch updates, including version 1.1 which added custom vehicle skins and fixed multiplayer bugs¹⁰, and version 2.0 (Traxxas Edition) which added six new tracks and expanded R/C Battle modes¹⁰. Hidden content discovered by preservation enthusiasts revealed unused Simpsons character names and debugging features, along with developer messages embedded in the executable¹⁰.

Downloads

Purchase / Digital Stores

• Currently unavailable on major digital platforms (GOG Dreamlist entry exists)⁶

Download / Preservation

• My Abandonware⁵
• Collection Chamber Blog²

References

Footnotes

1. MobyGames - 3-D Ultra Radio Control Racers – - Game details, credits, technical specifications, and ratings data ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷ ↩⁸ ↩⁹ ↩¹⁰

2. Collection Chamber Blog – - Retrospective review and download preservation ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴

3. IGN Game Reviews – - Game description and track details ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶

4. IGN Review Article – - Contemporary professional review with scoring ↩ ↩² ↩³

5. My Abandonware – - User ratings, reviews, and technical compatibility information ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴

6. GOG Dreamlist – - Platform and distribution information ↩ ↩²

7. ModDB Reviews – - Game obstacles and features description ↩

8. GameSpot Review – - Professional review of Deluxe Traxxas Edition ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵

9. Old Games Review – - Comparative review with Re-Volt and track count information ↩ ↩²

10. The Cutting Room Floor – - Version history, hidden content, and technical preservation documentation ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵

11. Steam Community Forums – - Community discussion about car-soccer innovation and Steam release request ↩ ↩² ↩³

12. Sierra Gamers 3D Ultra – - Sierra 3D Ultra series catalog information ↩

13. PC Gaming Wiki – - Technical specifications, system requirements, and compatibility fixes ↩ ↩² ↩³