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Let me introduce Sonic, master of the most grueling thigh workout on the Kinect. You probably thought you'd need to buy an exercise title featuring a screaming trainer to get a good workout. Well, it turns out this little racer will bring you to your knees as you use your whole body to twist, turn and jump your hoverboard through 16 tracks.
You can upgrade your board gear temporarily with energy pickups like a soda rocket or fully to extreme gear, which is available in both board and bike formats. The hoverboard reacts like a snowboard on steroids. Maneuvering requires your whole body:
* Cornering involves bending your body forward at the waist or backwards to steer;
* Jumping is self-explanatory but power jumping requires you to crouch down for a few seconds before leaping into the air;
* A kick dash is completed using a kick gesture using your back foot with a good follow-through;
* Braking requires squaring your shoulders toward the screen; and
* Your hands are kept busy to catch rings, grab horizontal bars, wipe away foggy screens and to cling to the bottom of trains (?!).
The game provides an extensive tutorial along with a host named Omochao, who also serves as the game commentator. I highly recommend casual gamers take the time to go through the tutorials. This isn't a bowling game you can simply step up and play.
I completed two racetracks and slumped into the couch. A trickle of sweat ran along my spine, my legs trembling. Brain synapse fired in all directions and soon I was hearing
Robert Klein wailing on the harmonica and singing "I can't stop my leg."
The gameplay is not as extensive as the granddaddy of kart racers,
Mario Kart DS
. However, what
Sonic Free Riders
lacks in depth is more than made up with by the physical racing experience that comes from using the Kinect system. Even my 8-year old son stopped after competing in four consecutive races to catch his breath and get a drink of water.
So, what are the negatives?
* The controls are not perfect. Don't let early frustration turn you away. The game doesn't respond as smoothly as it would if we were gripping steering wheels. We found it helped to recalibrate the Kinect for this game and widen our playing area a couple feet to allow side-by-side racing.
* The menus are maddening. I'm tired of sweeping options left and right. Game designers need to hold back their Kinect zeal. Keep the menus basic, like a simple drop-down menu format, and save the wild moves for the game itself.
* The online features aren't that attractive. Fortunately for us, with four in our family, there's plenty of competition at home.
In summary, if you are willing to invest practice time, this is a fun, family game that also delivers a good full-body workout, too. With the initial library of Kinect games including dogs like
Game Party: In Motion
, "Sonic Free Riders" is a good value, especially for kids. Rating: Four stars.
Hey, look. My leg stopped.
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Customer reviews
Top reviews from other countries
Lela Sanders
Game is pretty fun. Arrived in great condition.
Reviewed in Canada 🇨🇦 on September 2, 2018saturdayxiii
Painful story, but definitely an interesting experience
Reviewed in Canada 🇨🇦 on August 19, 2015
