MySims Racing

MySims Racing
PAL cover art
Developer(s)	Artificial Mind & Movement
Publisher(s)	Electronic Arts
Distributor(s)	EA Distribution Nintendo
Composer(s)	Mark Mothersbaugh
Series	The Sims
Engine	Havok (Wii)
Platform(s)	Wii, Nintendo DS
Release date(s)	Nintendo DS, Wii NA: June 8, 2009 EU: June 19, 2009 AUS: June 19, 2009
Genre(s)	Racing Life simulation Sandbox (DS only)
Mode(s)	Single-player Multiplayer

MySims Racing is a go-kart-car racing game developed by Electronic Arts as part of the MySims series, a spin-off from its trademark The Sims series of games. The title was released on June 9, 2009, for the Nintendo DS and Wii.^[1]

Though similar to Mario Kart, the game offers some unique gameplay features, such as a Story Mode (similar to the rebooted Need for Speed series), basic car and character customization, and the ability to transfer cars to and from Wii Remotes.

Game features

Base vehicle types

• Compacted – The compact class is zippier, handles great and accelerates nicely too. The downside is they are very light; therefore against a bumping opponent they will tend to get pushed around a little more on the tracks.
• Mid-size - The mid-size vehicles are a step up in performance, weight and handling when compared to the compact class.
• Large - The large class consists of trucks, SUVs and a van. The obvious differences are that these vehicles are very heavy and tend to bully opponents off the tracks. Their downsides are they tend to accelerate very slowly and do not handle as well as the compact karts.
• Advice - Heavier cars tend to drift more while lighter cars handle well.

Customization categories

• Performance upgrades – There are four categories in which you can upgrade the karts performance attributes including Engine, which affects top speed and acceleration; Frame, which affects weight and acceleration; Handling; and Special. Special upgrades are given to a player when they win Gold Medals in any given challenge. They can affect all of the above.
• Styling upgrades – Choose from different Body Types, Front Bumpers, Front Headlights and Grill Assembly, Front Hood Ornaments, Side View Mirrors, Rear Accessories, Rear Tail Lights, Rear Bumpers, Wheels and Horns.
• Paint shop – Choose from dozens of colors and then add a door decal such as a Skull, Star, Lightning Bolt, Paw, Flames, Checkered, #8, Kitten, Bowtie, Butterfly, Heart, Flower, Wings, Octopus, Ninja Star, Snail, Bunny Luv, Radio Active, Hawaiian Flower and Soccer Ball.
• Create A Sim – There are multiple MySim Attribute categories to customize including Hair Style, Hair Color, Eyes, Voice, Name Your Sim, Skin Color, Mouth, Goggles (Eyewear) and Outfits.

Power-ups

The game features a large array of Power-ups (similar to the "items" of Mario Kart) which can be used during races to hinder rivals. Here is the list of Power-ups that appear in the game, along with their effects:

• Melon Accelerator – Wipes out other racer.
• Pumpkin Catapult – Creates slippery puddle and or obscures vision of other player.
• Beehive Trail – Honey trail to slow down other players.
• Soccer Balls – This allows a player to shoot up to three bouncing Soccer Balls. Any opponent hit by one of them will go into a wipeout.
• Bubble Dropper – Momentarily traps victims.
• Seed Thrower – Forms tree in road.
• Force Field – Surrounds your car with sturdy shields that keep you safe from most items for a short time. The Force Field can also be used as a battering ram, which will send the opponent in to a wipeout upon impact.
• Tornado Inverter - Turns the view of opponents ahead of you upside-down for a limited time, making it harder for them to maneuver their vehicles.
• Bunny Luv - This power-up summons a cupid-like bunny to shower opponents' windshield ahead of you with love, temporarily blocking their field of vision with a multitude of hearts.
• UFO - Using the UFO will allow you to get a free ride as it zooms along the race track.
• F-Energy Zap - This will send out a burst of F-Energy, overloading the engines of opponents ahead of you to temporarily reduce their speed and prevent them from boosting.
• F-Energy Storm - Your boost meter fills with large amounts of F-Energy for a limited amount of time.
• Bottle of Soda - Sends you flying for a limited amount of time.

Characters

The following are characters featured in the Nintendo Wii version of MySims Racing.

Racers

• Brandi
• Chaz McFreely
• DJ Candy "Supergroove"
• Dr F
• Fire Chief Ginny
• Goth Boy
• King Roland
• Makoto
• Mel the Mummy
• Morcubus
• Ol' Gabby
• Sir Charles
• Star
• T.O.B.O.R.
• Violet Nightshade
• Your custom made racer

Business owners

• Chef Gino Delicioso
• Chef Watanabe/Sachiko Watanabe
• Dolly Dearheart
• Goth Boy
• Madame Zoey
• Master Aran
• Poppy Nightshade
• Professor Nova
• Rosalyn

Business owners

• Roxie Road
• Samurai Bob
• Shirley
• Travis
• Trevor Verily
• Vic Vector

Others

• Esma (MorcuCorp Employee)
• Gonk (Islander)
• Luis (MorcuCorp Employee)
• Roger (MorcuCorp Employee)
• Sir Vincent Skullfinder (MorcuCorp Employee)
• Summer (Starter Girl)
• Grandma Ruthie (Resident)

Reception

The game received positive reviews among critics. GameSpot gave the Wii version 7.5, praising the game's customization and new style of kart racing.^[2] The DS version received 7.0 from GameSpot. It was praised for its fun customization options, the Story mode that mixes up the standard kart-racing formula and its crisp, vibrant visuals both in and out of races; however felt the game's Story mode was too long.^[3]

Reception
Aggregate scores Aggregator Score GameRankings 70.21%[4] Metacritic 68%[5] Review scores Publication Score GameSpot 7.5[2] GameZone 6[6] IGN 7.0[7] Blast [8] Nintendo World Report 8[9] NZ Gamer 8.5[10]

References

1. "MySims Racing (Wii)". IGN. Retrieved June 14, 2016.
2. Austin Light (June 24, 2009). "MySims Racing Review". GameSpot. Archived from the original on June 27, 2009. Retrieved September 17, 2011.
3. Austin Light (June 25, 2009). "MySims Racing Review". GameSpot. Archived from the original on June 28, 2009. Retrieved September 17, 2011.
4. "MySims Racing". GameRankings. Retrieved July 9, 2016.
5. "MySims Racing". Metacritic. Retrieved July 9, 2016.
6. "MySims Racing - NDS - Review". GameZone. June 22, 2009. Retrieved July 9, 2016.
7. Matt Casamassina (June 26, 2009). "MySims Racing Review". IGN. Retrieved July 9, 2016.
8. Marc Normandin (June 17, 2009). "MySims Racing Wii review". Blast. Retrieved July 9, 2016.
9. Pedro Hernandez (July 14, 2009). "MySims Racing". Nintendo World Report. Retrieved July 9, 2016.
10. Sam Prescott (July 1, 2009). "MySims Racing". NZ Gamer. Retrieved July 9, 2016.