All-Star Fruit Racing Review (Nintendo Switch)

All-Star Fruit Racing sets out to create a lovable title featuring go-karts and fruit. Fortunately, it’s able to blend these two elements together to create a fun experience best enjoyed with friends. Unfortunately, the game does not offer much new to the genre which holds it back from being a true standout.

Simple Gameplay

This release is a typical kart-racer with not much new to offer to the genre. Drifting and speed boosts make an appearance much like other titles, but its power-ups are the true highlight. Fruit bubbles are scattered around each track which fills up certain valves to an ability meter. The ABXY buttons make it possible to combine these in order to create different power-ups. Instead of hoping to unlock a certain randomized ability, users can simply create their own. Mystery boxes, which grant random powers, are featured as well but mixing up different fruits is much more enjoyable. Drifting is also unique because of a meter that can be filled up. This grants users with an additional boost, but holding it for too long can result in the car overheating and causing a spin-out. Besides these, everything else is pretty standard and average.

Races are simple but can be extremely varied. One race may only have one lap, so an all-out sprint to the finish line is needed. Others have an elimination mode that kills off whoever is in last place after a certain amount of time until there is only one left standing. Later stages that appear in Career Mode eventually become endurance races causing them to feel more tedious than they should. Had they been the just a few laps around the map with tougher AI instead of five with the same challenge, it would be much more enjoyable.

Playing with Friends

All-Star Fruit Racing supports four-player local co-op in addition to its online features. Co-op is easy to hop into and fun with friends. However, playing locally with one joy-con hinders the experience. Not having both feels cramped and much more tedious to control. This is best played using a full set of joy-cons or a pro controller. Gameplay is also a bit difficult for newcomers that haven’t played the tutorial. Many don’t know how to operate the mixture mechanic so in the beginning, it can be a bit rough. It takes a bit of getting used to but is extremely fun because even if someone is screen-watching, it’s still unknown what power-up they’ll use.

Online play makes an appearance but it isn’t much only because there was nobody online to race against. This made finding a match nearly impossible. Gamers will have to rely on their friends to liven up the online community. Fortunately, it’s possible to create individual rooms in order to invite friends who aren’t able to play locally. Otherwise, you’ll be stuck hitting refresh and hoping there’s someone else out there doing the same.

Modes and Features

A variety of modes are available from the start. Career Mode, Time Attack, Championships, Custom Races, and Training give gamers plenty to accomplish. Career consists of multiple tournaments with four races that the player must win in order to advance to the next cup. Championship Mode is just one of these tourneys that can be selected, or a custom one can be created.

The maps in this title are all focused around the theme of fruit. Seeing how creative the landmarks are and what each twist and turn has to offer is part of the fun. Although the graphics hinder these fresh looks, it’s still entertaining to explore what each stage has to offer. Some even take inspiration from familiar landmarks such as Mount Rushmore.

Completing tournaments unlocks new maps, vehicle pieces, and characters that can be used by the player. Garage Mode is one of the best features in the game due to the deep customization offered. Users are able to create their own custom karts by tweaking rims, paint schemes, tires, body pieces, etc. Each kart feels unique and individualized to fit whoever is behind the wheel.

3DClouds.it has been able to blend kart racing and fruit into a truly ripe package. It’s an enjoyable experience that offers hours of gameplay. Whether gamers are out earning unlockables, playing with friends, or customizing karts, there is a decent amount to do. Even though there isn’t much new to offer to the genre, it’s a release that is unique in its own way and is great for parties.