Time for another late-'90s game

I can't stay away!

And the main reason for this foray today

is LEGO Racers, developed by High Voltage Software

and published by LEGO Media in 1999 for Windows PCs.

And, yep, it was also released for the Sony PlayStation

and Nintendo 64 later on,

and even the Game Boy Color.

But it's the original PC version we'll be looking at throughout this video.

And my copy was sealed until now, so let's fix that.

Open it up and see what it came with.

First is the game disc itself

inside a jewel case, as to be expected.

But not as expected were these two $30 rebates

for the 3dfx Voodoo2 1000 video card.

Kinda makes sense, seeing as this was released during a time

where 3D acceleration being required, instead of optional,

was still a relatively new thing.

And while you can see there were plenty of competing cards,

3dfx was the clear frontrunner in '99.

There's also a LEGO Media software registration card,

another rebate offer, this time for the game LEGO Creator,

a quick reference sheet with keyboard and gamepad controls alike,

the all-important technical reference guide

with 12 pages of troubleshooting tips

a fold-out LEGO Media product catalog

filled with all the LEGO game offerings of the day,

and finally, the 35-page instruction manual,

which is as brightly colored and easy to follow

as any modern LEGO manual would be.

Gotta love how even a game meant for kids ages six and up

got a box full of goodies like this back then.

Sure, it's mostly advertising, but it's LEGO advertising,

so it gets by on style points alone.

LEGO Racers begins with the prerequisite logo animations.

And yes, in case you're wondering,

that is the same High Voltage Software that still exists today,

known for the PC ports of games like Mortal Kombat X and Injustice,

as well as heading up development on titles

like Saints Row IV: Gat out of Hell

and their own series, The Conduit.

After this, you get a delightful pre-rendered 3D intro video which,

thanks to the LEGO aesthetic and its exaggerated campy antics,

still holds up quite well.

You're then greeted by the main menu,

letting you do things with menus, mainly.

And I particularly like how the Options menu is so protective,

warning you to grab an adult before messing with stuff,

and even then you're barely given anything to adjust.

How charming.

Starting a new game has you creating your own minifig as an avatar

with a selection of body parts and accessories

from various contemporary LEGO sets.

You also get to create your own vehicle to race with,

and again you're provided with a bunch of LEGO bricks and pieces.

There's a decent amount in the beginning,

but as you play the game, you'll unlock more sets.

The design of your vehicles doesn't seem to affect anything notable, though,

which is probably a good thing, since the design tools themselves

aren't very pleasant to use, just a bit clunky.

After this, it's off to the races,

and while you can play a single race against random opponents,

the clock, or a friend via split-screen,

the Circuit Race career mode is where you'll unlock new stuff.

There are several pre-made racers to choose from,

but as I like to say,

"If you can play with yourself and no one's stopping you,

then go for it!"

There are seven circuits to complete

which feature several tracks from a selection of 12,

each with their own themes and unique racers to beat.

The main guy you're out to get is the godlike Rocket Racer,

but you won't even come across him until Circuit Seven,

the final circuit.

But until then, you've got Captain Redbeard,

King Kahuka,

Basil the Batlord,

Johnny Thunder,

Baron von Barron,

and Gypsy Moth.

(beep) (jaunty, whimsical music)

And, yep, it's a kart racer,

complete with all the standard arcadey control schemes,

slippery power sliding and defensive and offensive power-ups.

On the surface, LEGO Racers is just another example

of taking a proven gameplay formula that sells at the time

and slapping a LEGO theme on top of it.

It's fast and colorful and filled with all the expected charm,

but is it really anything special outside of nostalgia

and just revisiting an older game for curiosity's sake?

Well, actually, yeah, I'd say so!

Looking a bit further reveals a few features and quirks

that sets this game apart in my mind.

And the first of which is the power-up system.

Or rather the power-up power-up system. (chuckles)

Each one of the colored bricks floating around the track will grant you an ability.

And you can only have one at a time, as you might anticipate.

Red offers projectiles, blue is defense,

green is speed and yellow drops hazards.

But then there are those sparkly white bricks

which can be collected and stacked on each other

to power up the power-ups.

I love this idea!

It's almost more akin to what certain scrolling spaceship shooters do,

but in kart racing form.

Now I'm not saying that a power-up power-up system is entirely unique

to LEGO Racers, because of course it's not.

It's just the way that it's implemented here in this game,

with this specific set of upgrades and the way that they're used,

that really makes me happy.

You know exactly what ability you're going to get with each color pickup.

But if you don't use it immediately and you're patient

and hold onto it long enough,

you can grab those white bricks and you'll be even more powerful.

And several of those powers are just lots of fun to use

like the grappling hook that latches onto an opponent

and propels you past them,

the Lightning Wand that zaps opponents in front of you

and disables their vehicle,

and the ridiculous Warp Turbo Boost

which drops you into a wormhole

and teleports you way ahead onto the track.

And these aren't just gimmicks flippantly used

because some of the races almost require you

to utilize the powered-up power-ups to their fullest.

That's because despite its low age recommendation

LEGO Racers is not the most forgiving game.

The AI is often ruthless,

taking every possible advantage they can

to launch themselves far, far ahead of you

with almost no chance of overtaking them again.

The track designs themselves aren't the most friendly, either,

with plenty of sharp turns and hard edges

that are easy to hit and get stuck on,

even with skilled power sliding technique.

Plus, you have to earn a podium finish

to continue on to the next set of tracks.

Otherwise, you'll have to restart the entire set all over again.

And there's no restarting individual races

and no difficulty adjustment, either.

So it really doesn't provide much wiggle room to screw up during a circuit.

That's not to say it's impossible or even incredibly hard by any means.

But it's just a little more tough than I expected

for the age range on the box.

All of this means that those more powerful pickups

are key in succeeding.

And as long as you can make good use of them,

you'll make it through the game in about an hour and a half.

In fact, it's really not that bad once you learn

where the proper sequence of white bricks and green bricks are,

because then you can just spam that warp boost all the time.

There are also hidden shortcuts and various track changes

that occur the longer each race goes on,

so there's more than one way to skin a minifig in LEGO Racers.

Once you beat a champion, you'll unlock their set

to customize your vehicle further if you like.

And once you make it to the end, you'll become, and I quote,

"the greatest LEGO racing champion of all time!"

Forget anyone else that plays the game,

it's you and you alone.

And that is LEGO Racers.

It's a charmingly simple game

that requires just enough skill and racing line strategy

to keep me engaged, and I approve!

I can't say it's a personal favorite or anything,

but if it's one of yours, then I don't blame you.

I expect if I played it back when it was new,

I'd have some pretty fond memories indeed.

And it's still a fun experience, even today.

Speaking of which, it's not currently for sale digitally,

so that's a bit of a bummer.

And if you do find a copy, the PC game disc

is plagued by old SafeDisc DRM. (groans)

So it doesn't work on current operating systems like Windows 10

without using something like unSafedisc.

So, as always, it's best if you have an old Windows 98 solution,

like the machine that I used to record this video footage.

Or, you know, there's the console ports

if the drop in visual fidelity and frame rate doesn't bother you.

But either way, I'd recommend LEGO Racers

for an enjoyable little distraction for an hour or two.

(clapping electronic beat)

And if you enjoyed this video on LEGO things,

perhaps you'd like to see some of my other videos

on other LEGO things.

Or other topics entirely.

I've got a lot of stuff,

with new videos every Monday and Friday here on LGR.

And as always, thank you very much for watching.