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Micro Machines V4
- June 27, 2006 08:46 AM PST
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The choking-hazardous shrunken vehicles from the 80's may not be sold in the United States anymore, but now you can race 750 of these cockroach-sized cars in Codemaster's Micro Machines v4, the first Micro Machines videogame in eight years.
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And while it certainly doesn't introduce anything that we have not already seen in the racing genre, it's still very fun to play.
Honey, I Shrunk the Road Warrior
For a game that is advertised as "the ultimate pick-up-and play racing game," this couldn't be further from the truth, but this isn't a bad thing. Battling your way to 1st place is no walk in the park, and entails trying to run your opponents off the track, driving over power ups, furiously tapping the left and right buttons to keep your vehicle from swerving all over the place, and using weapons such as an enormous hammer to bash other Micro Machines. The game is not a Mario Kart type kiddy racer, in the sense that there is no room for mistakes and it is impossible to get back into a race after smashing into something, or flying off the track, which will happen a lot.
The game does however get easier the more you play, as you get used to the slightly awkward controls, and start anticipating obstacles like the unforgiving beaks of chickens as they peck down on your miniaturized racer, red hot stove coils, and many others. There are the standard "easy, medium, and hard," difficulty settings, and there are four different racing divisions. The more divisions you beat, the more cars and tracks you unlock.
Levels Galore
By far, the best part of Micro Machines v4 is the level design. There are oodles of levels to speed through, such as a butcher's shop, a pool table, and a hair salon. And unlike some racing games, where the background is just some crap that has no impact on the gameplay, you'll actually be interacting with your environment as there are no real roads in the game, only a white dotted line that cuts through everything you see on the screen.
The graphics are relatively good too. They aren't Gran Turismo good, but this isn't that type of game. About the only thing in the game that lacks detail are the vehicles. But this is because they reflect the simple appearance of the actual Micro Machine toys.
Another thing that the game does right is the Multiplayer support. Not only can you race up to three of your friends, but you can also trade Micro Machines. There is a Play for Keeps mode where the winner gets the loser's vehicle as a reward or you can just swap cars with your friends without racing. And for those of you without multi-taps, there is even a mode where you can assign two people to a single controller. This is definitely a game that can only be fully appreciated with a couple of buddies.
If you're looking for a racing game with a little more flavor than the ultra realistic franchises that come out every other month, then give this one a spin.
