The Games: Summer Challenge Overview
Summer Challenge is a sports simulation for DOS, functioning as a follow-up to Winter Challenge. It presents eight distinct athletic disciplines set in a polygonal environment with bitmap character sprites. Players can engage in training sessions or enter a tournament, supporting up to ten participants with a choice of sixteen nations and three AI difficulty settings. The ability to save and review performances is included.
The events require a variety of control schemes, ranging from timing-based actions to trajectory management. In track and field, the 400m hurdles demands coordinated button presses for running and jumping, where a mistimed leap can cause a stumble or a fall. The javelin throw involves building momentum before initiating a launch sequence where the release angle determines the distance. Both the high jump and pole vault share a similar structure, beginning with a power-building phase followed by a precisely timed action button hold to clear a set bar height.
Other events focus on navigation and precision. The kayak race tasks the player with maneuvering down a stream through gates without contact, using combined button presses for sharper turns, with penalties affecting the final time. Equestrian show jumping is noted as a particularly technical event where steering and timed jumps are critical; a refusal to jump ends the attempt immediately, while knocking an obstacle incurs a time penalty. Archery utilizes a moving, erratic crosshair that the player must align before firing, and the cycling sprint emphasizes maintaining speed and a tight line on the velodrome track.
