Darn you Nintendo, and your lack of hype!
First off, why did Nintendo barely try to get any hype for this game? This could have been an instant classic that everyone owned, but no, I kinda had to stumble upon this games existence on a website. It probably doesn't help that the cover looks really stupid. Er yeah, I'm kinda getting off track... back to business.
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THE GOOD:
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The online play:
The best online play on the Wii... no kidding. Zero lag and an awesome points system where you bet "stars" which is the currency in this game that you can buy stuff with. Compared to, oh say, the ranking system in Mariokart Wii that has pretty much no use, this is a welcome change.
The balance:
All the robots have noticeable pros and cons. One can see a healthy mix of robots during online play.
Speed:
I can just imagine next-gen sonic wondering why a robotic hummingbird dressed as an airplane pilot is going faster than him.
Addictive:
Hello my name is Thothgamer and I'm addicted to Excitebots.
*Hi Thoth*
Wacky:
Poker while driving a purple transforming ladybug robot? Sign me up!
Poker:
See above.
Originality:
Not like any racing game I've played to date. Most go by either the realism formula that's pretty much just trying to make car racing as lifelike as possible or the Mariokart formula which is race while collecting items to destroy your opponents. This game somewhat follows the MK formula but many things are changed to make it in a different league all together the items are not so much to hurt your opponents (they do exist but they are rare) but to do tricks: darts to throw at targets, rods to fish with, pieces of food to make sandwiches. Doing these tasks earn you stars and the stars can be used to gamble with and buy unlockables.
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SORTA MEH:
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Music:
Now I have not played excite-trucks so I don't know about the whole "add your own music thing" , so I can't complain about how it isn't in this game, but I need back on track here.
Imagine an anime about transforming robot animals that race, now imagine if the music for it. Yeah...
There are good tracks don't get me wrong, like mexico and the main title, and it fits the "don't take it seriously" tone of the game and sometimes matches the stage, like the mexico stage has trumpets to kind of an aztecian(?) beat at points. but then some, like china, is like what came from ren and stimpy's ill fated trip to a rave.
Unlockables:
Though Unlocking new cars is rewarding and dressing up your frog like a magician is kind of fun, others just suck, like the trophies, they have no use and in order to get them you not only have to complete a task while racing you have to buy it after words with your precious stars, what a shame.
Stages:
Most stages are repeated multiple times throughout the cups and it starts feel the same after extended play. No obstacles are really stage specific, unlike Mario Kart were every stage has different obstacles to over come this game pretty much has the same obstacles, just arranged in clever ways. It sorta tries with the giant stone golems in Tasmania but they never effect play in any drastic fashion.
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BAD:
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The selection screen:
Bland, bland, bland, bland!
And that's about it....
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IN A NUTSHELL
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Buy now!