I like to think I'm a pretty easygoing guy.
I don't get upset about things, but the things that do upset me irritate
the hell out of me.
Which leads me to this.
This thing in video games where we spell the names wrong on purpose, to
try to be cute?
Yeah, that's gotta to stop.
Capitalizing letters that shouldn't be capitalized, squeezing words together...so this game almost
made my head
explode.
What is that?
That supposed to be "air race," combined into one word with a capital R in the middle?
Why?
Why do that?
Fortunately, that R stands for "rad."
'Cause this game's rad.
Now, I'm gonna call it AiRace.
And if that's wrong, hey...can't be wrong, because that's not a real word.
It is a real
game, though...and it's a freaking screamer.
Following up the original AiRace on DSiWare, AiRace Speed comes to the
eShop with the throttle down.
Does that mean it's going fast?
I don't know anything about throttles.
Point is, the game's f*cking fast as balls.
So if you combined the gameplay of Star Fox and F-Zero, you basically get...actually,
you wouldn't get anything.
Nintendo doesn't care about those games, they'd just laugh at you.
But AiRace is kinda like what that combination
might be.
You fly these futuristic spaceships, from the future, and you have to beat the clock
in 18 different
courses.
Which are also from the future.
But a future where, like...oh, the roads are built by lunatics and genocidal mad men.
See, real men aren't afraid to crash.
Captain Falcon was a real man.
Fox McCloud was an animal, he wasn't a man at
all.
But they'd feel right at home in AiRace.
And if you like those games...you will, too.
This is a really solid
racing game, and what's cool about it is...you constantly have to balance risk and reward.
Because you have to accelerate, if you want to earn all the stars...but acceleration is
kind of risky, in AiRace.
I
mean, you're blasting through these tubes that are filled with columns and walls and
things that look like openings,
but wait...that was a wall.
And getting a qualifying time?
Not an easy thing to do.
So it's fast, it plays well, it reminds me of games that I like but for some reason have
gone the way of the Dodo...so
what are the drawbacks, of AiRace Speed?
Well, unless you're really into, like, gray walls...this is kind of a boring
looking game.
Which sucks, because the graphics are actually pretty good from a technical perspective.
It's just...I guess hating color is part of being a genocidal mad man.
Again, there are 18 tracks, which is a nice amount.
But it actually feels like less, because of how repetitive they
look.
There are online leaderboards, but...there's no multiplayer, which kinda sucks.
So even though the core gameplay
and design are really solid, it does have some of those downloadable-game drawbacks.
Which is to say...it could use more variety, and more stuff.
I'll tell you what, though...even as it is, this is a really good 3DS game.
The speed is impressive, the course design
is great...and you know, when you're screaming through the tunnels, avoiding obstacles almost
on reflexes
alone...there's definitely a feeling of exhilaration.
I mean, AiRace Speed obviously isn't perfect.
Look at its
spelling.
But in a world without F-Zero, Nintendo fans couldn't ask for more.