I love cars, and thankfully there are quite a few outlets that let me enjoy my passion. One of my favorites, for instance, is RC. I also enjoy playing racing video games such as Gran Turismo, Forza Motorsport and F1 2010. I even love a good game of Call of Duty. Wait, Call of Duty? How is that related? Normally I’d say it wasn’t, but the new Call of Duty: Black Ops game has just been released and one version, the Prestige Edition, includes a fully-functional RC car. The RC-XD, as it’s called in the game, is a remote-controlled, C4-carrying surveillance vehicle that features a camera that transmits TFT color video and audio. What a cool toy! And yes, I had to have one. I stopped by my local Gamestop and spoke with Andrew Minter, the manager. We struck up a conversation and as it worked out, he was interested in doing something a little different with his midnight release of the game. I arrived at the store and at 12:01am handed out magazines to all those that purchased the Prestige Edition of Call of Duty: Black Ops. We had a great time and I had a chance to meet a lot of RC people I didn’t even know were in my area.
So, this RC-XD thing… was the game worth the $150 to get a little toy RC car? Uh, ya, this thing is cool! The transmitter features a small color video screen recessed in the top of it. Additional features on the radio include a volume control button, high/low speed switch and steering trim dial. The RC-XD car has a small video camera mounted in the front bumper and a microphone installed on top. Four-wheel independent suspension and soft tires help the RC-XD climb smaller obstacles with ease. Looking ‘under-the-hood’, I noticed a standard, 360-sized brushed motor, micro servo, the camera unit and a couple of electronic boards. I think the RC-XD is screaming for an RC Driver upgrade, but that’s another article.
Since I don’t have a combat zone close to where I live, I decided to drive the RC-XD in the backyard. I set up some obstacles, turned on the RC-XD and went back in the house. Control is pretty good and, thanks to the color video, I could easily navigate my makeshift battlefield. It was actually quite fun; the only thing that would make it better would be real C4 and a detonator switch!
This game is going to be huge, and I’m sure there will a ton of home videos on YouTube taken with the RC-XD. I know I and several of my RC buddies (Beer, DunpealHunterC, CALSON1C, JasonC RCTech and baldylox) have purchased the new game and will be instant experts when it comes to navigating the RC-XD around the maps. I’d like to thank Andrew and his crew at the Gamestop in the Long Beach Towne Center for letting RC Driver be a part of their midnight release. Tango sucka!
LINKS
Gamestop, www.gamestop.com, Long Beach, California (562) 627-0733
