The name of this game implies that the motorcycles you’ll be riding use nitrous oxide to boost acceleration, which is kind of a scary thought, given a motorcycle’s power/weight ratio and ability to accelerate to begin with. In actuality, UbiSoft’s Nitrobike takes it a step further by strapping a rocket engine on to a motorcycle! Obviously, this puts the game into the arcade racer category.
In the context of this game, beyond the speed factor, the additional danger of a rocket engine is the potential for it to explode if it gets too hot. Balancing how often and how long to use your rocket boosts in order to maximize the effect without blowing up is an interesting game mechanic. And, you will blow up.
Although arcade racers like this aren’t subject to the laws of physics and their application, usually some credence is paid to give the game a sense of plausibility. Nitrobike is inconsistent in its application of this principle. For example, you can literally push or crash through objects in the way on the course with your motorcycle, like airplane wings, semi-tractor trailers, signs, boxes, bridges, and other large debris. However, running into a plastic barrel or a road block can throw you off your bike or cause your bike to explode, especially if the object is just off the course (maybe it’s a “punishment” of sorts?).
It’s frustrating at first, until you learn what you can hit and what you can’t. It works the same way when crashing into your competition on the track, meaning that sometimes it benefits you, like when screaming around a tight turn, yet other times a collision will send you careening from your bike. And, in short races like the ones in the Career mode, one big mistake can ruin the race for you. Fortunately, some of this is mitigated by the ability to re-spot yourself on the course, and it only costs you a few seconds. Or, you can restart the race at any time.
The bikes handle well enough with the Wii controller. You tilt to turn, and there are buttons for accelerating with just the gas, with the rocket engine, braking, and re-spotting, should you get in trouble. You can also control the vehicle in flight during a jump, including the front wheel of your bike to assist with keeping your speed when you land. While midair, you can do tricks that will boost your nitro capacity, at least until you crash or blow up. Overall, the controls are responsive, and they work well within the context of how they’re used in the game. The only control issue is that you tend to spin out a little too often on turns when trying to accelerate, even at lower speeds, but that can be alleviated by getting your speed prior to the turn and coasting through the turns instead.
The main game mode is Career mode, which is really a misnomer. You don’t have a career, per se, because you can change riders and bikes whenever you like. And, you can’t advance to the next races in a series until you unlock them based upon your performance in the current series. Stats aren’t tracked for the riders individually, but your overall stats are accumulated. You can even view your best performances by track, which is a nice touch.
Each series has multiple races, with a cup race at the end. You have to perform well enough in the first races to unlock the cup race. The cup race is actually a series of at least two races (many have more than that), and you have to place in the top three overall in the group of races using a point system. One difference in a cup race is that you can’t restart an individual race; you have to restart the whole series. So, if you did okay in the first race, but you’re falling apart in the second race with no chance to place in the cup, you can’t just restart the second race, you have to start at the beginning. Given how one mistake can cost you, it can lead to controller-tossing moments knowing that you have to start a whole series over again (sometimes several times) to advance.
