Uniracers

Review by Evan G

This fast and furious racing game was only mildly praised back when it was released, but you will not find a faster racing game available on the snes, save perhaps F-Zero. Instead of a behind or above the vehicle view like most racing games, this is a side scrolling racing game. And unlike other racing games, you must score tricks to increase speed. The game features 3 types of races: a drag race with a competitor, a laps race with a competitor, and a tricks course, where you must get a certain amount of points from tricks to proceed. You face only one opponent in a race, but these are bloody knuckle races to the finish. There are 8 cups in this game with 5 races in each, and they must be completed in 3 difficulty levels in order to unlock them all. Battery backup saves the three best high scores, plus the statistics of around 20 different racers.

Graphics: 8/10

The graphics are smooth and quick. The the cycles you racer are well animated and look good. The tracks are nothing too special in terms of flash, but the track colours tell you what hazards are coming up. Most of the time you will be to busy watching the race to notice the plain backgrounds.

Sound: 8/10

The music in this game works really well with it. The guitar riffs are perfect. The sound effects like the screeching when you come to a stop are sound good, but the sound made when doing jumps could have had some work.

Controls: 8/10

This game requires more than your average racing game. In order to get boosts of speed, you must do tricks. Most tricks are easy to pull off, but you must link lots of them together if you wish to proceed in the higher level races. My main complaint is when going around loops, it is not easy to keep your speed up because you must press the opposite direction at the right time. This causes many lost races.

Overall Score: 9/10

I really enjoy this game, and I think that it deserves more coverage. This game is among the best racing games for the snes, and is quite unique. The two player mode is fun, but the squished screen often makes it difficult to land tricks. If you haven't given it a try, go out and get it!