Smurfs Kart

Throwing its hat in the kart racing ring is Smurfs Kart! I love The Smurfs and have done since I played the original game on the Atari 2600 back in the day. There have been a few decent Smurfs games, TV shows, movies, and so on in the decades since that Atari game and the franchise has remained popular for multiple generations at this point. However, deciding to make a kart racer with the Smurfs was not something I thought we would ever see. Still, as a sucker for kart racers, I decided it would be fun to take a closer look at this game.

The Smurf Driving School

From what I can tell we have no story mode in Smurfs Kart. Instead, we have a series of races and championships, kind of like what you would get in a traditional kart racer. To be fair, this is something Mario Kart has gotten away with for many years and I and millions of others have not had a problem with this. However, I feel with this franchise a story mode may have been something that could and should have been added.

Going For Gold

As we do not have a story mode, you may be wondering what types of game modes Smurfs Kart has to offer. Well, you have a GP type mode where you race over the 12 courses and try to take first place and be the best Smurf racer around. You also have a series of time trials as you try to shave seconds off your best time. There is also an up to four player local co-op as well which is where I feel the game will have its legs. To be honest there is not a lot of content here in the game and that I think is going to be the main issue with it.

Good Fundamentals

While Smurfs Kart may be a bit lacking when it comes to the game modes side of things. However, I do feel that they have a pretty solid little kart racing game for us here. The core controls feel great, if you have played Mario Kart, you will feel right at home. You have a decent selection of Smurfs to select and each one has their own kart. You can take shortcuts, use powerups, speed boosts, and the other things you would expect from a kart racer. It is decent stuff, easy to pick up and play so a game that is perfect for the whole family.

It Is Smurfing Great

Does anyone else get a kick out of how The Smurfs use “smurfing” as a substitute for the F word? What it is just me? Well, I do have to say that this game may at first look pretty basic, but I do feel that they have captured the look of The Smurfs very well. It has the look of the last animated movie that we saw a couple of years back. I do like how they have managed to keep the visuals pretty much the same across all the systems.

Pros:

• It has the charm of The Smurfs
• I liked the visuals
• The way the karts handles feels pretty good
• In multiplayer, you can have a lot of fun with this

Cons:

• The game is lacking in content
• It is certainly a game that is aimed at younger children