Developer: AbstractArt
Publisher: Sometimes You
Platform: PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S
Tested on: PS5
Music Racer: Ultimate – Review
We’ve reviewed our fair share of rhythm games over the years, ranging from traditional Guitar Hero-like experiences and the Just Dance games (perhaps an obscure entry in the genre) to the Metal-infused Double Kick Heroes. Most of these games rely on a simple concept that gets gradually harder as you progress through the levels, or when cranking up the difficulty level. The genre is loved by many, and even a lot of smartphone titles have been released in the rhythm-game genre. Now, we will be taking a closer look at Music Racer: Ultimate, which is, as the name states, the ultimate edition of Music Racer. The original PC version of the game was already released back in 2018, and now the Ultimate version is available for our next-gen consoles. Even though the game could use several tweaks, we were entertained, but also quite relaxed while playing the game.
Story
There is no story to be found in this game. You basically pick a vehicle, choose a level type in which you wish to ‘race’, and you’re good to go. Adding a plot to the equation would be quite useless, as this game is all about the gameplay.
Graphics
The neon-infused graphics in Music Racer: Ultimate are very appealing. We loved trying out the different tracks (which are mainly different backdrops), as well as unlocking all the different vehicles. The game very much reminded us of how sci-fi 3D visuals were often depicted in the 80s. That being said, people who tend to get headaches from flashing lights and very bright colors might need to tweak the brightness settings, as some songs may attack your senses a bit too much. Sadly, the menus of the game look very dated and are also not that user-friendly. Some buttons are not clear what they do, and as a whole, the menu was a bit offputting.
Sound
As the Ultimate edition relies heavily on importing your own music, or the content generated by other users, the soundtrack is what you make of it. Of course, the game has some tracks already included when purchasing the game, but if you don’t like them, you can easily skip playing through them altogether. The game allows you to connect to the internet and look up artists, check trending songs, or just import your own songs if you so desire.
Gameplay
Music Racer: Ultimate is a rhythm game with a racing theme. The offset is extremely simple, as you just pick a song, a vehicle, and a racing track, and you’re good to go. In the game, you’ll have to constantly swap the lanes in which you’re driving to ‘hit the beat’. The more beats you hit, the more points you’ll get at the end of the level. The game offers you the option to play through the Zen mode, which is akin to an Easy mode in other games. Other than that, you’ll also have Standard and Hard, but also Cinematic. The latter is just if you wish to listen to music and have the nice visuals of the game playing in the background as well. This mode will not score you any points.
Other than grinding points to unlock more themes and vehicles, there is no actual goal. The game is extremely easy in its offset, and it will take you only a few days to unlock every Trophy. It’s fun that you can play through the tracks of your choosing, but the game is very simplistic in how it works. You pretty much just go left and right and try to hit the beat. Sadly, the overview is sometimes a bit lacking, and we also did not enjoy working with the barebones menus. We would have also liked an option to see our search history, as constantly doing the same input with a controller does get a bit tedious.
Conclusion
Music Racer: Ultimate is a bite-sized rhythm game that’s all about griding points until you have unlocked all backdrops and vehicles. As a whole, it’s an entertaining experience, but after unlocking most content we found ourselves somewhat looking for a bigger goal to continue pursuing unlocking everything. That being said, the game is perfect to be played in between bigger releases, and the online audio database does allow you to get to know new artists via their songs and mixes. To turn this game from something that is just ‘fun’ into something great, we’d love to see a massive menu overhaul, a search history you can consult, and a few other minor tweaks. Nonetheless, for the low price of this one, you can’t really go wrong.
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