Nickelodeon Kart Racers

WHO MUTED THE CHANNEL?

- Justin Towell

Licensed kart racers have long had a bad reputation, and with good reason. It’s all too easy to stick some well-known characters in go-karts, make some tracks based loosely on their worlds and add themed weapons, basically copying the template that Nintendo forged back in 1992 with Mario Kart. Originality takes a back door while the money comes rolling in. But even at their most cynical, licensed kart racers at least need to look and sound like their source material. Nickelodeon Kart Racers doesn’t.

It looks passable, though basic, but it doesn’t even include character voices. Nobody says “Hey Tommy, I gotta idea,” or “Can I be excused for the rest of my life?” Instead, characters communicate their dismay or jubilation via a text box in the corner of the screen. Whatever the reason – licensing? – it’s just not good enough. And with no announcer to keep the excitement up either, the branding becomes nebulous and the enjoyment level plummets.