joe danger

PLATFORM: PSN
RELEASE DATE: 06/2010
DEVELOPER & PUBLISHER: Hello Games
ESRB RATING: E

Progress: 35%

GAMEDAE DISCLAIMER: Welcome our newest casual game critic, Pixel Princess -- it is what it is.

If you are a die-hard, old-school Mario Kart fan (if I was cool I would say Excite Bike here, but I am me, so I say Mario Kart!) but find yourself squealing and running into walls playing Burnout or Modnation, then Joe Danger is for you! It is also for those who have mastered the latest racing game and really anyone who is up for a ridiculously fun, fast paced challenge that requires just the right amount of skill, enthusiasm and chutzpah.

The premise is simple, you are Joe Danger, a racing legend, has-been, and you are on your comeback tour - showing off all your skills and winning challenges in order to earn enough stars to continue to unlock new levels.

It is a 2(1/2) dimensional scrolling game that allows Joe to drive his motorcycle over crazy obstacles, do continuous wheelies and most importantly rock crazy tricks, like the Superman, Statue of Liberty and Crowd Wave, while in-the-air and master the soft landing. The whole point, other than to beat the challenge, it is rack up millions, no ba-gillions of points so you can beat the high scores. Interesting to note is you can move in either direction allowing Joe to go back for missed items or increased control while in the air. HINT: You only get points doing bad ass tricks. Use your L1 & R1 buttons to pull off combos for maximum pointage.

The controls are intuitive and it is easy to get good at this game. You can enjoy instant gratification of winning an easy challenge but than there are some that seem nearly impossible to beat and then 88 tries later...success! You can click Select at anytime to restart the race /or your checkpoint- that is actually extremely convenient to have and makes it easy to continue to re-try when you crash.

A note on crashing: It is not so bad. The developers did a good job at including interesting "after crash" Joe Danger animation. I don't want to give away the particulars. You will have to see for yourself.

The music is infectious and the graphics are fun, bright and easy on the eyes. The easy game play and creative challenges really make this game worth getting. A cheap download from the PS Store will give you hours of entertainment. It is a great party game too because everyone can take turns and the fast pace keeps it exciting and even fun to watch others play and many times, crash! There is actually a split screen option so two people can race against each other but I find that I always prefer to switch off playing instead. Mainly because you lose so much of the fun factor when you only get half the screen, but secretly it is because I like to see my Superman to Handle Bar Sit combo up close and personal. You may like it so give it a try before making a final judgment.

The one complaint I have is the game menu of courses -- it is confusing and difficult to get to navigate to a course you can race on.

There are other aspects of this game that I am ignoring, such as the custom track editor to build your own courses. I'm sure that stuff is cool, but I just like the individual racing. I encourage you to explore those other aspects, especially if they seem interesting to you.

HIghlights

• Easy gameplay
• Difficult challenges
• Endless points
• Custom track editor

Low lights

• Menu navigation
  

A-

Buy Joe Danger and have some fun