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Excite Truck: a must have game for the Wii

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 50 / 52
Date: November 20, 2006
Author: Amazon User

Excite Truck, in adding a vertical component to a standard racing game, has created one of the more enjoyable games that I've played in recent memory.

Controlling the trucks in Excite Truck is both unique and simple. Holding the standard Wii remote sideways (keep the d-pad under your left thumb and the 1 and 2 buttons under your right), you steer the truck by turning the controller. The courses feature many ramps from which you can launch your truck into the air and control how long it stays aloft by rotating the controller back toward you. And if you stick the landing, so to speak, by aligning all four of the truck's tires with the ground (again, by rotating the controller), you can get a speed boost.

The game play in Excite Truck is very compelling. The game offers a head-to-head mode that pits two racers against each other, but my friends and I preferred collaborating on clearing the levels. In a twist that is, in my experience, unique to Excite Truck, you do not clear a track based just on score. Instead, you must collect stars as you run through the course. Stars are granted for, among other things, jumps with long hang-times, daring runs through trees, hard slides through curves, and smashing other trucks. You can also get points for how you place in the race, but it is much more important to collect stars during the race as you cannot get an 'A' or 'B' for a course simply by coming in first. In fact, no matter how fast you race, your competitors will likely be able to match your pace, especially in the 'Gold' and 'Platinum' level tracks. It takes deft maneuvering at the end of the race to secure a first place finish in some of these later levels. All things considered, the focus on tricks and jumps makes for a very enjoyable game, especially for a group of players.

Quibbles:

• The initial setup of the game -- all of the game actually -- requires that you hold the remote sideways. However, no indication of this is given when you are asked to create save data at the beginning of the game, so you have to figure out on your own why pressing the up arrow moves the cursor to the left. Driving the menus with the standard Wii point-and-click interface would have been a useful improvement.
  
• The controls take some getting used to. Some of my friends had a tendency to try to steer with the directional pad. Others would over steer by turning the remote all the way past vertical when steering, which had unpredictable results. But a little more time with the game will probably get people used to the controls. (And, as a full disclaimer, none of the ones who had difficulty steering had completed the tutorials.)

All that aside, Excite Truck is a must-have game for the Nintendo Wii.

Casual Gaming Fun

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 15 / 18
Date: March 31, 2007
Author: Amazon User

Excite Truck might seem to be a straightforward truck dirt-racing game, but they include a number of interesting features like morphing terrain, super speed, and stunts.

The graphics are rather nice. You get a variety of terrain types - deserty mountains, snowy slopes, sandy dunes, tropical paradises, and much more. There are numerous models to choose from - four by fours, buggies, SUV styles, and other styles you can unlock as you go. You get all the colors of the rainbow to paint your vehicle.

The sound is reasonably good - what do you really care in a racing game? It's a collection of upbeat rock songs, along with the squeal-crash-wrrrrrr of the trucks racing.

The fantastic fun here is the actual racing. No, this isn't high end technical Indy car tuning. This is out and out fun, the kind where you have friends over for the afternoon and laugh yourselves silly with the moves you are making. You can play against friends, play with friends, or play on your own to get the longest jump, the most impressive crash, or any other of a number of stats.

That's because this game isn't just about who makes it to the finish line first. You have to gather up enough stars to win, too. Stars are earned by doing outrageous feats. Do a flip in the air, crash in an impressive manner, go for a long distance slide.

The courses make this fun to play and replay. There is lava rolling down at you, boulders crashing, landscapes changing before your eyes. These aren't courses you master in one pass. There's always something new to learn if you keep your eyes open.

The game is definitely family-friendly - grandparents can play with their grandkids and both would enjoy it.

Is there a downside? You could argue that the same is too "silly" - but that's its purpose. It isn't meant to be a serious racing game. Maybe the trucks are a little too shiny, but I find it hard to object. I think my biggest complaint is that you can only have two trucks in multi-player, and it's just head-to-head. It'd be cool if you had more than 2 players, or 2 players in a regular field with computer-controlled enemies, or co-op modes on the real courses.

Still, these are minor complaints. The game is quite fun.

Well recommended!

People who enjoy real racing go somewhere else....

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 14 / 17
Date: December 07, 2006
Author: Amazon User

This is arcade fun at it's best. Excite Truck is just plain fun. It takes a while to get used to using the Wiimote as a steering wheel. After you have played this game for a few minutes you get used to the non stop fun. This game is pure arcade based aderaline pumping fun. There is no realism here and that was never the intent. This is a perfect example of what Nintendo is trying to accomplish with the Wii. Simple fun...It's hard to believe that something so simple has eluded game designers for so long. Now with the full interaction you can be steering your monster truck over jumps going crazy distances. The game has this feature where if you hit a bonus the terrain changes before your eyes. Bumps turn quickly into hills. It's an amazing site and adds more fun to each level...Just because I have commented on the fun factor doesn't make this game simple to beat. The non stop speed and the terrain will have you facing quite the challenge. If you are in the market for new games for your Wii look no further than Excite Truck.

