Despite the smaller amount of tracks, this is the mode that'll keep people coming back, although if you're anything like me and my friends you'll skip over Free For All, the watered down version of Battle mode and stick to the tug-of-war classic, Elimination mode. The real joy of World Series comes from the local multiplayer Skirmish mode. As a nice little treat for nostalgic gamers, the avatars for the AI racers are lifted straight from the original games and include memorable characters like Spider, Cherry and even Violet Berlin. The online portion works well enough - quickmatch will attempt to put you in lobby with as many human players as possible, but will plug the gaps with AI characters if necessary so there's always a full match and you're never left waiting too long for a game. These arena matches do have their moments of brilliance, especially when each team member is playing to the strength of their vehicles - ambulances are healers, etc - but they feel out of place in a Micro Machines game so it's sad to see Battle mode getting top billing. With so many new attacks to learn and so many ways to die, things get hectic fast and you'll find yourself waiting to respawn on a regular basis. Three of these powers are available from the off but require recharge time between each use, while the fourth ultimate attack is earned through scoring points and destroying other players. In Battle mode, each vehicle has its own unique powers. Tight turns, deadly drops and a confusing mini map don't help matters much but when you add the chaos of the combat to the mix, things can quickly go from fun to frustrating. While the locations are imaginative and sometimes, in the case of one set atop a giant Hungry Hungry Hippos board, even genius, navigating these Arenas can be rather confusing. Much like the race tracks, these arenas take place in familiar, over-sized household locations, but instead of being full loops they sport non-linear layouts with multiple routes around them that include handy shortcuts in the form of ramps, spring boards and even remote controlled drones. 6 matches of Capture the Flag, King of the Hill and Bomb Delivery. What you get in their place are 15 extra arena maps created specifically for Battle mode in which you can play 6 v. Likewise the number of race tracks has fallen from 18 in Toybox to a mere 10 in World Series. In Toybox you had a total of 35 vehicles to choose from, in World Series there's only 12 - although these can be customised cosmetically via awards received from unlockable loot crates, because 2017. That's not the only thing to have been scaled back. There's an argument to be made that magic of Micro Machines lies in its multiplayer, sure, but the lack of an offline Championship mode to noodle about in leaves it all feeling rather empty. In its place is a more concentrated effort on online multiplayer with classic races and the new Battle mode supporting up to 12 players online at once. The problems go deeper than that though, starting with a noticeable absence of any kind of single player Championship mode. It all feels a bit like you're playing an advert rather than a game. Familiar weapons from Toybox, the Tommy Gun, the Hammer and the Mines are rebranded as Nerf products, while countless Nerf guns litter the tracks and arenas. Whatever deals were made with Hasbro for the Micro Machines name seem to have come at a price and Nerf branding is slapped liberally over the scenery and the UI. While Turbos was a charming nostalgia trip, World Series often feels calculated and almost soulless. The success of that release must have paid off because Micro Machines: World Series sees Codemasters reclaiming that famous name, although with it comes a lot of extra baggage, including some rather odd in-game design choices that fundamentally change the spirit of the series.
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