Author: Trafficblast

Ignore the Hot Wheels Forza Horizon 3 expansion for a moment: has there ever been a good standalone Hot Wheels game? Like, properly good – not just good enough for a six-year-old who’s never played a racing game before. I don’t know if there has. If you say ‘toy car’ and ‘video game’ to me, I’d say Micro Machines; that’s the iconic marriage of miniature racing and video games.

However, now I’ve gotten my hands on Hot Wheels Unleashed I’m not so sure about that anymore, because this tiny 1:64 scale racer has just made a fantastic first impression.

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Straight away the decision to present the vehicles as 1:1 reproductions of the actual toy cars pays enormous dividends. They’re not fanciful renditions of what these cars would look like in real-life, nor are they exaggerated or cartoon-like. They’re toys, presented as toys, down to their tiniest details. Not only can you spot the mould lines and the differences in materials (from the plastic windscreens and accessories to the die cast metal bodies) some of them even carry fingerprints that can be seen under the right light, like the characters in The LEGO Movie. They’re even stamped with the Hot Wheels logo and model name underneath their chassis.

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It took me a long while to even enter a race because I lost a huge amount of time looking through the car list and just inspecting them. I know my sons got particularly excited whenever they saw one they knew was in the Hot Wheels bucket tucked away in their wardrobe. There were 28 different cars available in the preview version, all of which hit pegs within the last 10 years (the menu notes when the model was released). That said, reissues like the classic Twin Mill obviously date back a lot further. At any rate, the full game will reportedly feature over 60 cars, so hopefully some older Hot Wheels cars will also be included. It would be cool to see some of the ’70s and ’80s models with the Redline and Ultra Hots wheels I remember from my own childhood, for instance.

Out on the tracks themselves, though, the cars arguably look even better – even after they’ve been scratched up and chipped during a race. They just look fantastically seated into the environments, and that seems thanks to some seriously impressive lighting that’s doing a very convincing job of really showcasing the contrasting scales on display here – the tiny cars and the mammoth, life-sized worlds.

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This initial build of Hot Wheels features several of the games environments, including the garage, the skyscraper, the skate park, and the college campus. Some of the environments only had a single track available for this preview, but that was enough to experience how different the backdrops are from one another. The garage is quite a dark environment, but in a good way, because Hot Wheels Unleashed looks particularly slick in low light. The skyscraper boasts a lot more verticality, and a really impressive outdoor space that stretches out to the horizon with a fluffy layer of low cloud beneath. This is probably where the cars seemed at their absolute tiniest.

The tracks themselves are made up of big spans of plastic Hot Wheels track and sections of the world itself, so a circuit may utilise benches, vents, the floor, or indeed any other surface you could whip a die cast car across. The preview build didn’t feature the track editor planned for the game but I suspect the potential of that will be huge.

I don’t know that I’d say yet that there’s a big difference in the fundamental feel of the racing itself depending on the environment I was racing through, but I think the backdrops are very good, and notably varied.

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Of course, speaking of the feeling of the racing itself, I’m impressed here, too. With classic Burnout-style brake-to-drift arcade handling mixed with a little Rocket League-inspired in-air control, Hot Wheels Unleashed is instantly playable for arcade racing veterans and seems easy to learn for newbies. Off-boost it may be a little slower than the average arcade racer but the positive side effect is that boost seems to feel a bit more meaningful as a result, because of that arguably more profound difference in speed. Boost builds nice and quickly, too, so it didn’t seem like a resource I needed to be stingy with.

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IGN spoke with developer Milestone recently about Hot Wheels Unleashed, and one of the key takeaways was that the studio is really seeking to capture that spirit of playing with toy cars as a young child. I can see that. More importantly, however, after this hands-on I can feel it, too.

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Luke is Games Editor at IGN’s Sydney office. You can find him on Twitter every few days @MrLukeReilly.

The SteelSeries Nimbus+ is barking up the wrong tree. SteelSeries’ latest Apple-only gamepad does a lot of things right: It has a good shape, well-made inputs, and very good battery life. But it has a critical flaw, too: It comes with a phone mount that doesn’t hold an iPhone in place very well. Increasingly, mobile-focused peripherals aren’t just buttons and analog sticks but a means of transforming your phone into a portable console. And while it works with Macs, it is no better than other, more popular gamepads. Thus, while the Nimbus+ is a pretty great controller, it is hard to recommend. 

