In designing the game, Suzuki had to decide on a style of motorcycle racing for the game. Suzuki himself was a fan of dirt bikes, along with motocross and Enduro, and dirt bikes would later be used in Suzuki's "Enduro Racer". However, Sega's market research concluded that road-based GP 500 racing was more popular worldwide. While Suzuki was doing research for the game, he admired the riding style of Freddie Spencer, who had just become the youngest person to win a motorcycling world championship at 21 years old. According to Suzuki, "Freddie Spencer's riding style, it was "so" nice. And my game was like a homage. That's the reason I wanted to make it - Freddie Spencer, he rode a Honda bike, and I loved the way he hung on!" Two cabinet designs were made: a basic version with a handlebar and levers, and the deluxe cabinet which featured the full motorcycle to be tilted. Suzuki had additional features he wanted to implement that could not be done due to cost, including a gyroscope to simulate motorcycle acceleration and deceleration. The title is derived from when the biker is turning and has to "hang on" to the bike while the bike is leaning, which Suzuki had read in a Japanese bike magazine. Suzuki later learned the technique was called "hang off" in North America, but he chose to keep the former name.