Cars Race-O-Rama seems like the kind of game only a child will love. A child that doesn't mind gameplay as deep as a puddle, ugly environments or painfully average execution.

So don't buy this game.

What? Oh, you want to hear a little more about it?

Well, Cars Race-O-Rama does very little to entice the average gamer, though it has a few half-way decent features. The racing itself is (predictably) arcady and there are a decent amount of modes to choose from.

From the straight-up racing to the poor-man's 'Mario Kart', there's quite a bit to trawl through. But why bother when the gameplay is dull and uninspiring? Achievement points I hear you say? I'd rather watch someone else watch paint dry.

The gameplay screams average ? with little action and repetitive audio dragging the races on. I can only tolerate "cute" voice-overs a few times, not one hundred. I was fully aware of what I was getting into when the game was thrust upon me, but sheesh, when your sole gameplay hook is the boost button, you know you've hit the "pinnacle" of mediocrity.

For those who pride themselves on collecting everything though, there are icons to be had on-track which provide you with car upgrades and the like.

The racing itself seems to follow a set formula, with nowhere near as much action as a Mario Kart or even a Daytona USA. Once you're in the lead, it's easy to pull away from the pack and extend the gap. There are stiff challenges to be had, but never while in the lead ? almost as if the AI decides to give up as soon as you hit first place.

The game adopts an open-world approach to the story mode ? or should that be open-track seeing that your 'world' is essentially a race track with roads that just so happen to intersect the course.

Visually, the main cars in the game look decent with some nice reflections playing a big part in their look. But the other cars have about as much personality as an office chair ? with little detail and many similar-looking vehicles to be had.

The environments also look drab for the most part, featuring little detail. The surroundings tend to look samey for the most part, with desert and forest being recurring themes. One other issue was the slowdown that still somehow manages to rear its juddering head. One would think that a visually bland, film-based game wouldn't suffer bouts of slowdown but that's not the case here.

With story and arcade modes, the game definitely attempts to give value for money (from a quantity perspective that is). The story mode has you see off a cheating black car (wow) while the arcade mode has you compete in a variety of events and game types.

Cars lack a bit on the multiplayer front ? with no online or system link of any sort. There goes my chance to race against buddies online!

Cars Race-O-Rama is what it is. A sad excuse for a racing game that you should steer clear from ? unless you have an obsession with the series.

4.9/10

Buy this game: PS3 | Xbox 360 | Wii | PS2 | PSP | DS