 | 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. |
ModNation Racers
- PlayStation 3, PSP
- Price: $59.99 ($29.99 for PSP)
- Genre: Racing
Common Sense Media says
Fun, customizable kart racing, but watch online voice chat.
Parents say
QUALITY
Kids say
QUALITY
What parents need to know
Parents need to know that ModNation Racers is an "Everyone"-rated game for the PlayStation 3 and PlayStation Portable. It is no more violent than a game of Mario Kart, with action consisting of cartoon weapons and high-speed races. There is some minor off-color humor, such as a driver who picks his nose and flings it at another driver and a scene where the commentator gives a driver a "Spock" pinch on the neck to make him pass out. Note as well that this game features open voice communication and profanity-filtered texting during online play. Common Sense Media does not recommend open online communication in games for pre-teens.
What's it about?
Fans of kart racers -- those over-the-top cartoon driving games that let you use weapons to slow down opponents -- will find Sony's latest offering a fresh take on the classic formula. Personalization is the name of the game in MODNATION RACERS, as built-in tools let you easily create your own unique racer, kart vehicles, and tracks, and then share them with others online (not unlike what Sony did with LittleBigPlanet). While designing your own track might sound difficult, you simply pick from one of the preset themes -- seaside, desert, jungle, or alpine -- and then twist and turn the road by pushing the Sony PlayStation 3 controller's analog sticks in a given direction. You can also drop down buildings, bridges, animals, or environmental eye-candy (lakes, sunsets, or mountains, for instance), or select "auto populate" for the game to do it for you. Your custom-built track can be used immediately and uploaded to the PlayStation Network. You can also download the highest-rated tracks made by other players and modify them, too.
Is it any good?
This pick-up-and-play racer will be immediately familiar to fans of the genre. Rip around some wild tracks (peppered with ramps, shortcuts, power-ups, and obstacles); drift around sharp corners and press the boost button for a quick speed burst; and select a weapon to use to on rival drivers to temporarily stun them (such as missiles or electric bolts). The controls are tight and responsive. Along with the single-player modes are multiplayer options that allow for two gamers on the same TV or up to 12 players online. Finding people to race against is easy with the intuitive lobby system.
There are a couple of minor issues with the game, such as frequent loading screens and not enough weapons to choose from, but overall ModNation Racers is a blast. Note: A Sony PlayStation Portable (PSP) version of the game is also available, but was not tested for this review.
Online interaction: This game offers rich multiplayer options, including the ability to share content by uploading and downloading custom creations. Note, though, that it supports open voice and text communication, which could lead to the sharing of personal information and conversations with inappropriate language and subject matter. Note that text chat has a profanity filter, and voice chat can be disabled by setting the PlayStation 3 console's parental controls to level four.
What families can talk about
Families can talk about why there aren't more "E"-rated first-party games for the Sony PlayStation 3. Do you think Sony's audience is older than that of the Wii? Even if it is, do you think older players can't have as much fun with all-ages games as younger players?
Families can also talk about online safety in games. This game holds appeal for children, yet it offers sophisticated and open online communications. You may want to discuss the sort of subjects of conversation in which kids shouldn't engage, and what to do when confronted with unpleasant online personalities.
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- Teens & kids
AGE
Excellent racing game.
If it weren't for the annoying load times, then this would have gotten 5 stars from me. But it is still very enjoyable with tons of creation tools and responsive and fun racing controls. It is also age appropriate for kids, so this can be enjoyable for just about anyone.
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AGE
Cannot go online on PS3 without allowing full voice chat
first off my son likes this game, the single player is very hard and frustrating for younger gamers but I got him a 100% save from the internet and he spends most of his time building tracks and cars which he loves. He also likes racing the easier tracks and with friends he has over.
The biggest issue I have is that with any parental controls on his account he cannot go online. I would have to enable full voice chat in order for him to connect. The problem with this is when you go online there is basically a home room with a handful of other people zipping around and you can hear anything they might say through a mic. All in all this is a pretty bad design decision for this game and with a 7 and 9 year old I am not willing to turn chat on for them. I am hoping they fix this soon but the above review implies that you can get online with voice chat disabled and at least on PS3 that is 100 % incorrect
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AGE
Load time fix on the way
Load times are a pain and most major reviews primary complaint. The devs have said a patch will be out shortly to fix this. Now, on to my review.
Excellent controls and creation system on par with that of littlebigplanet. Great racing, best way i can describe it is an HD mario kart with a creation system. Custom levels shared online = free courses and as many as you want. If you want a kart racer with extreme replay value, look no further.
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AGE
Great game, flaw in online safety
The only problem with this game would be the fact that you must disable parental controls to go online. This enables both voice and text chat. You can disable the voice chat from the in-game options, but not the text chat, and the filter on the chat is easy to circumvent.
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AGE
Only for older kids 8-9 and up - very hard to play for young kids
Requires a lot of use of the buttons on the controller - making it much too difficult for most children under 8. My kids found it frustrating and hard - and while they've played racing games with the Wii, the fact that it is not Move-enabled and that it requires a lot of button work (shields, shooting) in addition to steering, braking, and accelerating, made it very difficult and not fun. I'm a pretty decent gamer and I couldn't play it well.
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Kid, 12 years old
October 22, 2010
AGE
I PITY THE FOO
scruw iffy for 8 and up. this is so much fun lovee ittt.
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Kid, 12 years old
July 14, 2010
AGE
rated E is not just 6+
i think all 0+ should be playing E games.
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AGE
Great game, but a problem
This is a great game, but when I was in voice chat I heard this kid say "I don't touch sh*t. That's why I wash my hands." over and over again. Then I turned off voice chat. So, to be completely safe, turn off voice chat.
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AGE
Great way to express creativity. Fun for the whole family
The track, kart and character creation features are really easy to use and my kids have a blast expressing themselves and engineering their own things. Some times, they prefer the creation piece over the actual racing. The racing is easy to pick up, too and you can play up to 4 people on the same tv (split screen). I limit online for my kids so they aren't subject to the minor instances of language from older kids
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Kid, 12 years old
June 11, 2010
AGE
GREAT RACING GAME!!!!!!!!
ModNation Racers is from the creators of Little Big Planet-which I love. So when I saw the trailer of ModNation Racers I knew it was going to be great. I was right! United Front games and San Diego Studio made not only a fun game but a game with the ability to create your own characters, karts and track.The graphics are amazing. I have played up to the 6th race and the violence consists of picking up missiles in order to blast players off the track. There is taunting between racers, but is is pretty humorous - usually a thumbs up or down and a sneer or heckle. ModNation Racers hits the finish line with a five out of five!!!!!!!!
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| Platforms: | PlayStation 3, PSP |
| Available online? | Available online |
| Genre: | Racing |
| Developer: | Sony Computer Entertainment |
| Release date: | May 25, 2010 |
| Price: | $59.99 ($29.99 for PSP) |
| ESRB rating: | E for Cartoon Violence, Comic Mischief |
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