Mini Racing Adventures Review

Developer: Diori Cergy
Price: FREE
Version Reviewed: 1.0
App Reviewed on: iPhone 5

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Overall Rating:

Mini Racing Adventures is a driving game that feels a bit like Trials. It's a physics-based game that features ramps, tires, and other obstacles that players must navigate by manipulating their vehicle's throttle and tilt. Despite the promise of this premise, Mini Racing Adventures is a bit too rough around the edges to capture the greatness of other physics-based racers.

Driving in Mini Racing Adventures is a very streamlined affair. Players press on virtual gas and brake pedals on either side of the screen to control both their speed and trajectory. Since the cars cannot accelerate or decelerate while airborne, the pedals act to tilt them forward and backward so that players can adjust their landing.

Just as in the Trials games, landing the right way is just as important - if not more important - than going fast, as this can result in significantly slowing down your car or even ending the run entirely. In Mini Racing Adventures, landing correctly also allows players to conserve fuel, which is crucial for making it between the checkpoints that are present in all of the modes - including everything from multiplayer races to a solo exploratory mode.

All of these features in Mini Racing Advetures would be extremely compelling if it were as well made as the source material it cribs from. Unfortunately though, thebuttons are hard to hit accurately at times, the driving and tilting feels sluggish, and the rate of progression is really slow. These all add up to an experience that is hard to keep returning to, even after just a few races.

While there are sound ideas in play with Mini Racing Adventures, the whole experience just feels off. I get the sense that it's not just me that feels that way too, since the multiplayer mode is completely devoid of challengers. With this being the case, it's pretty difficult to recommend picking it up -even if you're super interested in physics-based racing.