M&M's Kart Racing (E)
Less a racing game and more an interactive ad.
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- Publisher: Destination Software
- Genre: Video Games - Racing
- Release Date: 04/04/2008
- Platform(s): Nintendo DS, Nintendo Wii
- Online Enabled: No
- ESRB Rating: E
- Price: $20-30
Parents need to know
Families can talk about in-game advertising. Does seeing products in a video game affect which products you consume in real life? Do you think that it makes sense for a company to charge people to play a game that is, in essence, an advertisement for their products? Can you think of examples of games in which in-game advertising might actually enhance the game experience (such as racing simulators that feature licensed vehicles)?
Message
Social Behavior:
Supports multiplayer, but the DS version requires each player to have his or her own game card.
Consumerism:
Games aren't made much more commercial than this. From the candies that float in the background of menu screens to the M&M kart drivers, this game is an extended, interactive advertisement for Mars Inc.'s popular confection.
Drugs/Alcohol/Tobacco:
Educational Value:
Violence
You can shoot rockets at other karts.
Sex
Language
Common Sense says
What's the story?
Reviewed by Chad Sapieha
Is it any good?
What's worse, though, is the game's shameless commercialism. M&M's Kart Racing doesn't exist to provide players with a fun and interesting gaming experience, but rather simply to make us think about M&M's candies. The confection's maker, Mars Inc., ought to be paying us to play this game, not the other way around. Needless to say, this interactive advertisement will leave a bad taste in your mouth.
How to play
- Playability: Easy. Kart racers don't come much simpler.
- Reading Required: Light
- Graphics: Poor. Tracks are plagued by pop-up and karts are dull and ugly.
Other choices
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Parents and kids say