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SteelSeries Nimbus+ – Design & Features

The Nimbus+ looks about as generic as they come. The design seems hellbent on splitting the difference between the PlayStation and Xbox controller styles: It has Xbox face button lettering – “A,” “B,” “X,” and “Y” – but the bumpers and triggers are labeled “L1”, “R1,” “L2,” and “R2.” Its wide body and large handles scream “Xbox,” but the symmetrical thumbsticks read as “PlayStation.” There are three buttons in the middle – “Menu,” “View,” and a “Home” button marked with a picture of a house. There’s nothing wrong with trying to blend the two styles, in theory, but Nimbus+ makes only a few logistical changes to distinguish itself from its influences, giving it a strong knock-off vibe.

That vibe is purely aesthetic, though. In fact, the Nimbus+ is a well-made controller with a comfortable shape and strong design. Measuring 5.88 by 4.63 by 2.63 inches (WDH), it’s wide with long handles that sit well in your hands. The handles feature the same matte plastic finish SteelSeries uses on many of its mice, which acts as a very effective grip. It’s also very sturdy and well balanced: Given that, you might be surprised to hear that it’s lighter than average: At 246 grams, it weighs slightly less than the Xbox Series X controller (287 grams) or the DualSense (282 grams).

That’s just the gamepad. The full controller-and-phone-mount device weighs considerably more. The controller with the mount attached weighs 282 grams, the same as the modern Xbox and PlayStation controllers. But that’s before you add your phone. The weight will vary by model, but my iPhone 12 Pro weighed in at 233 grams, so you’re almost doubling the weight. I wouldn’t describe the controller as “heavy,” per se, but it’s enough that you may start to feel the weight in your arms if you play for hours on end without supporting yourself.

Likewise, the core buttons and inputs all feel very good, especially for a mobile-only gamepad. The face buttons are snappy, and I’m a fan of the clicky, tactile response you get from the unibody D-pad. (Even though it tends to wiggle a bit). The triggers, perhaps the highlight, feature magnetic resistance that enables smooth action for the full length of their travel. Lastly, the clickable analog sticks are tall and snap back to position quickly.

There are a few extra elements on the controller, most of which are for system-level actions. There are two system buttons on the top of the controller. One triggers pairing mode, or you can hold down the Home button to pair, which is easier and makes the top button a bit superfluous. The other shows you the controller’s battery status using the four-part LED indicator light on the front of the controller, just above the home and menu buttons. The LED also shows pairing status and, by default, lets you know whether the controller is on or off.

Speaking of power, the Nimbus+ gets great battery life. According to SteelSeries, it should last up to 50 hours on a single charge. After using the controller regularly for over two weeks, I never had to charge it. On the other hand, when you do need to charge it, you’ll need to find a Lightning cable because it doesn’t come with its own charging gear.

Next to the pairing and battery buttons, there are two small holes, which allow you to connect the Nimbus+’s included phone mount. The phone mount, which clamps around your iPhone and attaches to the controller via two slim metal rods that slide into the controller, is something of an Achilles’ Heel for the Nimbus+. Even when fully inserted, the rods feel flimsy and unstable when carrying the weight of a phone, which makes sense when you note that some iPhones (like mine) weigh almost as much as the controller itself.

Under ideal conditions, with your arms resting on a table, the phone feels balanced and sits perfectly in front of your face. But if the controller shakes even slightly, the mount starts to wobble and your phone almost always winds up dropping off the controller. Sitting on my couch, I could shift my grip on the controller, but if I ever readjusted my sitting position, the phone started rocking. On the off chance it doesn’t, you’ll still need to reconnect the mount to the controller. Given that, using the Nimbus+ on a bus or train, in a car, or even standing still while holding it freeform is a nonstarter. All it takes is one involuntary tilt and the phone falls down and goes boom.

The Nimbus+’ mounting issues force us to consider a certain elephant in the room. Using a mount to let your phone hang above a traditional gamepad has been the most popular approach to creating a makeshift phone-controller combo console, but a pair of high-profile wrap-around controllers, the Razer Kishi and Backbone One, suggest that a gamepad and phone mount isn’t the best approach for dedicated mobile hardware. A phone locked in the embrace of the Kishi or Backbone never shakes loose. I prefer the buttons on the Nimbus+, but phone stability (and security) are higher priorities.

SteelSeries Nimbus+ – Gaming

Setting aside the mount stability issues, the Nimbus+ is a very solid controller. Despite connecting over Bluetooth, which tends to add a small, but noticeable amount of input lag, I had no problem playing a fairly wide range of iOS games, including Sneaky Sasquatch, World of Demons, Oceanhorn 2: Knights of the Lost Realm, and Exit The Gungeon. It likely helps that the Nimbus+ supports Apple’s IAP2 wireless protocol, which presumably syncs the controller and phone better than Bluetooth would on its own.

