Meow Motors review

Sometimes there’s nothing better than a traditional kart racer to kick off the party. Kart racers are fun and often promote competition within the household, competition that lives for a very long time. Meow Motors created by ArtVostok, is the next in long list of games trying to grab a slice of the action, with the ultimate goal to stand out from the crowd with its quirkiness and gameplay. Unfortunately for games in this genre there will always be a king in the game world, and that crown goes to Mario Kart, but there is certainly room for a challenger to join the royal family of Kart racers.

I present to you The Kitties, the heroes inside the driving seat, the ones ready to go head to head in this Cat-tastic go-kart racer. Beware though, these delightful little furry friends may appear cute, but they’ve had more than their fair share of Catnip and are completely nuts, armed to the teeth with weapons on the track as they look to take out their fellow competitors.

Guide your kitty around the treacherous obstacles, claw your way round the corners, show casing some awesome drifting skills,  avoid the mines and bombs that are literally littered all over the place, and should you be lucky enough to survive the chaotic explosive action, you may just come out with 1 of your 9 lives intact and cross the finishing line first.

Meow Motors features ten lovable heroes to get to grips with, each with their own characteristics, unique personalities and memorable skill sets. The game is built around classic kart racer gameplay, with the added extreme competitor edge that is needed to succeed. Filled with some astonishing weapons on offer, there is no better way then to have you jumping off the sofa as you blast the leader whose about to cross the finishing line with the sticky yet fantastic bubble gum shooter, thus taking glory in the process.

This little racer is designed around three different game modes and twenty different themed tracks, so there’s plenty of variation to keep you on your paws, and lots to scratch at. These race types are your classic track races, drift for points in drift, and take out the competition in Strike. As with most games in this genre, trophies and stars play a vital role in unlocking the next set of races, and this game is no different in that respect, but what it does have is charm, and cuteness personified, with a quirky sense of fun that will have you on the edge of your seats.

The weapons and power up’s is where it’s at in this tidy racer, not only do the ten kitties have there own unique weapons which can be charged and used for devastating effect, you can also unlock future power ups for your kart which will give you a tactical if not obvious advantage.  These special unique weapons to your character are charged by pulling off stupendous drifts and impressive overtaking manoeuvres and add to the 10-power up’s on offer at strategically placed locations on the track. Collecting these should be a must, get to your favourite first, avoid the scramble and let loose at that vital moment. Each power up has different abilities to affect the race, just make sure you use them wisely, as not all are explosive, some may just keep your kart wheels grounded.

Meow Motor’s is wonderfully presented, colourful, vibrant and bright. The Character’s are wonderfully created, each with there own little personalities that will warm to the player’s heart. The Tracks are crafted excellently, designed to complement the gameplay, thus giving a real sense of speed and escape. The races themselves are what you’d expect from a kart racer, however there’s a lack of individuality about them, the word clone is used a lot in gaming, and unfortunately the race modes featured in the game lack adventure and in my view are to safe, offering nothing new in very populated genre.

That’s not to say Meow Motor’s is not fun, it exudes fun in abundance when it comes to single races and couch play, four player local play is an absolute blast and the power up’s and charging of unique weapons only adds to what is an exciting racer in principle, but with the lack of game modes, and no Xbox Live multiplayer, this game could and should have been a little gem, what with its competitive gameplay. Shame, but still fun with right company.

Pro’s

Track design

Fantastic use of power up’s

Couch Play Fun

Con’s

Lack of game modes

No Xbox Live Multiplayer

Not creative enough

Repetitive

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