In the Wangan Midnight manga serial, Akio Asakura's in his Fairlady Z31 with three friends when he spots the legendary "Blackbird" which is a turbo-charged Porsche driven by Tatsua Shima. Akio tries to catch up to the Porsche but Tatsuya speeds up and leaves Akio in the dust. Akio is humiliated but is later comforted by a mechanic who suggests that he visit Kuro's junkyard to salvage parts from a wrecked Z31. Instead of attending school, Akio goes hunting for parts to boost his Fairlady Z31. While spelunking in the junkyard, he spots a first generation Fairlady S30Z that's in fairly good shape. Sure, it's missing the front wheels but the engine's a twin turbo and the innards are fine. Strange coincidences goad Akio to buy the S30Z. From humble beginnings, Akio's legend begins.Wangan Midnight Portable is based on the manga but plies the night racing trade popularized by Genki's own Shutoko Battle franchise. To play a story based racing challenge, there's the Scenario Mode to explore but those out for a simple racing challenge may choose the Versus Mode which allows up to four PSP-equipped racers to compete against each other wirelessly. Perfectionists can check into the Tuning Mode which puts an emphasis on infallible driving skills where your car is kept away from the walls and other vehicles on the road. The racing action takes place entirely during the twilight hours where the only illumination is from overhead lamps. The controls are responsive as expected and the illusion of speed as cars topple the 300 km/h threshold is fairly convincing. «NCS Game Notes»