Across all the games I tested, the Nimbus+ felt good in hand and delivered snappy inputs. I had no trouble parrying enemy attacks in World of Demons, a character action game, or dodging through bullets in Exit the Gungeon, both of which require relatively precise timing. Even more impressive, you can perfectly keep time in rhythm games like Sayonara Wild Hearts and Taiko no Tatsujin Pop Tap Beat.

Obviously, the phone mount can create some issues for playing any game with the Nimbus+, but they’re conditional and not related to playing any specific game. When you’re set up properly, with your arms braced, you can hold the controller up and close enough to your face to make the experience of playing on a phone feel immersive. Even small text is easy to read. Outside of that scenario, any game session is subject to outside interference: I didn’t test the Nimbus+ phone mount on a bus or train but, frankly, I wouldn’t use the phone in a public place where dropping your phone could lead to it getting stepped on or stolen.

On MacOS, the Nimbus+ often works fine, but is a tad unpredictable and requires more work than pairing an Xbox or PlayStation controller. I played a little Destiny 2 via Stadia but found that Stadia didn’t recognize the controller, so the menu and home buttons didn’t work. (You can access the menus using the keyboard). I was able to play Dead Cells and Into the Breach on Steam, but only after creating my own custom controller profile. In all of these cases, the controller worked well once the issues were resolved – or the limitations were established – but it was more of a process than it had to be.

Ironically, Apple Arcade games seemed to have the most problems. In a couple of instances, I also experienced some wonky connection issues. Sneaky Sasquatch, an Apple Arcade game, frequently reverted to mouse and keyboard mode until pressed the D-pad to “resync” the controller. World of Demons simply wouldn’t detect the controller on Mac. These issues seem to be at least partially game-specific – Grindstone, another Apple Arcade game, works fine with a controller – but the increased probability of problems makes you question the merits of pairing any gamepad with your Mac, let alone buy one specifically for that purpose.

The world’s first Marvel hotel has finally opened at Disneyland Paris – and we can confirm that you’ll probably want to grab an Iron Man suit and jet over to the resort once you see it.

Totally unique to Disneyland Paris, and a mere Mjölnir’s throw from the theme park itself, is Disney’s Hotel New York: The Art of Marvel. IGN was treated to an insider preview of the new hotel by the Disney Imagineers, Marvel team and artists who have been working behind the scenes for the past four years on its opening. 

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As we’d expect from the Disneyland Park in Paris, the new premium four-star hotel is a classy affair. It’s a fittingly Marvel mashup of sophisticated New York style that would make Tony Stark proud, not to mention an exclusive art gallery. It also promises to be more than a hotel, but a true Marvel experience: a treasure trove of original comic book details you won’t find anywhere else and the ultimate haven for comic book fans.

Here are 10 of our favourite Marvel-inspired details, references, Easter Eggs, and to discover throughout the hotel:

Views over Stark Tower at the Skyline Bar 

Want to really feel like Tony Stark? Head to the Skyline Bar, which, as well as offering sleek martini cocktails and American bites, draws inspiration for the Avengers HQ to give you the sense that you’re in a luxury highrise bar in Midtown Manhattan. The real pièce de résistance, though, is the virtual “panoramic windows”, which will give you a stunning faux-view over the Marvel universe’s take on the Manhattan skyline, complete with Stark Tower, and lighting which changes with the time of day. Keep a keen eye out and you’ll even spot a certain web-slinging superhero making his way over the rooftops. 

One of the largest Marvel art galleries in the world 

There are more than 350 artworks on display throughout the hotel, including, limited-edition, exclusive and never-before-seen pieces, which makes it one of the largest collections of Marvel art in the world. It features a wide array of work from more than 150 artists from all over the world, with art spanning classic Marvel comics, the current Marvel comics style, the MCU and games in styles ranging from classic back-and-white comics, to street art, pop art, hyperrealism and engraved metal work, and more. It’s set to grow, too. As Creative Director Caroline May, who curated the gallery, tells us, “We know there’s so much content that is continually coming out from Marvel Studios and the comic books, and so we wanted to make sure we had the opportunity to celebrate it all. And, we have the Jack Kirby Legacy Gallery, which we are able to update, and we’re always looking at opportunities for that, too.” 

