Pocketbike Racer

"Absolutly worth the $4 it's sold for. Why can't Live Arcade be more like this?"

I have to give it to Burger King here. I've grown up on those old 2-second long games that looked and sounded like those old, old Tiger Electronic games, and I never thought I'd see the day where an advertisement-in-the-form-of-a-video-game, would actually be on a mainstream game console, and fully licenced by someone other than Burger King.

Such is the way of Pocketbike Racer. This game was sold from late November to Christmas Eve, but apparently some stores are still selling them. I managed to grab my copy, as well as the other two games, in mid-January. That brings an important fact. If you happen to come across these games, and you might be the type of dude what throws some local parties with friends, or you worry about your Gamerscore like it was your first-born son, do not hesitate to pick them up, with this one being on top of the list.

For a Mario Kart clone that costs less than getting an actual Whopper, Pocketbike Racer does okay as a kart racer. The controls will take one or two races to get used to, but doesn't bring the overall feel for the game down. Graphics are nowhere near the quality of a normally priced 360 title, but what you buy is what you get. I wouldn't expect a game with graphics to compete with Gears of War that costs $4. The music is generic, and won't be missed should you throw it to a Custom Soundtrack.

One of the down points of the game though, is that half the modes are either boring, or frustrating. You have the Standard Racing mode. Then, you have Cone Trial, in which you race to see who can pass through a certain number of cones. This mode holds a little room for strategy, was you can also go through the tracks backwards. The Battle Royal mode, and Hardcore Racing modes are where the game falls on it's ear. If there was only one Arena like track to host the Battle Royal, it would work just fine. Unfortunately, closed in roads meant for racing is not a good field for a good time. Hardcore Racing takes everything about a game being a cart racer, Boosts and Weapons, and throws them out. I think the real challenge is trying to stay awake in playing this mode.

The game's five tracks range from boring, to somewhat interesting. The single notable one though, is the Construction Area, that could remind a veteran Cart Racer about stages like Yoshi's Valley (MK64), or Wario Colosseum (MK:DD!!). They're good enough to pass though, since it is an extreme budget game.

X-Box Live Multiplayer has a collection of bugs and glitches to it, however, there is, at the time I write this, a number of people who take the game online. If you don't mind the errors, Live Multiplayer is just fine. But players that are pissed as hell about laggers should likely not take this online, unless you really want the Achievement points, to which there is 200, like a Live Arcade game.

Character Creation can be summed up in one word: Uncreative. What you've got are 6 generic people what you can simply change the color of their clothes and hair. Hardly something anyone will what to have their way.

Pocketbike Racer is exactly what a Live Arcade game should be. Fun, able to last longer than a day for amusement, and fun to play. And at a cost that's even less than the cheapest game there (Besides Totemball, but what plain ol' sucked), there's no reason not to bag this one when you see it. Grab Pocketbike Racer while it's in stock. And if it's not in stock, I'm sure you won't be killed tiring to buy this on E-Bay.

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 01/24/07