With Cars 3 dominating the box office this weekend, you can bet that a lot of kids are probably yearning to be like Lightning McQueen. Luckily, there’s a game for that.
Cars 3: Driven To Win is the latest effort from Avalanche Software. Yep, you read that correctly. The team that was reportedly shut down following the closure of the Disney Infinity toys-to-life franchise were picked up, of all people, by WB Games to produce a Cars video game. It’s a strategy that really paid off, because Driven To Win is just the kind of product that exhibits just what Avalanche is made of in terms of a personality that players of all ages can embrace – just like we learned from the Infinity games.
Videos by ComicBook.com
That said, there should be a slight bit of caution when it comes to approaching Driven. That’s because the game actually has a higher difficulty setting than you might realize. Sure, on easy, it’s a breeze, but on medium, you actually feel like you’re undergoing a barrage of attacks from enemies, and can barely muster out a fifth place victory. It’s a bit on the ridiculous side – imaging nothing but blue shells getting in the way of your finish.
Setting Itself Apart From Other Racers
However, if you set the difficulty on easy – or you just have others join you in some local multiplayer racing – you’ll find that Cars 3: Driven To Win has a lot to offer. First off, the game’s campaign mode is loaded with challenges, with an entire board of accomplishments to run through. For that matter, a lot of the side events featured in the game are good fun as well – even the demolition derby from the film is present and accounted for, in case you feel like hopping into trouble right away.
While some people may be like, “But I have Mario Kart 8, do I really need this?” (Note: we’re talking about the Switch version.) Well, this game sets itself apart from Nintendo’s dominant champ thanks to its charming controls. You can perform a lot of functions in this game with ease, including flips (and barrel rolls), drifts and even other tricks like riding on two wheels and rolling backwards. In some situations, these can actually pay you a benefit, thanks to pads that provide you with extra boost if you roll over them the right way. And the more boost you have, the better chance you have against your competition.
It feels like a distinctive style, like Avalanche is known for. Does that make it a necessity for racing fans? Not necessarily, as it feels more like a Cars game than an actual car game (hope that’s not confusing). That said, if you’re deep into the movies (even Cars 2, poor soul), then it’s certainly something that’s right up your alley. Plus, the wealth of content that can be unlocked is great, including a variety of cars and other challenges.
Pretty Good For The Cars Fans
The game looks pretty good on the Nintendo Switch. Not excellent, mind you, as this could easily be confused for an Xbox 360/PS3 game. But the personality exhibited by the vehicles is pretty good, and the track design offers up a great mix, so you’ll have plenty to do. The sound is good, too, but nothing overwhelming. The music sounds like stuff from the film (with a few themes thrown in for good measure), and the voicework is acceptable, even if some of the taunts get repetitive.
Cars 3: Driven To Win doesn’t quite take the checkered flag as expected, mainly due to its overabundant difficulty on higher settings and its lack of amazing visuals, probably due to WB wanting to get the game out in time for the film’s release. But it still has plenty of likability behind it, particularly with the controls, the design and the abundant unlockables. Plus, it’s always good to see Avalanche back in action, doing what it does best – procuring that good ol’ Disney magic.
If you’ve got a Cars fan – or are one yourself – it’s worth hitting the pedal to the metal for. Otherwise, a rental will suffice in-between your other race sessions.
RATING: Three and a half stars out of five.
Disclaimer: A review code was provided by the publisher.