Priceless Jack Kirby artwork

Enough reason alone for any Marvel fan to make the pilgrimage to Disneyland Paris is the new Jack Kirby gallery; a permanent exhibition dedicated to the “The King of Comics” himself, displaying 21 comic book covers drawn by the creator of Captain America, Thor, Hulk, Iron Man and the X-Men to name a few. The gallery itself is even staffed by Art Guardians, a selection of specially trained Cast Members, who are at your service to share their expert knowledge and the stories behind the comic art with you. The hotel also boasts the Jack Kirby Legacy Gallery: a dedicated exhibition space which will host rotating new art collections for limited periods at a time.

Original Marvel art, unique to the hotel 

Not only does the hotel feature classic Kirby comic book art, but it’s also kitted out with all-new original pieces by a host of exciting artists. These include UK comic book artist Tula Lotay, who has worked on Marvel comics art and overs for characters Black Widow, Gamora and Scarlet Witch, and has created an all-new vibrant portrait of Black Widow for the hotel. There’s also fellow Brit illustrator Liam Brazier, who is famed for his geometric reinterpretations of iconic characters, and has created several new contemporary portraits of Captain America, Thor and Hulk for the hotel. His favourite? Spidey, he tells us, because, “Spider-Man is always a very cool character to draw. He’s so athletic and dynamic, and my work is genuinely all about shapes and angles so that was really key for me to try and capture.” You’ll find that particular original artwork in the hotel’s dedicated Spider-Man suite.

This chandelier inspired by Asgard 

The centrepiece of the hotel’s contemporary Manhattan Restaurant is this stunning crystal chandelier, inspired by the realm of Asgard. The restaurant, meanwhile, pays homage to NYC’s Italian connections, serving modernised traditional Italian dishes made with ingredients sourced in Italy. Pilar Hamil, Hotel Director says we have to try the freshly made pasta (“It’s phenomenal – it’s made in-house by our chef, with a beautiful pesto and cashew sauce, with fresh tomatoes and porcini mushrooms.”). That’s not a Marvel reference (though we’re sure Bro Thor would appreciate it) – it just sounds delicious.

Subtly engraved Marvel columns 

The Marvel designs don’t stop at more traditional artwork – the hotel has been created so that you’ll find Marvel Easter eggs everywhere you look. Case in point: the ultra-grand lobby, the vertical design of which is surrounded by ten statuesque columns. Thomas Muller, set designer at Walt Disney Imagineering Paris cites them as his favourite part of the hotel: “You probably don’t realise straight away that they are engraved with superheroes – it’s one of those particular details that when you really take the time to take it all in, it makes for a ‘wow’ experience,” he tells us.

The Bleecker Street Lounge

Named after the address of Doctor Strange’s Sanctum Sanctorum in Greenwich Village, the exposed brickwork and concrete stylings of this lounge are meant to transport you to Doctor Strange’s downtown Manhattan loft – except, instead of priceless magical artifacts, it’s full of themed food and drinks. Think New York-influenced snacks and cocktails inspired by the Sorcerer Supreme, as well as microbrews and organic wines, set over an indoor-outdoor terrace with views of Lake Disney: a perfect place to relax after a long day of heroism.

The opportunity to become an artist in the famed Marvel “Bullpen”

At the Marvel Design Studio, families and kids can learn how to be a Marvel comic book artist by following authentic tutorials to draw their favourite heroes on dedicated tablets. Comic book fans will recognise the bright space as being directly influenced by the mythical Marvel ‘Bullpen” – the place where Stan Lee, Jack Kirby and the Marvel comics writers and artists of the 1960s famously brainstormed ideas and created the Silver Age of comics.

Web slinging furniture details in the Spider-Man suite 

You’ll get to experience the art in an altogether more intimate setting in the hotel’s rooms – 25 of which are exclusive suites dedicated to heroes like Spider-Man, and other Avengers. Not only are these decorated with original artworks, but the subtle design details go right down to the furniture throughout each room. In the Spidey suites, you’ll even notice an iconic web design on the ceiling, curtains and sofas, with shades of red throughout, and the outline of NYC skyline on the floor, to really make Peter Parker feel at home.

This Black Widow-inspired strawberry dessert

When Natasha Romanoff said ‘Nothing lasts forever” in the Black Widow trailer, we can assume she was probably talking about how long this thing will stay intact before it gets devoured. Because while the Art of Marvel resort may be super sophisticated, that doesn’t mean it’s short of Marvel-themed food and drink. That’s exactly how we like our luxury hotel experiences. The first on our list to try? This Black Widow-inspired strawberry cookies and cream dessert, available from the hotel’s eateries.

