Cars (DS)

GameSpot editors' review

• CNET editors' rating: 3.0 stars Good
  Detailed editors' rating
  Overall score: 6.5 (3.0 stars)

• Reviewed by:
  Frank Provo
• Reviewed on: 06/13/2006
• Released on: 06/06/2006
• Originally published on GameSpot: Cars (DS) Review

Cars for the Nintendo DS is a collection of race missions and character-inspired minigames based on events that took place in the animated feature film. The game as a whole makes good use of the system's graphical horsepower and is actually rather fun, for the short time that it lasts. Despite the variety provided by the different minigames, there aren't enough of them here to hold a person's attention for more than a couple hours.

Anyone that has seen the film will appreciate how the game is presented. The game-selection menu is a 3D mockup of a drive-in theater, where all of the characters have gathered to watch the latest flick. Each game is based on a particular character. To pick an individual game, you simply tap on one of the characters with the stylus. Before and after each game, still shots from the film and textual dialogue are shown that tell you what the characters are up to and where you are in the story. All of the various games are rendered using 3D graphics, but the viewpoints vary. Race levels are viewed top-down across both screens. The other minigames employ side views and behind-the-back views. Typically, the lower screen shows each character in action, while the upper screen shows the fruits of their labor. Characters are large and look identical to their movie depictions. Meanwhile, the action is generally fast paced, and the game's 3D engine manages to pump out plenty of polygons and textures without so much as a hiccup. The audio portion of the presentation isn't nearly as fleshed out, but the whimsical music isn't offensive, and each game has a healthy variety of appropriate sound effects.

Like the movie it's based on, the game isn't highbrow. Players mainly use the touch screen to manipulate the characters doing bizarre activities, such as fishing for garbage with Mater's tow-hook or catching the trophies that fall out of the back of Mack's trailer. In the fishing game, for example, you slide and pick up the stylus to cast the hook and then draw circles to reel in the bits of trash that you find. In the trophy-catching game, you touch trophies to grab them and slide the stylus to sort them into colored boxes. Other minigames challenge you to leap off ramps, match the DJ's beat, or wake up sleeping tractors, all by tapping the stylus and blowing into the microphone. Most minigames take approximately two or three minutes to complete. In total, there are 12 different minigames to pick from, each with multiple rounds of play.

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Cars (DS): $16.95

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