Wacky Races: Crash & Dash (Wii)

GameSpot editors' review

• CNET editors' rating: 1.5 stars Poor
  Detailed editors' rating
  Overall score: 3.0 (1.5 stars)

• Reviewed by:
  Tom Shea
• Reviewed on: 07/01/2008
• Released on: 06/17/2008
• Originally published on GameSpot: Wacky Races: Crash & Dash (Wii) Review

Performance-boosting items have been a staple in mascot racing games for some time, but these arcade experiences usually encompass some sort of racing structure as well. This is not true with Wacky Races. You won't find a button for acceleration or brakes here--and don't even think about powersliding. This game requires only slightly more interaction than the 40-year-old cartoon on which it's based. The presentation will give a nostalgic glow to anyone who remembers the Hanna-Barbera series, but the actual gameplay will only produce aching wrists and elaborate yawns.

Instead of using skill or savvy to make your way to the front of the pack, you need only tilt the analog stick toward the finish line and watch your chosen hero cruise to victory. The majority of races are displayed from a side view, though the camera shifts to a vertical orientation when the track design demands it, and the camera is zoomed out just far enough to fit all 10 racers in a tightly competitive ball. If you happen to run into a tree or fall off a bridge, you are placed at the back. Because the screen scrolls regardless of your progress, this means you'll never be more than a second out of first place.

Though the track is littered with character-specific items, you won't even need to use them to win. It's certainly more dramatic to call in help from a dragon or transform your vehicle into a rolling rock ball, but because the track design is so easy to navigate, you'll find it's possible to snatch the victory crown without ever getting help from the items. If you do choose to use items, your wrist will start to throb in only a few races. Most of the items are activated by rapidly swinging the Wii Remote, an action that proves tiring because results are measured simply by how fast you can flail your arm.

If slowly navigating your way through poorly designed tracks doesn't excite you, you also have to compete in minigames during certain segments of the race. Dick Dastardly sets up roadblocks that can hinder your progress if you fall asleep midrace. These alternate between insultingly easy and completely unresponsive. On the easy side, you have to dodge slowly falling boulders by tilting the analog stick. On the unresponsive side, you have to paddle down a river using motion controls. Oftentimes, the game will not recognize your downward thrust, which means you will invariably smash into a large water boulder. The penalty for failing a minigame is slight, so there is almost no reason to take part in these mindless diversions.

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