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The second episode of Dying Light 2’s Dying To Know series will be broadcast on July 1 at 12 PM PT / 3 PM ET on developer Techland’s Twitch channel. Next week’s topic hints at a deep dive into the various infected people that you’ll encounter in the game, with an emphasis on the volatile humans who emerge at night.

“Night is coming, and with it, the nightmares, who hide in their nests during the day, awaken,” Techland said in a press release. “It’s a chance for us to get supplies to restore the remnants of hope in the hearts of the few loved ones we have and grow our lives on the rooftops. But before you hit the streets, you need to know what’s hiding in the darkness. The reward is high, but the price you will pay if you stay in the dark for too long will be even higher.”

In the first Dying Light, daytime expeditions usually involved avoiding the hordes of infected people who roamed the streets. With strength in numbers, it was easy to pick off an infected person on their own and challenging to take on an entire horde.

Once the sun went down though, Volatile, Bolter, and Hunter variants would roam the streets. These infected were faster and more dangerous, but braving the streets while they were active would result in more valuable loot being found. Just don’t refer to them as zombies.

Techland also hosted its first Dying Light 2 AMA, which touched on topics such as handmade weapons and the ramifications of choices made in the game. The long-in-development sequel is coming out on December 7 for Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, PS4, PS5, and PC.

With June winding down, Amazon has revealed the next batch of free games and loot for Amazon Prime members. Prime Gaming’s July 2021 lineup features six free games: Batman: The Enemy Within, Rad, The Wanderer: Frankenstein’s Curse, Tales of the Neon Sea, Automachef, and Portal Dogs. You can also grab free in-game loot for popular games like Grand Theft Auto Online, Warframe, and Sea of Thieves.

Fresh off of giving away Batman: The Telltale Series in June, Amazon is handing out the sequel, Batman: The Enemy Within, in July. Like the original, The Enemy Within is divided into five episodes and features clashes with classic foes such as The Riddler, Bane, and Joker.

You’ve probably visited plenty of post-apocalyptic worlds in video games, but Rad is set in a post-post-apocalypse. Needless to say, the world conjured up in this 3D action roguelike is bleak and unforgiving. As a teenager tasked with saving the world, you must enter a shifting wasteland to take on all sorts of monsters with the help of your mysterious powers.

Tales of the Neon Sea is a gorgeous pixel art side-scroller set in a cyberpunk world inhabited by humans and robots. You play as a detective investigating a bizarre murder. Tales of the Neon Sea is an old-school adventure game with a fun story. Meanwhile, The Wanderer: Frankenstein’s Creature is a creative narrative-based adventure revolving around the iconic monster.

Automachef is a clever resource management puzzle game centered on automating meal prep in the kitchen, and Portal Dogs is a puzzle-platformer starring a king who leads a pack of dogs who mimic his every move.

Tons of free in-game loot will be available in July, including the Druidic Settlement Bundle for Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, mystery skin shards for League of Legends, and an exclusive player card for Valorant.

To claim the six free games and bounty of in-game loot throughout July, you need to be an Amazon Prime member. If you aren’t already subscribed, you can sign up for a free 30-day trial. All of the new free games go live July 1, so you still have time to claim June’s freebies.

July 2021 free Prime Gaming titles

Available July 1-31

• Batman: The Enemy Within – The Telltale Series
• Rad
• The Wanderer: Frankenstein’s Creature
• Tales of the Neon Sea
• Automachef
• Portal Dogs

In a recent The Tonight Show appearance, wrestler and movie star John Cena confirmed to host Jimmy Fallon that the rumors about his return to the WWE are true, but what’s still up in the air is the timeline for his next match. Cena’s news sparked audible gasps from the studio.

Fallon broached the question by resurfacing an Instagram post Cena made on May 8, bearing only the WWE logo with no caption. For over a month, this cryptic post has fueled these rumors, but when Fallon–who also added that Cena “is a great follow [on Instagram]”–asked about it, the wrestler responded without a moment’s hesitation: “I’ll definitely be back… I was feeling rather nostalgic about the WWE and I just wanted to post the logo, and some people took it as I was returning immediately, which, that’s not the case. But I haven’t had my last match, and I can’t wait to have my next match.”

The next Cena projects on the horizon to get hyped about are the Suicide Squad movie and its spin-off focusing on his character, Peacemaker. There’s a new trailer for Suicide Squad with an unusual roll-out–it can only be found as an ad on YouTube, but fans won’t have long to wait until the August 6 release for the DC movie to hit theaters and HBO Max. The Peacemaker spin-off is currently set to also premiere on HBO Max on January 22.

