![]() ![]() Usually it’s myself, one other person, and 10 bots. I’ve played around 100 matches and 5 other humans is the most I’ve ever been up against. At the time of writing, Codemasters appears to be having difficulties getting World Series‘ online multiplayer properly functioning. ![]() Technical limitations feel as if they kneecapped this offering as it’s probably not feasible to render the game four times over for split-screen I’ve noticed significant stuttering and hiccups on Xbox One on some of the busier racing courses.īut, it’s not really possible to play with many other people online either, at least currently. The former doesn’t represent the best of the battle modes, and the latter doesn’t represent the best of the racing. Local options are pared down to: a battle arena that takes place on a static screen, and an elimination type race where you win the round by going fast enough that the other players fall off-screen. ![]() Separating from the rest of the cars is the only way to feel in control of your fate.Ĭodemasters is selling this game partially on the strength of its couch competitive multiplayer and that’s an ill-conceived pitch. Clean racing can prove effective, but it’s really a clean start that’s most important. Pseudo-mastery of the floaty, slidey controls only goes so far, as each race is still determined partly by luck. In my experience, I was just as likely to benefit from Micro Machines World Series‘ quirks as I was to be hindered by them. A few of the maps have devices to highlight this - like the billiards pocket that spits everyone out super close to one another, and the toaster that pops all the cars up in the air together. It works in a kinda-frustrating way for Micro Machines, mostly because it’s often ingrained into the design. That is chiefly due to the fact that Micro Machines World Series revels in its rubberbanding, a genre faux pas for more serious racers. The three power-ups (bomb to lob behind you, hammer to smash near you, and ineffective gun to shoot ahead of you) complicate everything, and it’s not uncommon for one of these to send you from the front of the pack to last place. The 12-car races prominently feature blunder after blunder, as everyone bumps into one another and causes frequent careening off the track. Racing feels (stick with me here) more reliable in its completely frenetic and unreliable ways. There are 10 courses, many of which are modified retreads from Codemasters’ recent non- Micro Machines title Toybox Turbos. The five-lap circuits are quick and that helps nicely underscore the arcade nature of this game. The other major mode, racing, homogenizes everything in that it strips the abilities from the individual vehicles in favor of randomized pickups along the track. Combined with the clusterfuck nature of the skirmishes, it’s tough to feel like there’s any greater strategy being employed. There’s an inherent lack of control that comes with the top-down presentation, meaning that it’s often difficult to play with any real precision. For example: the healer is an ambulance, the spy is the car that can do covert cloaking stuff, and the tank is a literal tank.Īll of this is great in theory, but World Series‘ style doesn’t lend itself well to proper execution. (There’s another one where you try to carry a bomb into the opponent’s base, which is kind of just capture the flag in reverse.) There are 12 different car types and each of them serves a specific role. A Battle mode pits two sides of six against each other in classic king of the hill and capture the flag scenarios. Where World Series most earnestly tries to be like Overwatch is where it strays furthest from its roots. Micro Machines World Series (PC, PS4, Xbox One ) What little is here goes threadbare before long. However, in a more meaningful way, there’s not enough substance for it to ever make good on that ambition. The ambitious imitation at the heart of this game has an infectious enthusiasm about it, like it wants to be more than we expect of it. In a way, this mimicry elevates Micro Machines World Series. The influence is immediately apparent - from the different classes of vehicles each outfitted with their own abilities and ultimates, to the identical loot box/unlockables system (don’t fret, there aren’t any microtransactions). It’s an odd fit for a top-down racer to draw inspiration from a hero shooter, but that’s what World Series does. Micro Machines World Series wants to be Overwatch. ![]()
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