Attic of the Underdogs

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Review by Scid:

Elasto Mania is not a racing game, nor is it a motorbike simulation. Rather, Elasto Mania is a very clever combination of these two. And more. If you really want to put a term on this game, your best bet would probably be Trialbike game. But I for one think it is something unique. I simply love this game, even though it is without a doubt the most frustrating thing to have ever taken place on my harddisk.

The game is frustrating because you can not allow yourself to make any mistakes-- and mistakes will happen very frequently when you play this game. Take a bit too much speed when going uphill, and your bike might very well flip over. Go too slow, however, and you just won't make it.

In time, you will learn how to drive your vehicle. Then you will be able to perform subtler tricks and controls. You'll learn to cleverly use the brakes, and you will stop doing that correction thing all the time. This is not a game you just jump into and start playing; it is a game which has to be mastered.

Now *what* exactly is this game all about? I can hear you ponder. There is no real story to the game: you find yourself in a huge field with several apples strewn through it. Your job is to collect all these apples, and then touch the one flower in the level so you can progress to the next one. It is possible to skip levels, but you can only do so three times. If you want to progress to the next level after having skipped three times already, you will have to go back and solve one you couldn't solve earlier.

Even the shareware version comes with its own level editor which is incredibly simple to use. This being shareware, you are limited in how many polygons, objects, etc. you can create. I believe one of the things which make this game so fantastic is the simplicity of this editor. This can be compared to the Stunts game, a game which was popular exactly because it allowed you to drive your own tracks. If you grow tired of the 50 levels (18 of which are included in the shareware version) that come with the game, you can download over 8,000(!) more levels from the official site. These levels are roughly only 1 to 3 Kb in size, which is something the people of lesser bandwith will no doubt appreciate.

Elasto Mania has the sort of addictive gameplay most 3D shooters can only dream of. It is addictive, easy to get into, and very replayable. Do yourself a favor, and download the shareware version of Elasto Mania today, and register to unlock full features of the awesome level editor! Two elephants up!

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