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There’s a basic template for discussing any movie-based videogame. It begins with lamenting how the game is nothing like its big screen brother, then delving into production values that fail to match the movie, finally grinding down to the gameplay itself, and the hollow realization that just as a game, the movie-based effort falls short. Cars for the GameCube manages to sidestep these problems just enough to stand out as a solid racer for all ages, but still falls in line with a few conventions of licensed games. Enough to keep from playing, you ask? Read on.
Part racing game, part mini-game, and part sandbox exploration, promising elements tie together in a very enjoyable progression. No one objective in the main mode of feels forced. Rather the game encourages you to explore and go about the game at your own pace. In the story you take the famous Lightning McQueen out through Radiator Springs and outlying regions of the Grand Canyon looking for a good time – be it by racing, taking on challenges, hunting for lost items, playing mini-games, or simply taking in the view…it’s staggering actually, how much stuff there is to comb through just in the main story mode.
Also staggering is how well represented the plot is. Much like the movie, you’re treated to whimsical back and forth between Lightning, his friends, rivals, and newcomers alike. The dialogue is well-written, sometimes downright funny, and delivered through some great voice acting, although the lack of any music during these cuts and the plain camera shots makes the presentation feel a bit flat. This is a minor nitpick, however, and kids who loved the movie will care less. They get to be Lightning, after all!
So what does a hotrod superstar do in a licensed videogame? Racing, exploring, and mini-games sound fun on paper, but how fun is it really? Quite fun, thanks in part to the easily learned and managed control scheme, the varied goals in the mini-games, and because…well, there’s a lot to see. You’ll literally kill hours just riding through the Grand Canyon; taking in the sights, finding hidden goodies, and leaping from precipice to precipice – it’s like a virtual playground, and who in their right mind hates to play? The mini-games share this same simple, base appeal to enjoyment, giving you small tasks like finding postcards or taking Luigi out to find his missing tires. The usually boil down to timed tests or slow, idle scavenger hunts, which is perfectly fine – the mini-games never feel like they have to be accomplished and only serve to help break up the pace of the meat-and-potatoes racing.
This is a very good thing considering how the racing elements will never win any points for ingenuity, though they never really falter either. Racing ranges from a series of laps across Radiator Springs and beyond, to the NASCAR-style challenges, inching you ever closer to the Piston Cup. The former offers tracks that simply follow through the natural terrain of your “playground”, but do so with enough twists and difficulties to keep things fresh while the latter is…well, NASCAR. Not to undermine these races mind you – you have to keep an eye on your tires and manage your positioning and pit stops wisely – but it does get a tad boring.
This is where Cars begins to falter: the difficulty. Even the hardest it has to throw at you in the regular races rarely keeps you from dominating, and while the championship races are decidedly more technical and challenging, they are still pretty dull to go through. This is the first, only and dare I say biggest problem here; when a game’s side material is more fun than the main element. The mini-games and exploration elements are a blast and while the racing sections offer no dire faults, they offer nothing that really stands out. To be only ‘okay’ in an industry that’s full of great games, both big name and niche, makes for a hard sell…
Then again, I’m completely forgetting about the ket demographic – kids. Other decent racers lack the immediate appeal that Cars has – and not just for its license to the movie. Characters are charming and the visuals are bright, clean and welcoming. The game offers a solid gameplay structure, but is easy enough for anyone to get through. There’s even a Kids Mode offered before you get started, ensuring that even the youngest, greenest of gamers can enjoy the downright fun in exploring while not getting put off from the difficulty of racing. So while Cars is far away from racing excellence, it’s a great middle of the road solution.
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