For more wrestling fun, check out GameSpot’s professional wrestling podcast Wrestle Buddies. Hosted by Mat Elfring and Chris E. Hayner, the duo discuss fun and comedic moments from WWE, AEW, Impact, ROH, and more. Check out the latest episode below where the Buddies talk to DC Comics writer Joshua Williamson about the time two invisible wrestlers had a banger of a match.

Rare’s cult-classic fighting game series Killer Instinct was revived back in 2013, but the reboot has seen very little new content added to it since its third season finished in 2017. Killer Instinct isn’t dead though, as Xbox boss Phil Spencer recently mentioned his interest in revisiting the series when the time is right.

“There are so many good games in our catalog that we’d love to revisit,” Spencer said in the latest Dropped Frames podcast via VGC. “The response when we did Killer Instinct at the launch of Xbox One was fantastic. Not everybody inside of the Xbox organization kind of saw what that game could become. I will just say, Matt [Booty] and I have discussed many times Killer Instinct and where we’d like to go with it.”

According to Spencer, a Killer Instinct re-re-revival will need “the right team and the right opportunity” to be found. It took 17 years for the series to find a new home at Microsoft, and even in a genre dominated by Mortal Kombat, Street Fighter, and newer fighting games like Guilty Gear Strive, Killer Instinct still had a dedicated fanbase when developer Double Helix and Iron Galaxy took over from Rare. Double Helix was acquired by Amazon in 2014, so any new Killer Instinct games won’t be handled by the studio responsible for its first season of content. A documentary on the game was released last year and explored the rebirth of the series as well the legacy of the series.

If you’re in the mood for Killer Instinct or any other excellent Xbox titles worth trying out, don’t forget to check out the 20 best Xbox Game Pass games that you can play right now.

The first trailer for The Harder They Fall has been released. The Netflix western stars Jonathan Majors (Lovecraft Country) and Idris Elba (Luther, The Wire).

The trailer doesn’t reveal too much in the way of plot, but it certainly delivers the action and style. It opens with outlaws Trudy Smith and Cherokee Bill, played by Regina King (Watchmen) and Lakeith Stanfeld (Judas and the Black Messiah), rescuing gang leader Rufus Buck, a real-life outlaw played by Elba. Majors plays another real-life figure, legendary Black cowboy Nat Love, and it looks like a hugely entertaining slice of western action, with an amazing cast. Check the trailer out below:

Netflix has released a synopsis for the movie, which reads, “When outlaw Nat Love discovers that his enemy Rufus Buck (Idris Elba) is being released from prison he rounds up his gang to track Rufus down and seek revenge. Those riding with him in this assured, righteously new school Western include his former love Stagecoach Mary, his right and left hand men–hot-tempered Bill Pickett and fast drawing Jim Beckwourth–and a surprising adversary-turned-ally. Rufus Buck has his own fearsome crew, including “Treacherous” Trudy Smith and Cherokee Bill, and they are not a group that knows how to lose.”

The Harder They Fall also stars Zazie Beetz (Joker, Atlanta) as Mary, R.J. Cyler (Power Rangers) as Beckwourth, and Edi Gathegi (StartUp) as Pickett, plus Delroy Lindo (Da 5 BLoods) and Danielle Deadwyler (Watchmen). It’s the directorial debut of Jeymes Samuel, the British musician also known as The Bullitts (and brother of soul superstar Seal). Samuel wrote the screenplay with Boaz Yakin (Fresh, Remember the Titans). The movie doesn’t have a release date yet, but it’s set to hit Netflix in the Fall.

For more Netflix coverage, check out GameSpot’s guide to all the new movies, shows, and originals hitting the service in July.

There’s an art to how Nintendo usually iterates on its long-running series. That twist it almost always seems to discover makes us excited about what’s to come, while also looking back on fond memories already forged. Mario Golf: Super Rush, though, is an exception to that trend – it’s sporadically fun but it frustratingly falls short of the green more often than not. Its newly introduced Speed Golf mode is a bright point that shakes up the formula, while its lacklustre Adventure mode is a short and not overly sweet few hours. It makes for a package as a whole that offers some of the fun of the Mario Golf games of past generations, but when all is said and done it lacks the variety, replayability, and general amount of content needed to be considered a standout in the series.

The original Mario Golf (titled NES Open Tournament Golf) is the first game I really remember playing, as I graduated from crawling around and tangling in my dad’s controller wires to holding the pad myself. The core mechanics remain, and apart from the obvious visual improvements, it doesn’t feel a million miles away from how it did 25-odd years ago: Line up your shot, press A to begin your swing, then A again (or B if you want to apply backspin) to lock in the power of your shot.

