I can’t tell you the last time I heard the words “time extension” in a video game. Formula Retro Racing: World Tour calls back to the glory days of the arcade. It brings the best of classic titles like Daytona USA to modern consoles.
The result is, unfortunately, a bit of a mixed back. The nostalgia will eventually wear off, and the game is asked to stand alone. Sadly, Formula Retro Racing: World Tour isn’t always up to the task, delivering an uneven experience that makes it hard to recommend.
Formula Retro Racing: World Tour Tries To Emulate a Legend
One of the most significant issues with Formula Retro Racing: World Tour has nothing to do with the game itself. While it matches its predecessors in terms of look, it doesn’t always successfully nail the feel. Daytona USA is legendary because it offers the sights, sounds, and feel of a true racing experience. The in-game physics still holds up today, and if you’re not driving properly, the game rightfully punishes you.
Formula Retro Racing: World Tour has the look but doesn’t always have the feel. Physics is a mixed bag, ranging from solid to outright comical. Driving through opposing cars sometimes results in their complete destruction. At first, this doesn’t matter so much. It feels nice to be playing an old-school arcade racer. I do want to note that destructible cards are a feature, but the game’s website only references your car: “Discover the consequences of pushing your car too far with realistic crash physics that tear your vehicle apart piece by piece.” It doesn’t say anything about your opponent’s cars literally disintegrating.
You can look past the game’s flaws for some time. You’re overcome with the warm embrace of nostalgia. It’s like you’re a kid in the arcade, and you’re putting quarters into the Daytona USA machine again.
Before that nostalgia wears thin, the game knows how to make you smile. Between the rolling start, low-poly graphics, and old-school presentation, you’re transported back to the days of your youth. Everything, from the course select screen (which features a countdown timer!) to the in-race display, is meant to evoke the arcade cabinet racers of old.
Once the nostalgia wears off, however, the cracks begin to show. The game doesn’t offer much in terms of challenge. While split-screen multiplayer is available, there isn’t any online functionality outside leaderboards.
There’s a Surprising Amount of Content Here
One thing that can help Formula Retro Racing: World Tour overcome its issues is the sheer amount of content: there is a lot to do here. Eighteen tracks across four different game modes mean you’re not running out of things to see and do anytime soon.
This highlights one of the strengths of Formula Retro Racing: World Tour. Developer Repixel8 aimed high to ensure the game warrants its price tag. Sadly, this makes it all the more disappointing that the game can’t handle its weight. You want to fall in love with this type of title—a game you want to keep coming back to over and over again.
Formula Retro Racing: World Tour hits all the right notes with its sights and sounds but can’t follow through on execution.
Wrapping Up
Unfortunately, it’s hard to recommend Formula Retro Racing: World Tour in its current state. There are too many issues for the game to overcome. A couple of extra months of development could have done wonders for the game. But, alas, we have to sit back and wonder what could have been.
Repixel8 may be able to address the issues with future updates. Until then, though, it’s best to stay on the sidelines.
