Written by Litton Raysoul
Title: Super Toy Cars
Developer: Eclipse Games
Publisher: Eclipse Games
Price: $9.99
Genre: Racing
Also Available On: Steam, PS4, WiiU, XB1
While the Nintendo Switch provided us one, if not the best, kart racing gaming in the name of Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, we can’t help but ask for more kart racers to play around. With its initial presentation and generic title, Super Toy Cars captured my attention, and decided to give it a try. But how does the game really hold up?
Super Toy Cars features 16 different cars each with their own stats, which can be customized with a variety of skins and colors. You can race through 15 tracks, with designs ranging from a toy room, a kitchen, and a backyard. Aside from some environmental hazards like bricks or candies that fall, the tracks doesn’t have other gimmicks like boost pads or water sections. You can collect power-ups like missiles and mines which you can use to your advantage. One noticeable item is a relatively big 8-ball which you can fire and wreak havoc to anyone that is hit. There is also a drift mechanic that would increase your boost meter which you can use once full.
There is a quick race mode with five different events like normal Races and Time Trials. The mode features up to four player split-screen multiplayer. However, while this game features online leaderboards, there is no online multiplayer. There is also a career mode where you participate in 48 events, unlock cars, and upgrade them. The upgrade system is very simple as you just need to buy a car part once, and it would automatically increase the car’s stats. There is no difficulty selection for the career mode, which might frustrate some not-so-skilled players as the AI are sometimes unfair. Luckily, there is a quick restart option which you can use again and again until you win the event. The game also lacks a track editor which is available on the other platforms.
The game tries to charm the players with its presentation, however, fails to do so. Some textures are rough, and it is usually masked by the colorful cel-shaded environment. While the graphics are quite simplistic, the performance for the game is poor specially while docked. The framerate fluctuates from 25-60 fps, which is highly irritating coming from the smooth framerate of Mario Kart 8. However, it improves significantly in handheld mode, but would still vary depending on the track. Surprisingly, the framerate improves on split-screen multiplayer as some visual effects are reduced. One of the possible reason for the framerate issue is the overused application of the floor reflections, as it is disabled during multiplayer. While not a realistic racer, the game also suffers from questionable collision physics that might send you spinning around, like slightly bumping on a ramp or on another car. The game also features a soundtrack from the indie rock band “The Spin Wires”. Even if the music are catchy enough, the limited number of songs might get too repetitive when playing for an extended time.
I have managed to play all the Career mode events and while I enjoyed the game, the limited number of modes, the average graphics, and framerate issues makes this game hard to recommend. If you want a racing alternative and you mostly play on handheld mode, maybe you can try it. However, I think it would be best to stay playing on Mario Kart and wait for another better kart racer. At least this game doesn’t have Blue Shells, because screw Blue Shells.
The Good
- Single player career mode
- Decent music
- No Blue Shells
The Bad
- Fluctuating framerate issues specially on docked mode
- Questionable physics
- Limited number of modes
- No online play
SCORE: 5/10
No comments:
Post a Comment