Excite Bike - Bike + Insanity + Truck = FUN GAME!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 8 / 9
Date: December 23, 2006
Author: Amazon User

Excite Truck is a launch game for the Nintendo Wii and is FANTASTIC! The game is perfect in nearly every way, so here's how:

PLAYING IT: Excite Truck is a simple game, really. You turn the Wii remote sideways and then tilt it left and right to steer your truck! '2' is accelerate. '1' is brake. And the D-Pad is turbo. And the D-pad is turbo. And the D-pad is turbo. And the D-pad is turbo. Get it?

GAMEPLAY: Excite Truck's winning conditions are unlike any other racing game. While it does help enormously to get in first place, the game is not a race, but a competition of points. To get these points you must do insane stuff: Going extremly close to tons of trees in a row, staying up in the air for seemingly hours, pulling off air spins, morphing the terrain and sending other trucks into the air, ramming straight into anything possible, and MORE!

GRAPHICS: Graphics are usually things that fans of other consoles taunt when it comes to Nintendo. But Excite Truck's are absolutley astounding! Water is realtisically rendered, dirt on the ground goes into the air when your truck lands, paint is thrown off of the truck when you crash, and coconuts fall from trees making the sand sprinkle when you crash into a palm tree!

COURSES: Perhaps this is where Excite Truck does not exceed so much. Each course is insanely fun and perfectly made, but they seem to be...similar. Too similar. Oftentimes, a new course you unlock is an exact replica of an old course you already beat, just taking a diffrent route every 5 seconds and then veering back to the old level.

TRUCKS: Another place. Excite Truck's trucks are made great, but almost every truck seems to have a clone. Of course, trucks like the Boulder, Dynamo and Alpine and expert cars, there seem to be wannabees of these cars, some that are short and long, which reangle the camera during a race more towards the ground.

EXTRAS: Excite Truck doesn't have many extras to speak of. You beat, 4 or 5 courses, and you unlock another 4 or 5. And when you do certain stuff, you get new trucks. Although working for the Diamond Cup in the Super Excite difficulty is defiently worth your frustration and time. Not to say that it needs extras,anyway. And even though not much comes from winning trophies of pulling of those 250 Super Tree Runs, you still can't help but just think 'but maybe..'

DIFFICULTY: Excite Truck seems to have uneven difficulty at times. The bronze cup is insanely easy, and the silver cup is a bit mixed, but the Gold Cup is INSANELY difficult, yet the platinum cup doesn't present much challenge, although it does contain the best courses in the game (landing that jump means racing on the GREAT WALL OF CHINA!) yet the secret Diamond Cup is amazingly difficult..I reccommend the Sargon for beating it.

MULTIPLAYER: People seem to complain that Excite Truck's two-player mode is boring. While it does seem dull compared to single player, its still a rousing good time with your friends. And there are no framerate issues!

REPLAY VALUE: Excite Truck has infinite replay value, not because of graphics, difficulty or anything like that, just because its fun. It's a fun game for all ages.

FINAL SCORE:
Gameplay: 9.8
Graphics: 9.2
Courses: 8.7
Trucks: 7.0
Extras: 6.3
Difficulty: 9.1
Multiplayer: 7.9
Replay Value: 10.0
TOTAL (Not Averaged): 9.7

Brilliant Use of the New Wii!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 4 / 4
Date: November 21, 2006
Author: Amazon User

First off, this game's graphics are not mind-blowing. They are very good, but they are not as beautiful as the Xbox 360 or the Playstation 3. That said, that is not the reason that you buy this game. The game has amazing replayability because of it's amazing controls and fun factor. You turn the Wii remote on its side and use it as a steering wheel. When on a massive jump, use the "steering wheel" to change your pitch and land safely. Perfect landings are met with speed boosts. Playing this game with friends is a blast. Your friends will be wowed by the controls and then wowed by the fun they're having.

I have played several of the Wii games already and this is my favorite!

Must buy!

Surprisingly fun, exciting and addictive.

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 4 / 4
Date: January 18, 2007
Author: Amazon User

I don't usually spend time on racing video games, but Excite Truck for Wii is an especially fun and exciting game. While there are lots of points to be scored for all sorts of stunts and tricks like air, spins, jump combos, leaping through rings, etc. the big bonuses available for coming in 1st or 2nd in races are essential for getting high ratings and unlocking additional levels of racing challenge. Therefore, becoming good at the racing itself is just as important as being able to pull off stunts, and trying to excel at both of these aspects of the game will keep you entertained and excited with Excite Truck for many hours.