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It’s these simple button presses as the power bar fills up on the right hand side of the screen, coupled with the subsequent sound of club hitting ball that evokes nostalgia and takes me to a happy place. The standard modes of match play and stroke play also provide comfort and familiarity, and as with every mode (aside from story campaign) these can be played solo or with up to three other players for a relaxed time with Mario and friends, but they’re so old and worn that while they’re certainly comforting, they’re nothing to get excited about.

Need for Speed

The mode that does spark some joy is Speed Golf. Speed Golf is the new twist on the formula this time around, and it’s fair to assume is what inspired the “Super Rush” part of Mario Golf: Super Rush’s name. This fresh take on a round of 18 holes is where I found the majority of my enjoyment coming from. Instead of simply taking your shot, watching to see where it goes, and then magically appearing next to your ball, it places as much importance on what happens in between strokes as the swings of the club itself. 

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Of course, this is done in classic Nintendo fashion: there’s no jumping on your golf cart and slowly driving to your ball here (though now that I mention it I do like the idea of each hole being half Mario Kart track, half golf course). Instead, you’ll race competitors to your next lie, holding in B to dash for as long as your stamina bar will allow. You can also pick up hearts to refill that stamina, and coins which fill your special shot bar along the way. The placement of these items offers a fun tactical minigame to play within each shot, as you must weigh up which is the best “golf shot” to play in order to reach the hole against which will lead you to pick up more coins without taking too much of a detour and wasting time. One option could lead to a more traditionally beneficial position, but the other could grant you that all-important special shot that bit quicker.

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As you might reasonably assume from the name, time is very much the key in Speed Golf, but the phrase “more haste, less speed” also rings very true. That’s because each shot you take adds 30 seconds to your time, so taking those extra few moments to line up a better shot will benefit you in the long run because the victor is determined by speed rather than who takes the fewest strokes. It’s a clever risk-vs-reward mechanic that keeps it fresh hole after hole. 

Sometimes plans can be disrupted, though, thanks to the unique character abilities belonging to each of the 16 playable characters. These aforementioned “special shots” are not only highly accurate shots, but come with effects that can be used to sabotage your opponents. They’re available to perform across all modes, but it’s in Speed Golf that they really come into their own.

Luigi, for example, can turn the area around where his ball lands to ice, making for a difficult surface to putt and indeed run on if trying to get to your ball. King Bob-omb can spawn a series of (you guessed it)  bombs around his ball that can knock opponents and their balls away if touched. For my money, however, the most effective of these special abilities belongs to Wario: he can usher in a massive thunder cloud over an area of the hole, and anybody who tries to strike their ball at maximum power while under it will be struck by lightning, costing them a stroke. (I hate playing against him but make no apologies for doing so myself.) Although some of these special shots do double up over the full roster of 16 characters (like Mario and Bowser who can both blast away balls on impact), there’s enough variety to keep things interesting and find something that works for you.

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Each character also possesses their own special dash move when running between locations which grants a significant speed boost and knocks aside anyone in your path. These are less exciting to use, but do still give off the sort of serotonin-filled dose of schadenfreude that the blue and red shells of Mario Golf’s sister series, Mario Kart, supply all too well. All in all, I enjoyed playing Speed Golf and it definitely became my preferred mode to play, especially when compared to the relatively ponderous nature of the traditional modes. 

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One of the only real downsides to it is the fact that you can’t sit back and admire a beautiful shot you’ve made. I’ve only struck one hole-in-one so far in my time with Super Rush, and because it came during a Speed Golf round I never got to see what really happened. Sure, I was pleasantly surprised to see the words “Hole-in-One” flash up on the screen as I was running halfway down the fairway but the suspense of “will it or won’t it?” was lost. There’s no option to watch replays or highlights either across any of the modes, which just seems a little odd. I guess that mirrors real life as you walk up the hole to see the ball already sitting in it, but I’m not really playing a game with a giant ape one-handedly swinging a golf club towards a tornado for realism, to be honest.

Further moving away from any form of reality (not a bad thing!) is the new Battle Golf, which didn’t ever grab me in the same way. Mainly that’s because it’s so fast-paced that it’s normally over before you have a moment to really get into it. It consists of you and three other competitors battling out in an arena to be the first to put their ball in three holes. Seems simple enough – but wait, there’s a catch. There are nine flags dotted around the stadium to go for, but they disappear once one of the four players has holed them. It makes for a fast and frantic game mode where the key to success, unfortunately, is to steer clear of trouble and go where others aren’t. Avoiding confrontation kind of defeats the whole idea of it being Battle Golf. 

