Blizzard adds a stream-safe mode to a 27-year-old game

Blizzard Arcade Collection BlizzCon 2021
(Image credit: Blizzard)

The version of Rock N' Roll Racing included in Blizzard Arcade Collection now features a streaming mode, making the near-30-year-old game safe to play on Twitch.

Included as part of Blizzard's nostalgic bundle, the developer previously advised players turn off the rock n' roll if they wanted to stream the classic game, whose licensed soundtrack included hits from Deep Purple, Black Sabbath and Steppenwolf. The new streamer mode replaces these tracks with MIDI covers, making the game safe to stream without leaving it dead silent.

The update also adds four-player local multiplayer to Rock N' Roll Racing, and adds two games to the Arcade Collection: Lost Vikings 2, and Rock N' Roll Racing precursor RPM Racing, the first game ever released by Blizzard (then known as Silicon & Synapse). These additions all arrive as a free update, which also comes with a new design document gallery covering each game's development

Blizzard itself ran afoul of overzealous music copyright practices itself during the BlizzCon stream announcing the Arcade Collection. Having gone to the trouble of getting Metallica to play on-stream, Twitch Gaming ended up replacing the band's heavy metal riffs with cutesy chiptunes

Natalie Clayton
Features Producer

20 years ago, Nat played Jet Set Radio Future for the first time, and she's not stopped thinking about games since. Joining PC Gamer in 2020, she comes from three years of freelance reporting at Rock Paper Shotgun, Waypoint, VG247 and more. Embedded in the European indie scene and a part-time game developer herself, Nat is always looking for a new curiosity to scream about—whether it's the next best indie darling, or simply someone modding a Scotmid into Black Mesa. She also unofficially appears in Apex Legends under the pseudonym Horizon.