Skitchin'

Forgotten Games · 1994

Published 19 August 2026

Skitchin' was Electronic Arts’ 1994 combat racer for the Sega Genesis/Mega Drive, except the racing happened on inline skates. Players weaved through city traffic, fought rival skaters and grabbed onto passing cars, vans and trucks to build speed. In the UK, the console was sold as the Mega Drive; Genesis was its North American name.

Why It Mattered

Skitchin' took one of the more reckless bits of 1990s street culture — hitching a ride behind moving traffic — and built an entire racing game around it.

The result was an unusually chaotic mix of skating, traffic, combat and split-second vehicle grabs that feels inseparable from the era that produced it.

Play and Premise

- Race through traffic on inline skates against other racers.
- Skitching means holding onto a moving vehicle while travelling on skates, a skateboard or a bicycle.
- Races, rival encounters and earnings form the core game structure.

1994 Press and Screen Record

- Mean Machines Sega listed Skitchin' among its featured games in its April 1994 issue.
- An archived Digitiser review index records a 7 April 1994 Mega Drive review with an 88% score.
- The National Film and Sound Archive of Australia catalogues a 1994 The Zone review clip.

Associated With

Electronic Arts - developer or publisher

Defining Feature

Traffic racing on inline skates, with skate-hitching behind moving vehicles

Status

Discontinued - Released 1994 / No sequel

Preserved Credits

- Dave Ralston is credited with original concept and Dave Warfield with design.
- Stan Chow is credited as producer.
- Jeff van Dyck is credited for tunes and sound effects.

Primary Records

- **The Strong National Museum of Play — Video game:Sega Genesis Skitchin'**
- **Mean Machines Sega — April 1994**
- **The Zone: Skitchin' Review**

Image Sources

- **Image 1**
- **Image 2**
- **Image 3**
- **Image 4**
- **Image 5**

Rights Notice

Images are included for historical and archival reference.

Rights holders may contact Forgotten Archive through the publishing account to request a credit correction or removal.

Gallery

Source

Credit

SimFiction

Licence

Historical Ephemera

Displayed for commentary and research. Fair dealing under the UK CDPA 1988 applies only where its conditions are met. No permission for reuse is granted.

Caption

Skitchin’s title screen announces its inline-skating theme through the same brash visual style used to sell the game.

Pixel-art gameplay screen showing a rollerblader holding onto the back of a moving car on a road toward a city skyline, with a status panel displaying weapons, rank, time and a Seattle distance readout. — Source
Credit
Retronauts
Licence
Historical Ephemera
Displayed for commentary and research. Fair dealing under the UK CDPA 1988 applies only where its conditions are met. No permission for reuse is granted.
Caption
The Seattle stage shows Skitchin’s central mechanic: holding onto a vehicle to gain speed while racing through traffic.

Pixel-art gameplay screen showing a smiling man in a cap and sunglasses giving a thumbs-up beside the open rear of a purple vehicle; on-screen text includes "PARKING," "BEGINNER WHEELS," "$25," and "LMH HAS $100." — Source
Credit
Skitchin' game artwork: Electronic Arts; screenshot supplied via Green Hills Zone
Licence
Historical Ephemera
Displayed for commentary and research. Fair dealing under the UK CDPA 1988 applies only where its conditions are met. No permission for reuse is granted.
Caption
The equipment shop made earning and spending money part of Skitchin's skating races, giving players a reason to improve their wheels between events.

Dim overhead photograph of Skitchin' materials on a wooden table: a black game case, a printed leaflet with a skater image and "Skitchin'" text, an Electronic Arts registration card, and a black cartridge with a Skitchin' label. — Source
Credit
Skitchin' packaging and game artwork: Electronic Arts; photograph supplied via Green Hills Zone, photographer not identified
Licence
Historical Ephemera
Displayed for commentary and research. Fair dealing under the UK CDPA 1988 applies only where its conditions are met. No permission for reuse is granted.
Caption
A case, cartridge and paperwork preserve Skitchin' as a physical Mega Drive purchase, alongside the aggressive skating image used to sell it.

Composite image containing two flattened Skitchin' game-case scans: a Sega Mega Drive case at the top with black-and-white cover art and yellow title lettering, and a Sega Genesis case at the bottom with a pale blue cover and red-outlined skater. — Source
Credit
eBay UK
Licence
Historical Ephemera
Displayed for commentary and research. Fair dealing under the UK CDPA 1988 applies only where its conditions are met. No permission for reuse is granted.
Caption
The console packaging presents Skitchin’ through skating imagery, while the reverse introduces its road-racing action.