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The AI opponents are often not the sharpest tools either, and with no way of upping or lowering the difficulty I soon got bored of this mode. When the rounds rarely last upwards of three minutes, that means I became bored quite quickly indeed. Playing online against other humans does give more of a joyful spontaneity to Battle Golf, but it’s still all over far too quickly. It’s not a mode I can see myself playing much more of after my first few days, but it’s far from the dullest in Super Rush.

Story Time

Golf Adventure mode was what I was most looking forward to in Super Rush, with nostalgia of previous Mario Golf installments once again fuelling my expectations. Instead, I got a largely underwhelming four or five hours. Things start out promisingly, almost like a Pokemon game: you wake up in your home and are set off on your journey to become the very best by your proxy-mother, Birdo. Without spoiling what limited story there is here, you then go about earning badges to build your profile as a golfer before getting roped into saving the kingdom from an artificially engineered climate-change threat. It kinda comes out of nowhere and then finishes before you’ve been given a chance to ask as simple a question as “why?”

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Now don’t get me wrong, I wasn’t going into this expecting storytelling on the level of Homer’s Odyssey, but something akin to Mario’s own Odyssey from a few years back wouldn’t have gone amiss, either. It’s not really even a Mario story at all – aside from a few extended cameos from some familiar faces it’s all a bit rushed, and I’m sure not in the way that “Super Rush” is intended. It starts slow, as you learn the ropes on beginner courses before developing into a series of repetitive and clunky boss battle encounters which have you dodging attacks and firing golf balls at enemies in moderate anger. 

That’s not to say that Golf Adventure doesn’t have its high points. I particularly enjoyed a challenge that involved completing nine holes of the whirlwind and water-littered Ridgerock Lake course in under 40 strokes. The twist being that you could do them in any order and continued playing on from the green of each hole, only teeing off once. This turned this into a more puzzle-like section that had me genuinely thinking about what the best strategy to take would be. It’s a shame that this challenge type is only used once, however, because it felt like there was more for it to do.

In fact, lots of mechanics are brought in and used very briefly, and sometimes introduced then not used at all. For example, about halfway through the journey you’re given a club that has the ability to make your shots skim across the water, which sounds and looks very cool. So when I was given no real opportunity to ever use this past the tutorial section in which you learn how to use it, I was baffled. More confusingly, none of the other characters have the ability to use this technique in any of the other modes, meaning it’s rendered almost completely redundant. And this wasn’t the only time something like this happened.

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I would say that Golf Adventure isn’t worth sinking the time into, but the truth is that it’s kind of necessary if you want to be able to enjoy the rest of what Super Rush has to offer. Not only does it teach you basic golfing skills and introduce you to the rules of Speed Golf, but it’s the only way to unlock all of the courses for use in the other modes. 

It’s also the only place to level up your Mii character, which comes with both pros and cons: don’t play the Adventure mode and you’ll have a character who can’t compete in other modes, but play it fully and you’ll likely have an overpowered character who can out-drive every other member of the roster. There’s a lack of balance to be found here, especially if you want to play as your Mii characters against a friend in local multiplayer, as it will mean they’ll also have to complete the story mode in order to have a chance against you.

There are six courses in total, which isn’t a huge amount (especially when compared to World Tour, which had 10 before DLC), but at least they offer variety. The super sandy Balmy Dunes will test your approach play, while Wildweather Woods has (you guessed it, again) wild weather to contend with. They’re each visually appealing in their own ways, and while Super Rush doesn’t look like a top-tier Nintendo game graphically, it bursts with colour – especially when playing in handheld mode.

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I can’t help but wish there were just a couple more courses, though, even if the handful provided at launch are fun enough. The truth is that unless you’re interested in regularly playing online then there’s not a whole lot more to do after the first few hours except chase your own high scores once the story has finished. Confusingly, there are also no online tournaments to play – another thing World Tour has that has been omitted here, making it feel light on things to do by comparison to its older sibling. 

All the courses will be unlocked after the story is complete and all the characters are there from the start. There are special club sets to earn for each of the 16 characters that you must buy with loyalty coins earned by playing as them, but this really does pale in comparison to recent parallels such as Everybody’s Golf which is much better at constantly giving you items to earn and a sense of genuine progression. The truth is that after several hours of playing I’d had a fun enough time with Super Rush, but I was left just thinking, “Well, what’s next?” a whole lot sooner than I ever thought I would be.