I am a racing game fan. Whenever I see a new racing game hit the eshop, I’m happy, especially if its a top down racer. So when Rock N’ Racing was announced, I was hyped. Since I didn’t play the Wii U, version I was not sure what to expect from the game. One thing that I expected was a challenge because–ultimately–if a game is too easy, it feels like a bore. I prefer to be challenged; I like that my victories are well earned and that I won based on my skills and understanding of the game mechanics and gameplay elements. Rock N’ Racing Grand Prix is a challenge, but not for the reasons you might think.
Graphically, the game looks good. The vehicles and each of the circuits are well detailed. The music is really good, and the over-enthusiastic announcer it has doesn’t bother me. My main gripe with the game is the terrible controls. A pretty good soundtrack and decent visuals can’t save the game. Unfortunately, it’s the same for Rock N’ Racing. Trying to turn your car with a little speed feels like you’re trying to turn a bus. I spent some time trying to be sure that I wasn’t misunderstanding the controls. I thought the steering was somehow relative to my car on screen or something, but it is generally unresponsive. I even went as far of re sync my joy cons and calibrate them again, but its just that controls are that bad. I even thought that maybe the upgrade system would be the way to improve things, but it made no substantial difference. Steering is a critical part of racing. This is simply unacceptable.
Championship, as you probably guessed, is the meat of the game. You start a campaign, which really is just a “season” that takes you through 10 available races. You can score from 1 to 10 points for finishing each race, and the goal is to reach the end with more combined points than each of the other drivers. If you come in first, you probably get a message of congratulations. If you come in second or worse, you are advised that you have failed. There is also a Turbo indicator that fills out as you brake and maneuver your way around the circuits, but I honestly don’t know what is the purpose of it, since you are better without it due to the terrible controls.
Bottom Line: Rock N’ Racing Grand Prix is a good example how poor planing and bad decisions affect a game that could have been something else. On paper Rock N Racing sounded awesome, but in execution, it is a bad time waiting to happen. It’s a shame because I was definitely exited to try it, but in its current state I can’t recommend it to anyone. There are better options to scratch that racing itch.