The physics are strictly arcade, yet there are surprising subtleties in the way one can manipulate the vehicles through the various obstacles and terrain in this game. There are many trucks from which to choose, each with their own strengths and weaknesses, and winning races gradually unlocks more vehicles from which you can choose to run your races. Racing against another live opponent is also quite fun, although only two people can race at a time and no CPU controlled opponents appear in those head-to-head races.

Excite Truck lives up to its name as it is a fun and exciting game even for casual video gamers and non-racing fans. Highly recommended!

A Totally Fun and Insane Game

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 4 / 4
Date: November 23, 2006
Author: Amazon User

This game is not for those who like realistic driving games but that is why I like this game so much.

This game is insanely fun. Doing tricks and stunts with a truck, flying through the air off jumps and boosting. It is just tons of fun. You can also get points for ramming your opponent off the road and having nice crashes.

This game and the tutorial learning how to use the controls is not hard to learn at all. The driving is very intuitive. Anyone can play it. When you turn the Wii reomte controller sideways then you can use it as a steering wheel. You then can steer the truck by turning the controller as if you are steering a car.

I would have to say besides the new Zelda, Excite Truck is my favorite game to play on the Wii so far.

Just remember when purchasing this game, the graphics are not as intense at the XBox 360 or the new PS3. But the action is fast and fun.

I highly recommended this game for anyone purchasing the Wii.

Classic Nintendo fun!!!

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 4 / 4
Date: December 07, 2006
Author: Amazon User

Nintendo wants you to forget about the GameCube. It was all a bad dream (except, in my opinion, Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker). While Sony and Microsoft slug it out over who has the best graphics and functuality (and in the process, paint themselves into a corner), Nintendo is doing what we have waited years for: Make video games fun again.

Excite Truck for the Wii is a very fun game, and reminds me of WaveRace64 for the N64. Graphically, it's nowhere near as crisp and grand as anything you'd see on the 360 or the Ps3. Nowhere near. But, this is what Sony and Microsoft want you to believe video games are supposed to be. That's funny, I thought video games were supposed to be fun? That's what Excite Truck is. This is what you seek by playing video games in the first place. If you want realism, go outdoors and experience life.

The Wii remote is your steering wheel, and you'll be so caught up in the game, you'll forget how to steer. Not to mention the pure speed captured on screen. You don't have TIME to concentrate! As an old-school gamer, I am so used to controlling with the D-pad, that I instinctively try to steer the truck using that, instead of moving my wrists to steer. That's not a bad thing, it just shows how fun it is. Give me a game like this to forget my problems, 2 hours passed by as if it were a minute.

Is the game flawless? No. The only flawless game I've played is Super Mario 64 or the original Legend of Zelda for the NES. I give this a fun factor of 5, with an overall score of 4.

This is the first game I've purchased for the Wii (which came with the fantastic Wii Sports), and by all indications, Nintendo has righted themselves and are about to strike gold again. To anyone who doesn't want to own a Wii over the controller, you are really missing out.

In the young life of the Wii thus far, Excite Truck is a game you'll want to own.

Highly Addictive

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 3 / 3
Date: December 16, 2006
Author: Amazon User

This game is perhaps one of the best available for the Wii Console. The graphics are good, the courses are elaborate, and the sheer number of vehicles to choose from is astounding.

This game comes with the option to race a friend, or play the Excite Races to unlock new vehicles, new paint jobs, and new courses. If you earn an "S" on every course, you open up "Super Excite" races which gives you the chance to unlock even more vehicles, paint jobs, and when you get an "S" on all of those courses you unlock "Mirror".

This game is easy to control, even a younger child will enjoy crashing into everything and will find it not too difficult to control. Moving the Wii Remote (like a steering wheel) is how you steer and you can change the terrain (making steep jumps, throwing other vehicles, putting up rings to go through) and it just makes it exciting.

This is a game that will get a LOT of play and even after opening everything up, you can do it all over again.

I highly recommend this game even if you aren't in to racing games.

One of Wii's best games

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 3 / 3
Date: November 29, 2006
Author: Amazon User

Excite truck is one of the best games I have played for the Wii yet. Even my wife enjoys playing this game with me and she is anything but an avid gamer. After getting a feel for racing with the Wii-remote (which took very little time at all because of the tutorials) we were off racing each other. We spent several hours the first night I bought it laughing as we played this game. Also, because the Wii-remote must be tilted for steering I also don't feel like such a dork like on other systems where I would be moving the controller all around even thought it does not help my steering at all.

I have to say that this game might be even better if more people could play in multiplayer. Having no more than two players possible in muliplayer makes it difficult when trying to enjoy Excite Truck with several friends at one time, but I guess that's what Wii sports is for.

Overall this games is a definate "must buy". I was a little worried that the racing might get old after a while, but with all the challenges with unlocking new truck, paint jobs, and levels there are many more challenges than just winning races. This will be a game that will continue entertain.

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