Nitrobike

Ubisoft introduces Nitrobike, the only game on the Wii home video game system from Nintendo that lets you feel the reckless intensity of racing a nitro-charged dirt bike. Developed by Left Field Productions - makers of the Nintendo 64 classic Excitebike 64 - Nitrobike will bring motocross racing to the Wii for the very first time. Give yourself a nitrous boost to rocket past your opponents toward the finish line.

Released: 15 January 2008
Platforms: PlayStation 2 Wii
Genres: Racing
Developers: —
Publishers: —
Modes: Multiplayer Single-player
Perspective: Third person
Country: United States
Age ratings: ESRB E10+
Languages: English

About

Nitrobike is a dirt-bike racing video game for the Wii and PlayStation 2. It is published by Ubisoft and was developed by Left Field Productions, the developer previously responsible for, among other games, Excitebike 64, MTX Mototrax and Dave Mirra BMX Challenge. It began development in October 2006, and was presented by Ubisoft at its E3 2007 press conference in Santa Monica, California. Initially exclusive as Wii title, it was the first Motocross game for the Wii.

Keywords

motorcycle
motocross
motion control
nintendo wi-fi connection

Media

The articlegameplay, story, development, reception

Gameplay

Nitrobike features gameplay that is somewhat similar to its predecessors Excitebike 64 and Excite Truck. The controls in this game are similar to Excite Truck, with player holding the Wii Remote on its side and twisting the remote to the right or left in order to steer. The physics in the game, while still retaining some aspect of realism, have a very arcade-like feel. According to the CEO of Left Field Productions, James Higgins, the game will be about five times as fast as Excitebike 64, and players will be able to perform more impressive jumps than in the game's predecessors. Higgins also noted that by performing tricks while in the air, players will be able to boost longer, which in turn will allow them to finish tracks faster.

Nitrobike features online play allowing up to six players to race against each other simultaneously. Players can compete in random worldwide (divided to ntsc and pal) matches or exchange friend codes to play against friends. The game will keep record of the number of races friends have competed in and the number of first-place finishes.

Reception

The Wii version of Nitrobike received "generally unfavorable reviews" according to the review aggregation website Metacritic.

Nintendo Power said it was a "disappointing wreck of a Wii game". IGN claimed the Wii version had decent gameplay, but its presentation lacked "soul". GameSpot called it "a slow, clumsy mess". GameTrailers' sole praise for the same console version was for the unlockable "Crash Bowling" minigame, which, while "not particularly fun ...