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Rock 'N Racing Off Road (Wii U) Review

by Daan Koopman - January 27, 2015, 12:02 am EST
Total comments: 3

4

More like Crash 'N Burn.

EnjoyUp Games keeps on delivering decent little games to the Wii U eShop and they are always nifty to explore. The focus on original content and colorful art styles makes them overall a kind publisher. Their latest effort is sadly a major disappointment and I sadly have to ask "what happened here?".

Rock 'N Racing Off Road takes on the isometric perspective point of view and has pretty simple controls. It will remind you a lot of the classics as you steer left and right and press the A-button to accelerate. The whole track can be seen on a single screen and you will have to survive these short maps to get to the finish line. The controls feel a bit clunky for 2015, but with some dedication you can get used to them.

With these small tracks and little space to move, problems are quickly to arise. You are more than likely to bump into your opponents and if you slam into a wall, you will have a hard time recovering. There is too little time to make any sort of error, because with three or four laps, it will be over before you know it. Next to that, the obstacles try their hardest to achieve the same in hindering your progress in the race and they certainly succeed in some instances. Playing this solo can achieve either massive positives or negatives in your favor and there is no middleground in these extremes. It feels that it comes a bit more down to luck than skill sometimes. If other players aren't able to finish in the Championships for example, it can net you a stronger lead as they will receive no points for their efforts.

The amount of tracks in the game abysmal. It promises you twelve tracks, but in reality, you are just getting four. The same tracks are constantly repeated with different starting locations and order, which is just a huge bummer. Next to the championships, there are time trials. Here you will take on the cups once again and the results of the four tracks form together a single score. The major difference is that your final time can be posted on the Nintendo Network, so that you can compare the results with friends and strangers everywhere. Finally, there is multiplayer. You will able to play these tracks with up to five people and challenge one another in four cars of various colors. It works quite well, despite its problems, and the playing field is at least sort equal in this one!

Rock 'N Racing Off Road is quite a disappointing game. With just four real tracks and little space to fully take control, this game never really takes off. It looks quite solid and plays sort of well, but that can't save it from the game that it could have been. There is some fun to be had in multiplayer, but even that has limited replay value. It is just a shame really.

Summary

Pros
  • Controls are alright
  • Decent multiplayer functions
  • Looks decent
Cons
  • Extremely limited replay value
  • Little space to fully traverse
  • Only four tracks
  • Relies a little bit too much on luck opposed to skill

Talkback

SorenJanuary 27, 2015

Now I want to play Super Off Road on the SNES.

nhainesJanuary 27, 2015

Exactly what I was thinking!

ejamerJanuary 27, 2015

Daan (or others): How does this compare to Driift Mania on WiiWare?  The only knock on that game seemed to be limited value if playing on your own - but (based on reviews) variety or overall quality wasn't a problem anyone seemed to mention.


Seeing these games reviewed now makes me nostalgic for the days of Super Off-Road also. Great fun with a group of friends!

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Genre Racing
Developer EnjoyUp
Players1 - 5

Worldwide Releases

na: Rock 'N Racing Off Road
Release Jan 29, 2015
PublisherEnjoyUp
RatingEveryone
eu: Rock 'N Racing Off Road
Release Jan 29, 2015
PublisherEnjoyUp
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