Snap Judgment: ModNation Racers

Posted by Anton Gordon at 11:15 AM Jun 26, 2009

This is the first entry in a series I'm calling Snap Judgment. In this column, I'll be predicting the fate of certain games based on the information available and my read on the game industry at the moment. By necessity, this column will focus on games that I think will flop or do moderately well, as anyone with a brain can predict that games like Modern Warfare 2 will be huge. Sometimes my predictions will be right. Sometimes they'll be wrong. But they'll always be an opportunity for you, the reader, to tell me that I'm a moron, a hater, or worse. 

So, on with the show! I'm opening with Sony's recently announced ModNation Racers because it's the game that inspired this column. I'd actually forgotten all about it until it popped into my mind randomly the other day, and I'm not surprised, because I think this game has a tough road ahead.

As you can seen in the video above, this game was clearly inspired by LittleBigPlanet. They admit as much. While Sony clearly thought that LittleBigPlanet was going to be a huge smash, it didn't exactly set the world on fire. Sure, it's sold a good number of units, but nowhere near what Sony must have been hoping for. Ex-JD homie Gary Hodges nailed why right here: Not all gamers want to make games, to put it simply.

ModNation Racers was likely greenlit because Sony forsaw a trend in user-created content that didn't happen. The track creation tools in the demo above look great - it seems really simple and intuitive. But if no one wants to make their own tracks, then who does that benefit? And on top of that, the gameplay doesn't look that compelling. Many games have tried to take on Mario Kart. All have failed. How many PS3 owners are out there pining for a good Mario Kart-style game? Not this one, that's for sure.

To top it all off, while ModNation Racers has a sleek "urban vinyl" feel, it definitely lacks the cutesy charm of LittleBigPlanet's Sackboy, the most likeable game mascot in some years. With a core mechanic that no one seems to be that hot on, too-familiar gameplay, and a lack of a distinct charm, ModNation Racers seems to have a tough road ahead.

Snap Judgment Prediction: Flop.
Why I Could be Wrong: Maybe they'll add the NASCAR license, get some hicks makin' tracks!