Scoot Scoot

One thing video games are still struggling with is the accurate representation of real world physics when it comes to cars and motorcycles. Granted, some games are realistic enough to be classified as simulators and to be used by professional race drivers for practice, but we are still far away from an experience that cannot be distinguished from the real thing.

Scoot Scoot is a game designed to make your blood boil and make you utter forgotten curses in long-dead languages. Although it looks cute and innocent at first, the game shows its teeth after the first seconds of gameplay, and it’s pretty much impossible to stay calm for more than a minute or so. Thus, the goal is to drive a scooter around a track and avoid the obstacles along the way, while also trying to do so in a decent time.

The scooter is a nightmare to control, on the other hand, because it reacts very violently to even the slightest attempt to accelerate or steer. This is partly due to the unrefined controls, but it was also designed to be as tough as possible. On top of that, each cone you hit costs you a tiny time penalty, making it very difficult to obtain a high score if you happen to touch anything along the way.

In order to finish the track and be given a total completion time you must do a total of three laps, which is a lot more annoying than it sounds. Even if you manage to learn every bend in the road after a while, it’s still difficult to control the actual scooter. The physics engine has something to do with this as well, but in spite of its flaws, the added difficulty is actually a plus in this case.

When it comes to graphics, the game uses Unreal Engine 4, but don’t expect anything too glorious either. The environments look very nice, on the other hand, even if it’s obvious that the developer did not have too much time at his disposal to include too many details. The color theme is wonderful as well, and it makes the experience a tad less annoying.

In the end, Scoot Scoot is a great way to keep boredom at bay and stay alert. It may cause some frustration if you usually get angry because of video games, but it’s great practice for your reflexes and patience.