Cruis’n Blast Review

After making waves in the arcade, the raw thrills of Raw Thrills’ Cruis’n Blast have made their way to the Nintendo Switch. A title where the cars are wild and the tracks are even wilder, should players cruise along in its world?

Cruis’n Blast Review

For those who have yet to play this title at their local Dave & Buster’s or Round1, you can get a general idea from a few seconds of footage. Any sort of realism is thrown out of the window in this title; tracks have players flying at mach speed through countless dangers, flipping, drifting, and swiping along the way. Although there is a brake button, there is no need to use it; rather, the nitrous boost button will be your new best friend.

Tracks are designed as long straightaways, with the occasional boost ramp and branching path along the way. No need to worry about falling asleep at the wheel, however; flying donuts, earthquakes, storms, and even yeti fights stand between you and the finish line. This same principle applies to its wheels too – gearheads will enjoy getting behind the wheel of a Nissan 370Z or 1959 Cadillac ElDorado, while those with a more whimsical mind will have a blast hopping into the cockpit of a chopper or taking on the persona of a hammerhead shark.

This all admittedly makes for a great spectacle, but the end result feels a little hollow. Drifting is more of an afterthought, with players simply turning a small amount and reaping the boost reward without too much effort. Flips come across as awkward too, with us pinballing around after an awkward jump. Even crashes lack the impact that made the Burnout series so satisfying, feeling more like an afterthought than a key feature.

It’s not like players will have much time to process things; most tracks are wrapped up in under two minutes. This applies to the five original tracks of the Arcade Mode and all tracks of the Cruis’n Tour cup series, which is a disappointment for those looking for something a bit meatier. This disappointment extends to its map selection too – many tracks use similar elements, such as a desert now being covered with snow. As a result, players will be able to see everything this title has to offer in less than two hours.

The game does make an admirable attempt to keep players going though; three keys that unlock new cars can be found on each course, and players can earn cash along the way that can be used to unlock additional pieces of content. Unlocking all six cups requires players to go for the gold, and unlocking both its Hard and Extreme settings will require players getting gold in the higher difficulty modes as well.

Cruis’n Blast focuses on style over substance, making the end result feel a bit hollow. Navigating a careening ferris wheel is the stuff action movies are made of, but there’s just not enough content here to justify picking up this home release over sinking a few bucks into the arcade version.

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