Game Rant's Ben Kendrick reviews ModNation Racers

ModNation Racers was released on May 25th - so it might seem strange to be posting our review now. However, with so much of ModNation following in the footsteps of the LittleBigPlanet Play, Create, Share mantra, we felt that reviewing the title solely on its single player and versus functionality wouldn’t accurately encompass whether or not the game was a success. The single most important aspect of ModNation Racers could not be determined on release day - would the team at United Front Games succeed in fostering a creative community of drivers and designers on which the title could flourish for years to come?

Now, over a month after the release of the PlayStation 3 version of ModNation Racers, we can report with confidence, that the answer is yes.

I’ll discuss the user tools and created content in greater depth later on, but let’s first cover the ModNation basics. Obviously there is both a PS3 and PSP version of ModNation Racers and it should be noted that this review covers the PS3 version only (though they do share a number of similarities). For ModNation PSP coverage, make sure to check out our hands-on impressions.

ModNation Racers, even without the Create or Share features, is still one of the best kart-racing games available — far surpassing Mario Kart Wii in terms of online play features as well general racing mechanics (the two most important aspects of the genre).

Leveling up attacks is a great innovation for the genre and the ability to use your acquired boost to side-swipe or deploy a shield offers players multiple options with regard to how they race — maybe favoring a more defensive or offensive approach.

The rubberbanding that ruined Mario Kart Wii for most players is non-existent in ModNation Racers — replaced, instead, with extremely frantic gameplay that forces players to hone their skills (and look for shortcuts) on the track. The game offers one of the best casual kart-racing experiences in nearly a decade — whether you’re playing with friends or random online opponents.

However, playing against the AI, especially in ModNation’s career mode, is an absolute nightmare. The difficulty options available for online and split-screen races are M.I.A. in the single player game — and the computer controlled characters are uncompromising and overly-aggressive.

While I was still able to clear all 28 tracks featured in the career mode within several hours, many players, especially younger gamers, will face an exponentially difficult, uphill struggle once they reach the ‘Grim Tournament’ (the 4th tier of tracks).

The difficulty is not a result of poor track-design, as each race can easily be passed — assuming you make only one or two minor mistakes. Hardcore gamers will very likely enjoy shaving time off their laps, seeking out shortcuts, and refining when to use a power-up or environmental attack. The problem stems from the accuracy and brutality of the AI racers, who have each mastered every tool available in the game, drifting, drafting, sideswiping, shielding, and even the starting line boost.

Obviously many gamers will enjoy the challenge but the lack of a more casual difficulty setting is an unforgivable oversight in a title that’s being marketed to the same demographic that made Sackboy Sony’s most lucrative casual market poster child. It’s not that I think ModNation is broken, but it’d be even better if I could recommend the game to people who aren’t anxiously awaiting Gran Turismo 5.

To further illustrate the point, each race in the campaign features 3 objectives ranging in difficulty from “Finish in the Top 3” to “Finish 1st and Takedown Hale in front of the Grandstands” or “Finish 1st and Sideswipe 3 Opponents on the Cliffside.” Completion of each challenge rewards players with new mod, kart, and track items. These could be extremely fun opportunities for replay value; instead, they’re almost absurd — as merely finishing in the top 3 can be somewhat of challenge itself.

It’s beyond me why United Front Games, coupled with the high difficulty, made the challenges dependent on placement in the race — as trying to takedown Hale in front of the grandstands will probably require hanging back behind him instead of doing what comes natural in a race… getting to the finish line in the shortest amount of time possible. Even if you were to hang back, waiting for Hale to reach the grandstands, it’s unlikely the adept AI control will forget to deploy a shield — resulting in a failed challenge.

Continue reading Game Rant's review of Modnation Racers...

When LittleBigPlanet posed similar challenges such as getting through a level without dying or collecting all the prize bubbles — the challenge was inline with the platforming game experience (as well as driven by the promise of more options when creating content). In ModNation, many players will easily give-up on the challenges (and subsequently ignore acquiring many of the creation items) — resulting in fewer people with a robust set of tools to create enjoyable content they could be sharing.

