22 Dec, 2010
Game: Hot Wheels: Track Attack
Platform: Wii
Age Rating: 3+
Players: 1-4
First, a confession: I was a Hot Wheels virgin before I tried out Track Attack. But it’s always a great pleasure to see a new racing title released on the Wii which seems to have a game shortage in this particular genre. With Hot Wheels: Track Attack I was expecting a budget type game that would mainly be enjoyable for younger children; however the game was a lot more fun that I was thought it would be, and I say that as someone in their mid-twenties.
My first impression was that the game was primarily designed with Hot Wheels fans in mind. You are given the option of customising your car and then upgrading by making use of tokens you collect throughout the game. Sadly you only get to pick from one car when you first begin, but the game does not have a high difficulty rating and it is fairly easy to begin amassing your tokens. As you progress further you can unlock more cars (there are thirty-two in all) and more tracks (all based in one of four environments).
The controls are very forgiving and easy to familiarise yourself with, making this game a good choice for younger players or those not familiar with racing games. Over time some players may find the race tracks a bit too similar to one another, but they do have some fun and surprising additions; I don’t want to spoil too much, but a giant shark and/or spider may attempt to knock you off course now and again.
The gameplay is fast paced and very entertaining. You are frequently faced with gravity defying jumps and loops (fans who like their racing games to have a hefty dose of realism will naturally want to steer clear of this game). There are special track markers to boost your speed, slow you down, and throw you in to the air dotted around each map.
The game comes with a track builder feature which I found difficult to use; however, I should point out that most other reviews of this game disagree on this point. Regardless, I can’t deny how satisfying it was to play on a track I had created myself, no matter how pants it turned out.
The graphics are what you would expect from a budget title: functional but somewhat boxy. I didn’t spot any glitches, which supersedes fancier graphics for this type of game in my mind.
The good:
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Easy to pick up controls
Wide choice of cars
Great for children
The bad:
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Levels are very similar
Graphics are less than impressive
TL;DR Version: Hot Wheels: Track Attack is excellent value for money and will keep you entertained so long as you don’t expect fancy graphics or a challenge.
Overall Score: 3/5
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