Developer: The Binary Mill
Publisher: The Binary Mill, NEXTGEN REALITY pty Ltd.
Platform: Switch, PS4, PC, Oculus Quest
Tested on: Switch
Mini Motor Racing X – Review
Mini Motor Racing X is an arcade-style racing game that made its way onto the Nintendo switch on September 17th. After the success of developer The Binary Mill’s Mini Motor Racing on the Apple store, the game was published by The Binary Mill, with NEXTGEN REALITY pty Ltd. to be brought onto Nintendo’s platform. With rush and excitement, and a few new tricks up its sleeves, this arcade-influenced racer boosts onto Nintendo’s populated party game scene with some flair. Whether you decide to work on your career, or share the fun with friends, this game has moved on from your mobile to your switch with success!
Story
The player is haunted by their tragic past, and the only thrill they can get now is the rush of the race, the risk to their lives… in adorable chibi cars!
Just kidding! Except for the chibi cars. There isn’t much in the way of a story in this game as an arcade racer; however, it does host an impressive career mode, with hundreds of races, multiple championship cups, and a few dozen cars to unlock, along with their upgrades.
While not hugely developed in terms of technical racing, for an arcade racer, there is a huge range of variability in the tracks and difficulties. This is what The Binary Mill was likely intending, as this makes the game openly available to those who want to play for a few hours, or kill 20 minutes. There are also quick and easy multiplayer modes, for split-screen gaming with up to four players on a single Switch, and online matches for the added challenge of additional players in your races.
Graphics
While simplistic and hard-edged, the cartoonish and rounded style of the cars is comical in the semi-realistic art style of the backgrounds, making it reminiscent of driving through the high detail environments of Mario Kart with your caricature characters. This is by no means a complaint, the colors are bold and the art is clear and responsive to the control inputs, with satisfying comic book “POW!” effects from weapons and crashes. However, even though they are pretty and well done, they still seem a little pixelated at times, giving the impression that it wasn’t completely remastered from the mobile version. The Switch wasn’t taken full advantage of with its surprising handheld power.
Sound
A strange and oddly satisfying feature of the game; the sounds are clear, bold and constantly upbeat. Everything feels high octane, and weirdly realistic despite the rotund cars that the player drives, Regardless the music is bold and fitting, the engines are meaty roars, and the inevitable crashes are jarring.
Gameplay
As an arcade-style racing game, it isn’t a surprise that the main priority of Mini Motor Racing X is quick and simple gaming. The result is, as stated before, that the cars driving is far less than technical. The basic controls of the game operate on a simple go, steer and boost system. Nevertheless, there is a lot to get used to. The handling varies a lot between car models, but timing your tight turns is key in this game, especially when there are multiple racers in close proximity. Arcade games amplify this with the chaos of targets, such as in bumper ball racing.
There are multiple angles for a preferred driving position, from a birds-eye view to the first-person driver, meaning there is something for everyone. The primary view is the top-down approach, clearly influenced by classic arcade games and Micro Machines, which is what we largely stuck with.
A big addition to the games modes, from single-player career to multiplayer quick race, straightforward races to arcade party games, is “Type X” races. These bring the ever loved Nintendo staple to the game; comical weapons! The staple being a large ricocheting wrench, with pick-ups allowing for more power and range, such as a good ol’ missile. What else would be on a race track!
While maybe not allowing for hundreds of hours of gameplay, Mini Motor Racing X certainly allows for a lot of fun, with its fun and simple mechanics.
Conclusion
Overall there are few complaints to be had for Mini Motor Racing X. It gives exactly what it promises to deliver. A mini racing experience! With multiple modes, for multiple occasions, dipping in or just killing some time, there is little that it fails to provide. Besides some underwhelming graphics on occasion, this game is worth its mid-range price, for you and any friends you want to include.
Mini Motor Racing X - Review,
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