Hopefully, United Front Games will realize that younger, or more casual, players are struggling and extend the difficulty options (via a software patch) featured in the multiplayer component to the single player career mode.

Speaking of patches, United Front Games has yet to fulfill their promise of a post-launch software patch to help shorten load times. A lot has been made of the load times in ModNation Racers - and every criticism is well deserved. The time between choosing a race and arriving at the starting line hovers between 45 seconds to a full minute - depending on the track. While it’s not a deal-breaker, it is noticeable for a current-generation game (especially since ModNation has a mandatory install to the HD) — and will take players back to their days of waiting for WipEout to load on the original PlayStation.

Fortunately, the strongest aspect of ModNation happens to be the community features. Even if your PS3 isn’t connected to the PlayStation network, ModNation Racers still provides impressive split-screen racing as well as a deep single-player career mode - however, missing out on all the user-created content definitely takes away from the game’s greatest strength. The creative minds of the Mod-Nation have stepped up to the plate delivering some incredible content for other drivers to check out. Creators range from Sucker Punch Studio play-testers to middle schoolers on summer break. In many cases, mastery of the ModNation tools by the community appear far superior compared to the staple United Front Games track, mod, and kart offerings — which is definitely a good thing.

While fans of LittleBigPlanet have seen the title grow over time, even the best user-created levels are merely on par (maybe there are a few exceptions) with the levels Media Molecule put together for Sackboy’s single player campaign. ModNation is the metaphorical evolutionary midpoint, in terms of the role of user-created content, between LittleBigPlanet and LittleBigPlanet 2. In ModNation, the community is actually able to surpass the scope of the game designers themselves - to offer countless approaches to, in this case, racing players from point A to B.

We’ll be compiling a list of our favorite tracks, mods, and karts in an upcoming feature (as well as unveiling our GR themed kart, mod, and track) but rest assured that the creation tools — as well as the final user created content are both robust and immensely entertaining. Uploading a creation is simple and searching for/downloading another member’s created content is equally user-friendly (and much better than LittleBigPlanet).

In addition, the remix function allows you to download another user’s mod, track, or kart, and add your own personal flair (assuming the creator has enabled changes) — creating a very organic and constantly-evolving community of content. Like any user-creation platform, player votes help feature the most dynamic content while burying the less successful creations.

The only major ModNation omission, which I can’t actually hold against the game but seems like a missed opportunity, would have been the inclusion of a Mario Kart 64-style battle mode. Maybe United Front Games will offer a combat arena option in a later DLC package - but I couldn’t help thinking, considering the fast-paced action (as well as fun weaponry), why players weren’t given the opportunity to throw down in a ModNation-style destruction derby.

Imagine recreating Mario Kart 64’s ‘Block Fort’ in ModNation — not to mention the twisted battle arenas that users could have created. It’s hard to believe the thought didn’t occur to the designers - maybe they’re just saving the feature for the inevitable ModNation Racers sequel.

Closing Thoughts:

Despite unbelievably slow load-times as well as brutal AI in the career mode (and subsequent lack of single player difficulty options), ModNation Racers is one of the best kart racing games in the last decade. It’s a fun and frantic title with loads of replay value — due mainly to years worth of user-created content that will be provided by the ModNation community. A number of features are welcome additions to the kart-racing formula (leveled weapons, etc), and showcase the strength of the gameplay experience. While, at times, it may be too difficult for younger gamers as well as players hoping for casual pick-up and play, the thousands of downloadable ModNation tracks will undoubtedly offer something for everyone — regardless of skill level.

If you're still unsure about ModNation Racers - make sure to check out the demo on the PSN. Also, don't forget to check back in a week for our feature detailing the best ModNation mods, karts, and tracks — as well as information on how you can download Game Rant themed content.

Have you checked out ModNation Racers? In your opinion, what's working and what would you like to see fixed?

ModNation Racers is available now for PS3 and PSP.