Super Night Riders REVIEW
By Edwin Velez
Speeding Right Into Nostalgia
Super Night Riders is a straight forward, retro-inspired bike racer. In a similar fashion to the SEGA classic Hang-On, Riders has the player race against the clock to hit checkpoints as opposed to racing for the top position. It mirrors the classic while also bringing modern appeal to the table. While the game is not bursting with options or content, it serves as a fun callback to racers from decades past. Its crisp handling and arcade vibe make it a worthy pick up for any retro gaming fan.
Riders is comprised of courses as well as levels for the whole of the gameplay. The levels are a variation of six different scenes, like forest and city just to name a few. Whichever level you pick consists of 6 laps, each featuring the scene at a different stage in its night/day cycle. These different cycles are all mixed into the courses as well, with each course containing a blend of the levels scenes. Visually, the game is not breaking any boundaries but rather respecting it’s inspirations from the past by presenting a crisp, retro look. While whirring past other riders you’ll see trees, buildings, and other objects off in the distance. The title has a solid variety which helps keep the various courses feeling fresh.
Riders is comprised of courses as well as levels for the whole of the gameplay. The levels are a variation of six different scenes, like forest and city just to name a few. Whichever level you pick consists of 6 laps, each featuring the scene at a different stage in its night/day cycle. These different cycles are all mixed into the courses as well, with each course containing a blend of the levels scenes. Visually, the game is not breaking any boundaries but rather respecting it’s inspirations from the past by presenting a crisp, retro look. While whirring past other riders you’ll see trees, buildings, and other objects off in the distance. The title has a solid variety which helps keep the various courses feeling fresh.
Super Night Riders handles extremely well. Never once did I feel like a loss was due to the controls, because quite frankly they are as smooth as can be. With a game that does not require much input wise, it’s important to have a solid handling structure which has been done within the title. That goes for the framerate as well, which holds up great when transitioning from lap to lap and almost never stutters. With such a small scaled title, the polish has certainly stood out, and is all the more impressive when you know that the racer was developed solely by one person. There are even four different musical tracks you can choose from prior to entering a race, which is yet another callback to the old school racers from which it was clearly inspired. These tunes each have their own unique appeal, and add to the nostalgia it presents.
My sole issue with the title is that the standard races leave little to no room for error. You have an extremely small window for issues, and if you rear-end any other racer just once, you are almost certainly going to fail the level or course. While there is an easy mode, I still believe that the standard difficulty should have just a tiny bit more room for fault. Practice makes you better though, and it is easy to get a feel for a course after multiple (more like dozens in some cases) of tries. Though not entirely an issue, I do wish the game had an endless mode where you go from checkpoint to checkpoint as long as you can last. All in all the game only features 13 different races, and when those are done there is really nothing to go back for other than leaderboard boastings. It just seems to me like an easy way to add value to the game would’ve been by adding something similar to what I just pitched.
Super Night Riders is a great callback to older racers. It’s fun and sometimes trying, but the difficulty is just right where practice can be proven effective. I enjoy my time playing, and am still trying to beat its hardest courses while replaying run after run. It’s a simple but effective concept that shows what some hard work and passion can accomplish. Retro gamers will feel right at home with this title, and I couldn’t recommend it more if you like games like the previously mentioned Hang On. If you want a straight up blast from the past, make sure you keep an eye out for Super Night Riders.
*Note: A copy of the game was provided for the purposes of the review
Super Night Riders is a great callback to older racers. It’s fun and sometimes trying, but the difficulty is just right where practice can be proven effective. I enjoy my time playing, and am still trying to beat its hardest courses while replaying run after run. It’s a simple but effective concept that shows what some hard work and passion can accomplish. Retro gamers will feel right at home with this title, and I couldn’t recommend it more if you like games like the previously mentioned Hang On. If you want a straight up blast from the past, make sure you keep an eye out for Super Night Riders.
*Note: A copy of the game was provided for the purposes of the review
FINAL SCORE: 7.5/10
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+Retro Inspired Appeal
+Controls Great |
-Limited Replayability
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Release Date: 5/18/2016
Developer: neko.works
Publisher: neko.works
Developer: neko.works
Publisher: neko.works