 | ON: Content is age-appropriate for kids this age. |
 | PAUSE: Know your child; some content may not be right for some kids. |
 | OFF: Not age-appropriate for kids this age. |
 | NOT FOR KIDS: Not appropriate for kids any age. |
Excite Truck
- Nintendo Wii
- Price: $49.99
- Genre: Racing
Common Sense Media says
Outrageous, high-flying auto racing for all ages.
Parents say
Kids say
QUALITY
What parents need to know
Parents need to know that this racing game showcases big crashes and rewards players for smashing into other trucks. Players can also throw competitors into the air or knock them off course by altering the racecourse during a race. The action is always cartoon-ish, though, and the wrecks never involve more than a few parts flying off the vehicles. The use of the Wii controller as a steering wheel is innovative, but it may take awhile for some players to get used to it.
What's it about?
Like the motocross motorcycles of the Excite Bike games, the trucks in EXCITE TRUCK spend almost as much time flying through the air as they do zooming along the track. To control these jumping jalopies, players hold the Wii remote sideways and turn it as if it were a steering wheel, with one button for gas and one for brakes. Players' skills will be put to the test on 20 tracks spread over five countries. Each track is a jumbled collection of ramps and obstacles, and the landscape constantly shifts and evolves over the course of a race. Advancing through the game is not strictly tied to winning, but rather to collecting stars in each race.
Is it any good?
Excite Truck is one of the least realistic racing games in recent memory, and that's a good thing. The over-the-top action and good use of the Wii controller combine to make this one of the best games available close to the launch of Nintendo's Wii system.
Between the controls and the shifting tracks, Excite Truck might sound complicated, but the races and controls are actually pretty forgiving. In fact, serious racing-game fans might find Excite Truck to be a bit easy. The game does have two difficulty levels, but many players will see all the tracks in a few hours' time. But for players interested in short blasts of arcade-style racing, Excite Truck should provide plenty of fast, fantastic action.
What families can talk about
Families can talk about the best way to win a race. Do players like to drive as skillfully and as quickly as they can, or do they enjoy knocking other racers off course in order to win? Families can also discuss safe driving and contrast the game's over-the-top action with the responsibilities of real driving.
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AGE
A great racing game from start to finish!
Exicite truck is a great wii game that every racer fan should have. You might be thinking it's a average racing game and all you do is go to start to finish. You are wronge! It depends on stars. You get these stars by beging high up in the air, landing nice, running though trees without getting hurt and drifts. It's a very different than other racing games and using the wii remote what else could you ask for!
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AGE
Thrilling
The adults out there might remember the old Excite Bike. Excite Truck is a "sequel" supposedly based on the same concept. The thrill of Excite Bike was getting big air off of jumps and trying to land them perfectly.
Excite Truck does deliver a good thrill as you're flying hundreds of feet up in the air and trying to steer your truck to hit the ground right,but that's hardly a main point of the game.
The most exciting part of Excite Truck is the amazing speeds you can be thrown at when you land perfectly or drive through a POW item that makes you less vulnerable to everything.
The main mode is Excite Race where you compete in cups against five other CPUs. This is the only mode worth coming back to over and over again. You use the 2 button on the Wii remote to accelerate, 1 to brake, the control pad to accelerate, and the Wii remote itself to steer.
The main objective of each race is to reach the required number of stars. You collect starts by taking risks or pulling of pretty much anything that makes you say "That was awesome!"
Parents note that your kids will be rewarded with starts for "truck smashing" other players. Nothing graphic, just Trucks flying. Overall, Excite Truck makes one heck of an extremely speedy racer!
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AGE
Good game for Children
The game is a very good game. The child could learn how to drive with the wii-mote holding sideways. Even though the game has some violence
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AGE
Racing game is entertaining
I like this racing game. It was my first ever racing game for the Wii. The controls can ve complicated, though.
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AGE
Easy to get started... Lots of fun.
Excite Truck is a great game for young children because it doesn't require many precise, controlled movements. Half of the fun in the game is leaving the track to earn stars for tree runs, huge jumps, and crashes.
Although I have not looked closely, I cannot see any human drivers in the game. The cartoon-like scenery and the physics-defying motion also serve to tell kids that this is a game, not a simulation of real life. Because of this, I would not have described the game as "violent".
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| Platforms: | Nintendo Wii |
| Available online? | Not available online |
| Genre: | Racing |
| Developer: | Nintendo |
| Release date: | November 26, 2006 |
| Price: | $49.99 |
| ESRB rating: | E for mild violence |
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