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[Pseudo_Sam]

Well, then it's a case where the score doesn't matter.

If they actually say that it's better, then that's their opinion of the game. Words mean more than a number score.

What's interesting is that they say it's better in every way, and even with that they didn't try the online mode. Sounds promising.

No! NO! MY BRAIN CANNOT HANDLE QUALITATIVE COMMENTS! DAMN YOU NINTENDO POWER! REDO THE SCORE!

 

[Davey Cakes]

What's I'm loving even more is that it's not only a better game than Excite Truck, but it's also going to be ten dollars less.

If only more Wii games did this.

 

[Wii Will Rock U]

Really? On the Wii? Better? Cause that really hasn't happened yet.

People will say "Mario Kart says hi".

What's I'm loving even more is that it's not only a better game than Excite Truck, but it's also going to be ten dollars less.

If only more Wii games did this.

This.

 

[BobJustBob]

Mario Kart isn't a racing game. It's a really fancy slot machine. Line up three blue shells and you win.

 

[Captain N]

With vehicles designed to look like a mouse, a bat, a centipede, etc., Excitebots: Trick Racing (the sequel to Excite Truck) wears its freakiness on its sleeve. In a single lap you might knock a soccer ball into a net, bat a home run, go fishing, ram through bowling pins, throw a pie at a giant clown face, and speed along a zip line to collect food to make a sandwich, all while rushing forward at F-Zero-type speeds, performing stunts, and turbo-boosting into some of the biggest and most expletive-inducing jumps ever seen in a racing game. All of these crazy elements work together surprisingly well; you'll string together stunts and events into impressive-looking laps that are almost as fun to watch as they are to play.

The game's motion controls work great with either the wii remote or the Wii Wheel, and are a little bit more forgiving than in Excite Truck. And although the points needed to unlock new bots and other items are earned at an annoyingly slow pace, the variety and plenitude of unlockables provides a nice incentive to play for a long time. Most of the in-race minigames (like the aforementioned bowling) are also featured in extra modes that, like the main game, can be played with one or two players. Six-Player Wi-Fi racing is also supported, but we weren't able to give it a go in time for this review.

We rated Excite Truck an 8.5 as a Wii Launch title, and although Excitebots is better in ever way, it scores a tad lower due to today's stiffer competition (namely Mario Kart Wii). Excitebots is a required title for Excite Truck fans, and if you missed out on the first game or afforded it only a cursory look, I strongly urge you to give Excitebots more of a chance.

There you go

 

[Model 500]

Seems pretty fast already...what do you want, F-Zero speeds?

Yes. I don't understand why additional / unlockable speed classes would be a no-no, this would just serve all kinds of gamers better.

 

[HoTHiTTeR]

I wish we could get a ds port of this, lol.

 

[Mistouze]

Mario Kart isn't a racing game. It's a really fancy slot machine. Line up three blue shells and you win.

You, me, Rainbow Road.

 

[Gabyskra]

Mario Kart isn't a racing game. It's a really fancy slot machine. Line up three blue shells and you win.

If you get 3 blue shells, it means you're dead last in a 12 man race for a long time and you are extremely lucky with items. It's meaningless. You'd be better off with a golden mushroom, but it won't make you first. You're talking out of your a**. Getting stars rankings playing solo is where it's at, and multiplayer is about being consistent.

 

[Model 500]

My scores for Mario Kart:

Single Player GP modes: 6-
Time Trial: 9+
Online: 9.5

My score for Excite Truck:

Single Player: 9+

So they didn't get to try the online mode and thought it was important to review it in order to be the first one out there, oh boy :lol

 

[turk128]

I wish we could get a ds port of this, lol.

No lol about it, this would be freakin' badass.

 

[Agalloch]

I'm sorry Nintendo Power,
this is clearly a 9.0 game, look at this:

i don't even need to try it, it's for sure one of the best arcade racing in this gen

 

[antispin]

I'm sorry Nintendo Power,
this is clearly a 9.0 game, look at this:

i don't even need to try it, it's for sure one of the best arcade racing in this gen

That wheel is winking and smiling at me 0.o

 

[Gagaman]

That wheel is winking and smiling at me 0.o

:lol Can't unsee!

 

[SovanJedi]

Well you know what? This gives me such a Stunt Race FX vibe and I actually preferred that to the original SNES Mario Kart.

And considering that I found Mario Kart Wii to be a bit of a letdown, I'm all for heralding this to be the best racing game EVARAVEAVEVAR! Maybe.

 

[EatChildren]

I can race a transforming turtle while playing poker and getting sweet air.

It's automatically better than Mario Kart.

 

[birdchili]

The game's motion controls work great with either the wii remote or the Wii Wheel, and are a little bit more forgiving than in Excite Truck.

more forgiving? does that mean a broader dead-zone? i'm not sure what that means for a racing game...

 

[swerve]

Mario Kart isn't a racing game. It's a really fancy slot machine. Line up three blue shells and you win.

This user has not tried ghost races or online challenges. This user is simply referring to GP mode.

 

[pakkit]

We'll see how the online holds up. Will it be Mario Kart stable? Or Smash Bros. stable? Place your bets.

 

[Yes Boss!]

That's a freakin' lie! The only decent racers to come out since Excite Truck are Burnout Paradise and Midnight Club LA, and neither is direct competition.

Edit: Oh yeah, and neither is on the Wii.

Don't forget about Motorstorm 2 from last fall which is just about as good as Excite Truck. Excitebots is sure looking better than both, though.

 

[EatChildren]

more forgiving? does that mean a broader dead-zone? i'm not sure what that means for a racing game...

I bet their getting their motion controls confused with drift. Excite Truck might have been crazy responsive, but it was that coupled with the drift that made people whine about the controls. Excite-Bots doesn't look to have as much drift in the controls, so everything probably feels more responsive and 'in control'.

 

[birdchili]

Excite-Bots doesn't look to have as much drift in the controls, so everything probably feels more responsive and 'in control'.

ah yes... that makes some sense. i might miss the drift though

 

[BobJustBob]

Don't forget about Motorstorm 2 from last fall which is just about as good as Excite Truck. Excitebots is sure looking better than both, though.

Oh my no. The Motorstorm series is wretched.

 

[Vinci]

That box just screams to own it. Holy shit, I can't believe how much I want this game.

 

[MiniDitka]

New vids - http://media.wii.ign.com/media/143/14325482/vids_1.html

 

[KilgoreTrout]

New vids - http://media.wii.ign.com/media/143/14325482/vids_1.html

Um, there's an official thread now, but thanks for bumping this one too! :lol

Can the mods lock this one?

 

[MiniDitka]

Um, there's an official thread now, but thanks for bumping this one too! :lol

My bad, I thought this was it *bangs head with a hammer*