ModNation Racers Review
Computer game reviews: ModNation Racers is a PS3 only gaming first – a fully customisable kart racing game. Mario Kart meets Little Big Planet!
One of the best things about having a PS3 is the quirky game releases that are only available on this platform. First there was LittleBigPlanet (PS3)
The amount of customisation you can do in ModNation Racers is endless, with a toolset big enough to create just about any character you care to imagine to a certain degree. After you have created your kart and personalised your character it’s time to head over to career mode, in order to unlock objects, stickers, outfits, tracks and more. This is where you first get to grips with the style of racing; picking up weapons and learning the ultimate drifting technique (Just imagine Mario Kart on the PS3). There are challenges, achievements and tokens to collect allowing hours of fun to be spent on only a small part of the game.
Once career mode is complete it’s time to go back to creation mode, and make use of those extra parts you’ve unlocked and make the ultimate character and kart before you go online.
There are two parts to the online mode of this game first:
Share Station
This is where you gain access to all the user generated content that other players have created, enabling you to view, rate and download to use in your own game. Amongst the greatest creations so far you’ll find a Pikachu car, replicas of the Batmobile, Mario, Stitch and many representations of the F1 tracks and Mario kart circuits. Of course you can also upload your own creations for others to see and use.
And then there’s the racing.
XP Ranked racing:
This type of race allows you to gain experience and level up from racing. You don’t gain anything from levelling up except the triumph of being a higher level than those you are racing against.
Casual race:
This is just for fun, and allows you to race the user created maps against others online. This is where the majority of the community can be found as its very laid back and many will practice here after reaching top level in ranked racing.
Hot Laps
Another small feature which has caught my eye is the hot lap feature. This allows for people each week to compete to finish a lap of a specified track in the quickest time possible. It’s unbelievable how quick some people were round the basic courses from day 1.
Split screen online:
This is a defining aspect which separates it from other games. Allowing users to go online with a friend and compete against others online, to take on the whole racing community together.
Offline split screen
Whilst you can only take 1 friend online with you to race, offline split screen allows you to play with up to 4 people from the comfort of your living room. This was always the appeal of karts games for all ages to have a mess around with your mates, and get mega annoyed when someone takes you out 5 metres from the finish line.
After sampling all of these features you will probably think you’re the expert. Well then it’s time to make your own track with the easy to use creation mode. You can create your own design with the ultimate drift, extreme jumps and mass weapons with so many features it really allows you to make it your own.
If you imagine Little Big Planet and Mario Kart having a love child this is what would be created. The perfect kart-racing game around at the moment. Of course there are occasional glitches that come with the user created content but the game itself makes up for the odd occasion when you get stuck cow field with no option but to blow yourself up, it’s all a good laugh in the end.
