To the unknowing, RE-VOLT 2 : Best RC 3D Racing sounds like it could hold quite a bit of promise with the offer of putting the thrill of racing radio-controlled cars in the palm of your hand. But as the semi-broken English of the title and Google Play entry hints, the game itself is less of a game changer than it is a rehashing of some common concepts.
Reality Crumbles
To make one thing perfectly clear: RE-VOLT 2 : Best RC 3D Racing is not a bad game. However, it does defy expectations in some ways which might be unexpected, unless you’ve played the first game. Simply put: racing radio-controlled cars is a fairly unique experience, and is a bit different from standard racing. Even in a real-life context, it’s like the difference between a top-down shooter like Commando versus a first-person shooter like Call of Duty. Both are valid and fun, but despite some similarities, offer very different experiences.
What this is all getting at is that if you go into this game expecting something resembling radio-controlled racing, you’re going to be sorely disappointed. This is basically a racing game like any other, from the perspective to the controls, with the key difference being that your vehicle now has a big, conspicuous antenna sticking out of the top. The concept is a skin for a standard racing game, though at the same time, we can at least say that it’s an interesting concept.
Really Colorful
One oldschool racing favorite among gamers is Micro Machines, which has the tiny titular toys zooming along through the oversized interiors of houses and other such to-scale locales. Rather than streets or race tracks, RE-VOLT 2 : Best RC 3D Racing takes place in similar surroundings as you zip through toy stores, surprisingly barren grocery stores, neighborhood streets, and other makeshift courses which make sense from the perspective of a smaller race car.
Adding slightly to the toy motif is the ability to right your car at the press of a button, which is typically necessary after being struck by a Mario Kart-styled item during multi-car races. At the very least, the lifting and righting of the car feels sort of like what one would need to do in real life when their R.C. car is flipped, albeit slightly more abstract. Between touches such as this and racing through larger-than-life courses, the game still manages to have fun with the concept in ways beyond the core gameplay style.
Though colorful, the graphics and sound are not likely to set anyone’s heart aflutter. While not bad, the graphics are more or less serviceable at best, and don’t really excel. Similarly, the soundtrack is just kind of there, pumping out some sort of pop beats (we think?), and is just kind of forgettable.
Radical Customization
As with many racing games, the amount of customization options are plentiful. You begin with a choice of three cars, each of which has stats you can improve upon, and which can be maxed out pretty early on. Playing the game earns you more in-game currency to spend, and you can purchase more vehicles of varying shapes and sizes, including monster-style vehicles. You can also choose from a small selection of different paint jobs, or purchase more.
You also have three different control schemes to choose from, including your typical tilt-based controls, full on-screen buttons for everything, and a simple auto-accelerating mode where you simply need to tap left or right in order to steer. Of the three, our preferred choice was actually the last one, though the others seem to work fairly well, too. Your mileage may vary, but at least all of the choices are pretty decent, rather than having a good one and a bad one.
Rescinded Content
The biggest downside in RE-VOLT 2 : Best RC 3D Racing is that in the early goings, you’re kind of locked into having very little to do. It begins with the Time Trials open, which offers a bit of variety as you move along. However, if you want to take part in the Grand Prix, you’ll have to earn 25 stars first. Meanwhile, the multiplayer content is still to come.
Reached Conclusion
As noted before, RE-VOLT 2 : Best RC 3D Racing is not a bad game, but it does underwhelm, with the degree to which it does depending on what exactly your expectations were. If you’re looking for a low-budget racing game with a “Small World” hook, then you’ve come to the right place. Anything more, however, and you might feel a bit disappointed.
