| Speed Racer: The Videogame | |
| Engine: | Gamebryo |
| Developer: | Sidhe Interactive Virtuos (Nintendo DS) Glu Mobile (Mobile)[1] |
| Publisher: | Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment[2] Glu Mobile (Mobile) |
| Producer: | Andy Satterhwaite Dean Hall Jeff Nachbaur |
| Composer: | Winifred Phillips |
| Released: | Mobile April 29, 2008[3] Wii, Nintendo DS PlayStation 2 |
| Genre: | Racing |
| Modes: | Single-player, multiplayer |
| Platforms: | Mobile phone, Wii, Nintendo DS, PlayStation 2 |
Speed Racer: The Videogame is a racing video game developed by Sidhe Interactive for the PlayStation 2 and Wii consoles, by Virtuos for the Nintendo DS and by Glu Mobile for mobile phones; and published by Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment and Glu Mobile. It is a tie-in to the 2008 film Speed Racer, set one year after its events.[4] [5] The actors from the movie reprise their role in the video game counterpart. The mobile version was released in April 2008,[1] and the Nintendo versions were released on May 6, 2008, with the PlayStation 2 version being released on September 16, 2008,[6] alongside the DVD and Blu-ray release. Due to the short development time allotted, Warner Bros. chose not to release the game on other contemporary non-Nintendo platforms.[7]
The game is a racing game similar to the F-Zero series, including tracks full of odd twists, turns and loops, set in five exotic locations (six in the PS2 version). The goal of the game is not only to win first place in each race, but also to have the most points by the end of the cup to win the competition. Points can be earned by placing high during races, but also by performing stunts and, most commonly, bashing into and destroying other racers with the use of car acrobatics, called "car-fu" in the game. Driving well (i.e., avoiding accidents) as well as car-fu rewards the player with a boost. Four boosts may be collected this way, and may be used at any time. If all four boosts are used at once by quadruple-tapping the boost button, the driver enters a state called "The Zone" in which they travel more than twice as fast as their regular top speed, become invincible and inflict high damage to any opponents they hit. Boosts may alternatively be sacrificed to repair the car by refilling the health meter. A full boost will repair half of the health meter, while a partially filled boost meter will only repair a smaller amount of the meter. The vehicle's health is shown as a gauge on the HUD. If the jet at the rear of the vehicle is bluish-white, the car is fine; if it is red and smoking, it is severely damaged; if the camera suddenly starts to zoom out, the car is about to explode. If the player's car explodes, the player will respawn nearby; however, the delay between the car exploding and re-spawning allows drivers to approach and pass the player, losing the player places.
Each version of the game has its own unique control method. The PS2 version uses a standard control setup, in which an analog stick controls steering and buttons are used for pedals and car-fu moves. The Nintendo DS version is played entirely with d-pad and buttons, although the player can tap the touch screen to zoom in and out on a position meter that it displays. The Wii version can only be played by the Wii Remote itself turned sideways, with or without the Wii Wheel, leveraging its motion controls to steer and perform stunt and car-fu moves; analog control is not supported.
There are a total of 20 selectable characters from the film in the game (25 in the PS2 version and 16 on the Nintendo DS version), each with their own unique vehicle. Each character also has a specific rival. The player is awarded bonus points for defeating the rival. In certain gameplay modes, players can enter alliances with other racers, who will attempt to interfere with the player's rival. Performing "car-fu" on allies will penalize the player, however. Each character's car has different stats.
The original musical soundtrack of the Speed Racer video game was composed by Winifred Phillips and produced by Winnie Waldron.[8] It has received positive reviews. Reviewer Sam Bishop of IGN wrote, "The music in the game happily bounces back and forth from vaguely tribal, ambient tracks to more driving, aggressive sounding electronica loops."[9]
The DS version received "generally favorable reviews", while the PlayStation 2 and Wii versions received "average" reviews, according to the review aggregation website Metacritic.[6] In Japan, Famitsu gave it a score of one five, one seven, and two sixes for the DS version.
Last year, Speed Racer changed the racing world forever. We all watched as he put it all on the line and reminded us that stunt racing is the greatest sport in the world. Now here we are once more, seeking the WRL Cup.
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