Driller Engine Grand Prix 7

Driller Engine Grand Prix 7 (ドリラーエンジングランドプリー７) is a 2011 go-kart racing game developed by Drillimation Studios and published by Bandai Namco Games for arcades and home consoles. The game was released in the arcades in June 2011, followed by a released on home consoles and computers in Japan on December 1, 2011, followed by a North American release on December 4, 2011, then a PAL release a day later. It is the seventh installment in the series and boasts a ton of new features including aerial and underwater racing.

Gameplay
The gameplay is pretty much the same as previous installments. After a coin is inserted and the player selects a character and cup, players drive around Drillimation-themed courses with the main objective of trying to take first place. Players obtain weapons from item boxes that they can use to help themselves or hinder opponents. Like before, every race is timed and if the player does not complete a lap within the time limit, the race is lost. Players who complete a lap get a time extension to give them more time to complete the next lap. Players must get 6th place or better to move onto the next course, and the player must get 3rd place or better to win a medal.

New Features
This is the first Driller Engine Grand Prix game to have aerial and underwater racing; some courses require the player to use a built-in glider to soar across large pitfalls, and some courses require the player to go underwater to follow the course with no fear of falling in. Some courses such as the remake of Shira Crusier can now let players go inside the pool rather than be an obstacle.

Rather than having the player select pre-made karts, players can now customize their karts such as the design, tires, and glider. This is also the first to allow players to drive in first-person view, and this can be done by pushing the respective VR button.

Plot
Set three seasons after the events of Driller Engine Grand Prix 6, Fred Fuchs declares an all-out Driller Engine Grand Prix in an attempt to conquer the world again. The hero character must stop Fuchs from doing this by racing against him and winning.

Characters
Driller Engine Grand Prix 7 has a total of 54 characters, with only 48 appearing in-game. Each version has two console-exclusive characters. However, it is possible for them to appear in the arcade version, depending on the settings. Characters that are console exclusive can only be enabled through legitimate mods. The game starts out with twelve unlocked, and more are unlocked as players progress through arcade mode.

Note(s)

 * 1) If the player chooses to play as Akari's adult form, she is a heavyweight driver.
 * 2) If the player chooses to play as Haruki's adult form, his handling is increased.
 * 3) This character is exclusive to the Nintendo Wii and 3DS versions.
 * 4) This character is exclusive to the Xbox 360 version.
 * 5) This character is exclusive to the PlayStation 3, PSP, and PlayStation Vita versions.
 * 6) This character is exclusive to the PC version.