Retro Games Reviewer #16; ExciteBike Review
Pick up your helmet - Not a medieval war-like, I mean, a motorcycle helmet - put on your fake leather jacket, that you bought to impress your last date, get a few root beers - Do not drink and drive. FREAKING EVER! - And, start on your classic NES motocross title, Excitebike.
Ah, isn't life great?
Man, I love this game. Because it's simply so damn' fun. Nintendo did it again, with a perfect gameplay. It's a side scrolling motocross simulator racing game. You have to deal with a lot of obstacles. You get to jump through ramps, control your bike both in the ground, and in the air, you have to avoid sand, falls, - if you fall, you can return to your bike faster by pressing A - and, with all this, you have a time limit. It's a great challenge. You will have to practice a decent amount of time to...beat the time...? Man, this didn't turn out very shakespearinguish...
Anyway, you get the point.
Another important thing: if the motor of your bike becomes overheated, you will have to wait a few seconds before you can proceed. This is what happens: You can use both buttons, B and A, right? With the A button you can speed up at your will. No problem. But, if you want to use the turbo, and accelerate a lot more, you will need the B button. Thing is, if you use it for too much time, without pausing, the motor will need a rest. And you will have to stop. There's a meter, called "Temp", meaning "Temperature", and you can control it. Soon, you will learn to alternate between the A and B button, without causing the motor to overheat. It's a great add to the game interest.
You can compete alone, just against the obstacles and the clock, or you can compete with...no, not with a friend. That's the downside of the game. There's no two player mode!! Shame on you, Nintendo.
You have two game modes, that they call "selections". In Selection A, you "walk alone", in Selection B, computer controlled motorcycles appear on the action. It's fun, and a greater challenge. And only makes you crave for that two player mode, which does not exist.
No worries, after the third track, and the fifth root beer, you'll forget all about that.
There are 5 main tracks. The scenarios and the graphics are simple, but ok. The environment is all there. The colors change, each level, simulating day, night, different lights, etc. It's not the second coming of 8 bit technology, but it does not become boring, and helps out the game. You can see the crowd back there, and now and then, a cameraman, which is, of course, showing your stunts to the world. Live!
Soundtrack: awful. One of the worse soundtracks of NES. Fortunately, it does not play when you are...playing. Again, damn'!
But yeah, you don't have to listen to the music while you're playing. Only when you finish the track. So, it will not ruin your fun. But it can make you mad if you just failed to reach the next track for just a second or two. Some gamers may think this is a good think. The angrier, the better formula. I'm not one of those.
Important detail: You can build and create your own personalized tracks. Nintendo, back then, called the game part of its "programmable series."
Ah, the 80's.
So, call your girlfriend, and ask her if she wants to take a ride with you, in a motocross contest.
Retro Games Reviewer; Excitebike Review, 9/9/2013
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