What’s This? A Decent Speed Racer Game?

I’m a little fanatic about Speed Racer Stuff, from Speed racer to Speed racer tshirts to Speedracer hats. Of course I had to buy the game for my shiny new Wii!

Uh-oh. Anytime a licensed game comes out in time to tie in with a big blockbuster movie, it’s usually a groan fest for serious gamers. Companies seem to push this shovelware out the door as fast as they can to capitalize on box office, seemingly disregarding whether of not the game is actually any good. However, the Speed Racer game for the Nintendo Wii doesn’t suffer from most of the common problems that plague licensed properties.

Speed Racer for Wii is not going to win any game-of-the-year awards- any racing game would have a tough time trying to earn that distinction. Where this title sets itself apart is in its adaptation to the Wii’s unique control scheme (which, by the way, is compatible with the Wii Wheel (Whiil?) recently released for use with Mario Kart Wii). Budget gamers won’t have to worry about buying extra nunchucks so their buddies can get in on the action either- the game really requires only the Wiimote to play.

This is not a hardcore game for hardcore gamers, evidenced by the fact that you can’t even really drive your car off the track, an interesting choice considering that in the movie none of the drivers can really manage to keep their cars ON the track. Remember all that so-called “car-fu” from the movie, with cars jumping, flipping, sliding, and spinning? Well that’s what the focus is on here, too, with the majority of the acrobatic driving moves being executed by tilting, shaking, or rotating the Wiimote along with pressing in different directions on the directional pad. The more you manage to keep from slamming into the invisible walls on the side of the track, the more tricks you do, and the more “boosters” you run over, the faster your car will go. If you manage to build up enough momentum, you will be able to activate a special power that renders you virtually invincible and blindingly fast called “In the Zone”. This special power is often the deciding factor in your placement in the race, and may be necessary to overcome the rubber banding (cheating) AI.

The game looks beautiful, especially when viewed using Hi-Definition component cables and an HDTV. The colors and animation capture the brilliant scheme used in the movie, as well- I believe one reviewer called it “like having molten Starburst poured in your cornea”- that description is accurate here, too. Also, even though there is no real story arc to speak of beyond “win races to advance through the circuit”, Emile Hirsch, Christina Ricci and Matthew Fox provide voiceover work. It’s too bad that they weren’t given more to say beyond one-liners; however, Trixie (Christina Ricci) figures heavily into the tutorial.

It’s refreshing to see a licensed game that doesn’t suck, and while the game is not very deep (only three modes, no online, no story arc to speak of) it’s also nice to see a lack of the extraneous mini-game/collecting fluff that often weighs these licensed titles down. What this means is Speed Racer for Wii is a cohesive package that both young and old alike can enjoy (just like the movie!)