by In 1991, Atlus, best known for Shin Megami Tensei and Persona, released Wacky Races, based on the Hanna-Barbera cartoon of the same name. Normally, you’d expect a game based on Wacky Races to be, well, a racing game, but instead, we got an action-platformer.
The premise is simple. You play as Muttley, and you must help Dick Dastardly win the Wacky Races at any cost. You do this by running, jumping, and biting your way through platformer stages and eventually facing off against the rest of the Wacky Races crew and their souped-up cars.
So, does Wacky Races take home gold, or is it as much of a loser as Dick Dastardly? Let’s find out.
Gameplay
Let’s start with the controls. We have typical platforming conventions here. The D-pad moves you, the A button jumps, the B button attacks, the Start button Pauses, and the Select button activates the highlighted power-ups.
The power-ups include a bomb, which you can throw. A supersonic bark, the word “Bow!” flies across the screen and destroys your enemies. Wings, which allow you to “glide” by spinning Muttley’s tail like a helicopter. And finally, the Heart, which not only heals you but also increases your maximum health up to 6 hearts. To switch the highlighted power-up, you have to collect bones. The marker cycles between power-ups left to right, and once you activate one, you have to collect more bones to restart the process.
The controls are very responsive, and the platforming is fun, if rather simple. It’s not going to make it to anyone’s top 10 list, but it’s way better than I expected for a game based on a Hanna-Barbera cartoon.
I give the gameplay an 8/10.
Graphics
The graphics are not going to blow anyone away, but they aren’t meant to. It’s based on a Hanna-Barbera cartoon. They weren’t known for their detailed art, but for their simple and easy-to-animate characters. Wacky Races matches this feel quite well. The character designs are simple but expressive. There is a wide variety of enemies, too.
One detail that I particularly liked was the boss sprites. The cars and their drivers are recognizable, and they each have a unique sprite when you defeat them. The Hanna-Barbera cartoony vibe shines through perfectly here. They also did a great job with Muttley himself, which is good since he is the main character here.
The biggest problem with the graphics is that in some levels, it can be hard to tell what is and isn’t the background or a solid object.
I give the graphics a 7.5/10.
Music and Sound
The music is actually pretty decent. It’s not going to blow anyone away, but it more than does the job. There is quite a bit of variety here, and some of it is quite catchy. A couple of tracks were annoying, but the levels are usually fairly short, so that didn’t bother me much.
Apparently, they used the Japanese dub version of the Wacky Races theme song for the opening screen. It probably would have been better to use the version that each area was familiar with, but it was interesting to see how their opening for the show differed from ours.
The sound effects feel a bit generic, but they do the job.
I give the music and sound a 7/10.
Difficulty
You start with 3 lives and infinite continues. Extra lives are plentiful, and collecting a hundred diamonds grants extra lives as well.
I didn’t come across many platforming challenges either. There are a few spots that I needed to use the wings power-up, but that’s not much of an issue because once you activate it, you have it until you die. Other than that, I only had one spot that I had trouble with.
Most enemies die in a single hit. There are a couple of invulnerable enemies, but they are extremely rare. I will give them credit for having two phases for each boss. Otherwise, the game is fairly easy, especially if you make sure to max out your hearts as soon as possible.
Overall, this game is easier than average for an NES game.
Final Score
I give Wacky Races a 7.5/10.
If I’m going to give a trophy to the game, I’d give it a silver one. I think it’s worth playing, especially if you like action-platformers and/or Hanna-Barbera. The current loose price is about $404, so it’s definitely not in the price range of the average person.
I do have to give the game some extra credit for the manual. The introduction sounds like it is right out of an episode of Wacky Races. I could even hear the voice of the announcer in my mind as I read it. This did not go into the score, but it’s a fun detail.
