The astounding success of Mario Kart inspired countless studios to develop their own, casual-oriented kart racing games. Many of them were shovelware, but there exist valiant contenders among them that are well worth playing. Still, it took guts to create a rival racing game on Nintendo's own platform, using Nintendo's own IP. Diddy Kong Racing is something else.
Comparisons between Mario Kart 64 and Diddy Kong Racing are unavoidable, so let's address those first. Both games are indeed silly racing titles involving karts. The tracks are lively and animated, utilizing various cartoon themes like pirates, ghosts, and winter wonderlands. Meanwhile the controls are loose and unrealistic, with mechanics like speed boosters and special items further placing the emphasis on a more casual audience, rather than fans of actual racing simulators.
That may seem damning, but these are only surface elements when you get down to it. While Mario Kart 64 is a game where you just select your course and play a few races, Diddy Kong Racing is structured like an adventure game. Diddy Kong has received a call for aid from his friend Timber, whose island has been invaded by the evil Wizpig. Calling up several of his friends, Diddy must now take on a variety race tracks to open up the ultimate showdown with this evil piggy.
Firing up the game will instead take you to an open-ended HUB world; Timber's Island. You can freely explore this space and experiment with the game's control here, turning it into a wonderful playground akin to Super Mario 64's courtyard. It does an amazing job of drawing you into the game.
The actual races are then accessed by finding these doors that lead to themed worlds, where you then unlock new levels if you have enough golden balloons. These balloons are awarded the first time you beat any race, with more being hidden in the HUB world or won through challenges within it.
Another touch that elevates Diddy Kong Racing far above the other pretenders is the selection of different vehicles. There are the ever-reliable karts, a hovercraft with unique controls, and planes that utilize full 3D movement. You can freely switch between them in the HUB and most race tracks are designed to give each vehicle a different experience. A puddle of water might be a hazard to avoid while driving a kart, while for hovercrafts it becomes a neat shortcut. Or a windmill may just be neat scenery for both, while for aircraft its a dangerous, moving obstacle to dodge around. It completely changes how you approach a level. A brilliant, yet economical way to add so much more replay value.
Diddy Kong Racing also controls well. It's fast-paced and exciting, with less default grip than the karts in Mario Kart. Turning feels a lot looser, thus requiring you to better estimate how to take corners and utilize drifting. This wasn't an issue initially, but as the adventure continues the AI will gradually step up their pressure on you. Sniping you with items while hitting every boostpad on the track flawlessly on every lap. Unlike with Mario Kart, you'll have to hone your skills if you actually want to see all the content.
On that note, though. I do feel that Diddy Kong Racing is too demanding. After clearing each track in a world, you then unlock a boss fight. These are yet another cool addition that differentiates this game from other kart racers, but that's not the issue. After defeating the boss, you are then told to do every race AGAIN. Now besides winning the race itself—against even stronger AI—you also need to gather 8 coins hidden across the track. Some of them fairly accessible, while others can be far out of the way of the most optimal route. If you lose the race and/or don't get all the coins, you don't get a Golden Balloon.
After beating every track that way again, you unlock a rematch against the boss that is even harder. Win that and you're tasked with beating every level in that world AGAIN, but as a back-to-back Grand Prix. Do that and you finally get part of the key necessary to unlock the final world.
In other words, this is what you HAVE to do to actually finish the game. It isn't an optional challenge or post-adventure content, it's mandatory. This drained my enthusiasm for the adventure mode fast, as some coin races were unbearably annoying. Some took dozen of attempts where I'd barely come in second or would keep missing one tricky, out-of-the-way coin. It wasn't fun for me, so having to do that 20 times just to continue the adventure was unbearably obnoxious.
Another frustration throughout the game are its items. Diddy Kong Racing uses a system similar to Lego Racers, where items come into set categories; speed boost, projectiles, and traps. Each is matched to a certain color balloon, which are dotted all over the race track. Like Lego Racers, you can also upgrade any item by picking up multiple balloons of the same color in succession. The rocket becomes a homing rocket if you pick up a second red balloon, then a barrage of rockets if you pick up a third. Pick up any other color balloon though and you instantly lose what you had before.
While a neat idea, the items lack the satisfying feeling of their Mario Kart counterparts. Firing green shells feels great. Its accurate enough that you can skillfully hit someone ahead, but even missing a shot means it will bounce around the track and be a hazard for someone, somewhere. The rockets in this game, by comparison, have terrible accuracy even when homing in. Any mild bump in the road sends them flying off and they explode when hitting anything. Even when you do hit someone, the effect is wimpy and brief. Nothing compared to Mario Kart where the victim wails and bounces around for several seconds when struck.
The other items feel similarly underwhelming regardless of how far you upgrade. Often making it feel pointless to go out of your way to get them.
Diddy Kong Racing was a fascinating game to revisit. It's a unique specimen among kart racers with innovative ideas that remain impressive even today. At the same time, it's interesting to see how Rare used it to experiment with new ideas and characters. This would mark the first time that Conker and Banjo saw the light of day after all, with Banjo-Kazooie launching a few months later. Having exchanged the voice acting used in this game for the adorable gibberish that the series became known for.
As a kart racer, it is a strong contender with fantastic tracks, fun controls, and AI that puts up a sufficient challenge. With the 3 different vehicle types being a major selling point that the game utilizes well. It's only a shame that the items are such a letdown and that, compared to games like Mario Kart 64 and Snowboard Kids, the tracks are nowhere near as memorable. The adventure mode meanwhile has a lot of charm, but may prove too tedious to complete for many.
No comments:
Post a Comment