Cars

Cars is based on the recently released Pixar movie of the same name. The story is about Lightning McQueen, a rookie race car who’s on his way to California to enter the Piston Cup Championship race. He gets sidetracked in the town of Radiator Springs, where he meets new friends who help him learn some valuable life lessons. The game Cars takes place a year after the big race, and Lightning McQueen has returned to Radiator Springs to hang with his friends while he gets ready to compete again. The game has been released to all consoles and handheld systems. The main console versions plus the PC game version are essentially the same game, but the handheld versions are all different.

The format of the game is an open-ended adventure set in the town of Radiator Springs. Players can drive around and explore the town, or choose to play various events that are either races or mini-games. While exploring, players can pick up bonus points that will earn cutscenes and new bodypaint art. Initially, there are only a few races and mini-games available, but as these events are successfully completed, new races and games will become open.

The main flavor of this game is essentially a racing game, which is to be expected considering the characters and movie theme. Most of the time, racing games for kids just don’t deliver in terms of solid design and compatibility, as the game designers try too hard to keep common racing elements from adult games, while dumbing it down to make it easier for kids. The end result usually pleases no one. This time, though, Rainbow Studios fashioned a good game that doesn’t try to be what it isn’t, but instead is a fun family game that is right on target for kids of all ages, and also for most casual game players.

The story mode is the main mode of game-play, and lets players choose either the full story mode, or the shorter, more condensed version for younger players. Essentially, players can drive around town at their own pace, racing around and picking up bonus points, or they can choose events that are marked by huge, floating icons. These events will either be mini-games or races. The mini-games are a varied assortment of arcade or racing type games, some of which may require picking up items around town like postcards or hubcaps, or completing some type of task during a race against the timer. Completion of these events will open up more events.

This open-ended play is an excellent format for kids and really allows them to take their time enjoying the game. However, this same open-endedness is almost too laidback, in that there isn’t a clear set of instructions on just what it is that players are supposed to be accomplishing. Completing various events is necessary to open up more of the game, but which ones? What order? Especially in the beginning, there is just too much guesswork, which may discourage younger players.

Besides the story mode, there is also an arcade mode where players can play unlocked races and minigames, and a versus mode, where players can play with their friends in certain races and games.

Racing is well designed for the most part and is a lot of fun. It’s all pretty easy, and the opposing cars are sometimes not much of a challenge. However, it’s just right for most kids, and as the game progresses, power-ups become available that ante up the excitement a bit, such as the ability to powerslide. The cars handle well, and the controls direct the action nicely. The general races allow players to use these power-ups and generally horse around a bit, but the Piston Cup races are more rigid. There are also mandatory pit stops in the Piston races that are essentially mini-games. The races are mostly pretty forgiving, but if players stay off the track for too long, they will be forced back to a pre-designated point of the race to continue racing.

The camera viewpoints can be problematic at times, and one time at the start of a race, I was actually facing backward for some reason! Needless to say, this didn’t auger well for my winning that particular race. It’s almost like the camera has a life of its own at times. The camera angle can be toggled with the C-stick, but after moving the car around a bit, the camera angle will adjust back to where it thinks it should be. Looking up and down could be better, too. However, these are just niggly things, it doesn’t really affect the game-play as such.

Graphically, everything looks pretty good and all the cars look exactly like they do in the movie. There are a few instances of driving through the scenery, and sometimes cars can get stuck in corners, but this doesn’t happen too often. There is a good sense of the same overall look and feel of the movie, which kids will enjoy.

Surprisingly, all the voice actors are present! That’s not that usual, and it really does help make the game. Hearing Paul Newman, George Carlin, Bonnie Hunt and Cheech Marin make their trademark comments from the movie is neat. There could have been more of a variety of dialogue, though, and adults will find some of these remarks a little tedious after hearing them for the umpteenth time. Kids won’t mind, though.

The music is wonderful; I just wish there were more tracks. However, these tracks can be set manually for each race in the options department. For some strange reason, the type of music and having a driverless car was reminiscent of the Stephen King movie, Christine. It must be my twisted mind, as there isn’t anything similar in these two movies.

A short note about the manual, it’s probably the most useless manual I’ve ever read in terms of actually helping people become familiar with how to play the game. There isn’t anything about the various missions, or any details about the power-ups or characteristics of the different cars in the game. It lists the controls in the front and the credits in the back with some very brief game-play descriptions in the middle, and that’s about it.

The bottom line on this game is that it is a good racing game for the family, and one that kids will really enjoy. It is designed well, with lots of variety and hours of game play. The open-ended format, coupled with the races and mini-games, really contributes to this being an infinitely re-playable game. The game handles well, and is not frustrating. While the racing begins slowly, the game speeds up enough later to become more enjoyable for adults. A really nice choice for families, especially for fans of the movie.

Gameplay: 8.0
A truly enjoyable game that offers a nice variety of game play elements. Players can cruise around town, or play any number of mini-games and races. They can also spend bonus points spiffing up their cars. The amount of races and games means there are several hours of play in this game. Replayability is a definite plus.

Graphics: 8.0
Nice graphic detail. However, there are some issues of driving through the background scenery.

Sound: 8.0
The music is too cool, there should be more of it, though.

Difficulty: Medium
There are various difficulty settings which range from easy to medium in practical terms.

Concept: 8.0
These people were radicals who actually wanted to design a fun kids game.

Multiplayer: 7.0

Overall: 8.0
This is a good game for families in that it really does offer a lot for many different ages. While hard-core racing gamers won’t get much out of it, everyone else will enjoy it. The lack of direction is really the only thing holding this game back, too bad the designers didn’t include a task list feature, which would have been a simple fix for this problem. Also, the manual could have offered a lot more information than it does. But overall, a great game for families with children. Great job Rainbow, THQ and BVG!