Biker Mice From Mars

"A great racing game, a must have"

Graphics
Biker Mice from Mars’ graphics are very good for the time it was made. The colors are bright and the textures all vary. The bikes are all designed very well and have lots of different characteristics. They range from a Harley Davidson to a scorpion. These are all animated very well and stand out from the background so you don’t get confused.
Sound
The music isn’t great, but is effective in what it does. It isn’t bad enough to require a CD in the background but also isn’t good enough that you would find yourself humming it later on. The sound effects make up for this though. The noises of the motor bikes are all different and capture the feel of the race very well. The noise of the tyres screeching on the surfaces is also very good and changes with the different types of surface.
Game play
Biker Mice from Mars has very simple game play mechanics, race around a circuit and win. This may sound boring and repetitive but it isn’t. First you will chose your racer out of a total of six, the rest of whom become your opposition. You do one lap and then you get to use your weapons and bonus items, which makes the race very interesting, as you cannot be sure of your lead. The bonus items will either give you money, which you then use to upgrade your chosen characters bikes engine tyres or weapon, or a powerful weapon which you use to regain the race lead. Biker Mice from Mars has perfected the game play element of Kart-based racing games and this is what makes it such a good game. There is also a battle mode where each player starts off with full power weapons and tries to win the race. This is also very fun to play.
Game play: Multi-player
Although the single player game is excellent the multi player aspect is what makes Biker Mice from Mars such a great game. Again there are two modes, battle and normal. Normal is where you race to see who wins. Battle mode is where the players have full powered weapons and try and destroy each other whilst still trying to win the race. This is very fun to play, as you will end up waiting for the other player to arrive so you can attack him.
Level design
The tracks are all designed very well, as no two tracks are very similar. There are numerous obstacles on each level, ranging from lightning to air vents. The camera is at an isometric angle that follows the player around. This is very effective as it shows where the corners are and what obstacles are ahead.
Difficulty
This varies depending on which characters you are. Some it is very easy with, others it is extremely hard with. You will end up using the easy characters more, but still coming back to try and perfect it with the others. The easy mode is too easy; normal is good and hard poses a good challenge so the difficulty is right.
Replayability
Biker Mice from Mars has great reply value. The game is so big that you want to come back and as explained under Multi-player you have great fun in two player which makes you want to play it again and again.
Summary
Nothing new concept wise but Biker Mice from Mars has perfected the Kart based racing game. Great fun to play, a must have.

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 06/30/01, Updated 06/30/01