Wacky Races: Crash & Dash

 DS
Metascore
41

Generally unfavorable reviews - based on 11 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 0 out of 11
  2. Mixed: 2 out of 11
  3. Negative: 9 out of 11
  1. Nintendo Gamer
    63
    The action's limited but still amusing, and the music is truly late '60s fabulous. [Sept 2008, p.71]
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  2. Armchair Empire
    50
    Wacky Races offers some fun for a half dozen races and a nostalgic trip back to a Hanna Barbara series that some may remember. Beyond that, the game offers little depth or replayability and is probably best looked at as a rental.
  3. Cheat Code Central
    48
    Wacky Racers is still a better cartoon than a game. Crash and Dash is proof of that.
  5. IGN
    42
    The simple controls and childish mini-games don't provide enough stimulation to keep the mind occupied.
  6. Pocket Gamer UK
    40
    Despite a wave of innovations manages to be less enjoyable than the near decade old GBC version. Less of the Wacky and more of the wack.
  7. Worth Playing
    40
    It actually left me frustrated because it manages to do a lot right, but ultimately, it's too lacking in too many areas to be something I can recommend.
  8. GameZone
    38
    If you are a fan of the show, it’s recommended you pick up the DVD to serve your hunger for wackiness. Avoid Wacky Races: Crash & Dash at all costs.
  9. GamingExcellence
    34
    So go outside, read a book or just pick your nose for a couple of hours. Wacky Races: Crash & Dash isn’t worth it.
  10. GameSpot
    30
    Stripped-down controls with little punishment for crashing make Wacky Races an extremely boring racer.
  11. GamesRadar+
    30
    While Crash & Dash may look like a racing game, it’s really more of a party game in a racer’s clothing. It has a few moments of fun, but is plagued by its dreary, repetitive minigames, questionable controls, and fundamental lack of strategy.
  12. Eurogamer
    30
    To make matter worse, the race will stop dead at certain points to forcibly initiate a mini-game in the guise of one of Dastardly and Muttley's futile foils.

Awards & Rankings

73
#73 Most Discussed DS Game of 2008
26
#26 Most Shared DS Game of 2008

User Reviews

All reviews »
User Score
6.0

Mixed or average reviews- based on 4 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 2 out of 4
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 4
  3. Negative: 1 out of 4
  1. knifeandfork
    Sep 2, 2013
    3
    Wacky races was a popular cartoon, and, of course, somebody somewhere had a bright idea to turn it into a racing game. There is nothing wrongWacky races was a popular cartoon, and, of course, somebody somewhere had a bright idea to turn it into a racing game. There is nothing wrong with this concept, but something(s) happened along the line to drastically change it.
    Upon starting, you'll be greeted with okay-ish presentation and graphics. It's slapstick, over-top kind of looks. The sound, while true to the cartoon, is not fit for a game. Yes, it's full of wacky music, but the voices are annoying, to say the least.
    Of course, to be similar at all to the show, the gameplay would have to be chaotic, with it's fair share of traps and craziness. Well, mission accomplished. With no acceleration button, you must simply move the stylus left and right to control the car, viewing from a bird's eye angle. This control scheme frequently gets in the way of things. If you crash into too many obstacles, you must use the stylus to re-assemble your car. While this sounds damaging, for some reason it seems you never get left far behind, as if you actually get put back on the track further forward. But the identical, mundane design of the tracks makes it difficult to work out if you're in the same place or not. It makes me question the real make-up of this game.
    Yet what's worse is that in the middle of a race, every car suddenly stops to play a simple touch minigame in which Dick Dastardly has caused something bad to happen. In the middle of a racing game! One example is tracing your stylus over a narrow path. If you fail the minigames, you'll face a penalty. Maybe the players who succeeded get a headstart. Maybe you get put far back along the track. But it's all very unclear to tell because the entire track looks near-identical. If you win, you also get rewarded with a terrible cutscene of Dick Dastardly screaming drat, and that weird dog ****
    Worse yet- towards the end, just when you've had enough of this blasted race, you must blow. For ages and ages. As hard as your body can muster before you drop your DS from nausea. At this point, your car is driving by itself for some inexplicable reason, and the more powerfully you blow, the faster it'll go. This section is surely just a joke, surely just the designers secretly pointing a camera into the cardboard-box-house of the person who is playing this game. What misguided person ever mistakenly thought blowing was fun?
    So I shall conclude this review by asking Eidos: do you enjoy blowing gustfuls of air for twenty seconds or longer? Is that your idea of fun?    … Full Review »
  2. Heelover
    Nov 17, 2010
    8
    This review contains spoilers, click full review link to view. I don't get it. Why so many negative reviews when this game does graphically well and sounds good? With 10 racers racing in one go, I think this is a substantial enough racer to be playing for hours, forcing you to do different challenges in terms of mini-games which appear during the middle of the race. The only thing that stopped me from playing is the predictable AI. This is supposed to be random, and most of the time it ends up as Penelope Pitstop and Peter Perfect winning most of the races. Other than that. It's worth a play, and it supports multiplayer too.… Full Review »
  3. rf
    Jul 9, 2008
    5
    Regrettably poor. Another purchase made to enjoy simple, fun racing with my kid. I was surprised at the difficulty level when I played itRegrettably poor. Another purchase made to enjoy simple, fun racing with my kid. I was surprised at the difficulty level when I played it alone, and consider this a strength, except that even when you're doing a good job, the controls and gameplay are not FUN. The automatic explanations preceding "trap" areas are helpful at first but I got sick of having to explain everything to my son in a hurried panic, and got sick of reading through it myself. Add a clunky and obscure set of special abilities for each driver (again, a strength, except again, NOT FUN) and it becomes too difficult for kids, too annoying for adults, and we pop out the cartridge and play something else.… Full Review »
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