It goes without saying that any Star Wars game released is going to do well in sales no matter what the actual verdict on the game itself. The real question is, just how well are they going to do even with the Hollywood power behind them? The good news is, Star Wars Super Bombad Racing takes a great story and great characters and has a lot of good, clean, and high quality with them. Look out racing fans, there's some new kids in town!

Take your pick from a selection of your favorite Star Wars Episode I characters, all with "big heads" (literally not figuratively) and the need for speed. You'll recognize them all immediately, without a doubt especially due to great work on the part of the development team. The graphics will appeal to anyone from kids to adults, and the same applies for the courses and the lively audiences. 

Gameplay was smooth and quick to get into. The learning curve is fairly short and like many racing games you can start with the simpler tracks and move your way up. Like similar games in the genre, you start out with a limited number of courses and cannot unlock further ones until you master the current ones. Scattered along the course are nifty items which will help you disable or delay your competition, as well as helpful items such as power ups and shortcuts. There are even variations which include Zero-G and water filled fields. There are slightly different characteristics to each racer (factors such as size have an effect on acceleration for instance), and there is plenty of personality (and special tricks) assigned to make each one enjoyable. It was fun to experiment with each character to see what their tricks (and expressions) would be.

Star Wars Super Bombad Racing offers 5 modes for play: race, challenge, arena, teams, and race mirror. Most of the modes run along the lines of what you'd expect if you've played race/kart games. In single player mode you can build and save your best characters and times in order to unlock new fields and also to compete in challenge games. The teams mode lets you and a pal ally to compete against computer teams. Arena, a personal favorite, which can be played in single of multiplayer mode, is a last man (or queen) standing fray which pits you against the other 7 characters in a race to wear their force fields down. 

The age range targeted for the game had me befuddled a bit. The game is rated E, the music was light and almost MIDI like to give a definite juvenile feel to the game, and Lucas Learning (not Lucas Arts) summits the opening credits. Yet, despite the way the opening of the game caused me to fully expect somewhat simplified game-play; the depth of the course, button combination flight tactics, and the level to which the controls and "weapons" could be manipulated indicated that the full scope of the game's capabilities would not be completely utilized by anyone but an older audience. All in all, what I think this really says is that Lucas Learning managed to do the best they could in order to appeal to an extremely large range of age groups, and once I recognized that, I applauded the accomplishment. Besides, I've seen 7 year olds who could stand on their heads and beat me at some games - that's just a phenomenon of the gaming world.

In conclusion, Super Bombad Racing is a positively fun, and addictive, gaming experience. Whether it's a kid, or a kid at heart, this game has a lot to offer the Star Wars gaming fan. The play system was developed cleverly to allow both the novice and expert gamer thoroughly enjoy it. Maintaining high standards of visual and technical expertise, while valiantly tackling the formidable task of creating a game to appeal to an almost impossibly wide audience, Lucas Learning has created a game that is worthy of praise.

Game Play (9.5): This game is a quick start and quite fun to play. It doesn't take long to choose your favorite Star Wars Episode I characters and head on off to the track. You have several modes to choose from to suit your every mood (and crowd). You might just notice something new every time you play the track... The game has excellent re-playability potential and is a great investment for the PS2 owner.

Graphics (9): Each character is sharply and smartly rendered in caricature. They are, for the lack of a better term, absolutely cute. The courses are full of bright vibrant colors - and of course familiar scenes from the Star Wars universe. Course design is sound: The twists and turns are only difficult if they are meant to be, and they are laced with sneaky ways to outmaneuver or outright shortcut your opponents.

Sound (7): The soundtrack to Super Bombad Racing was rather simple and glib; mostly likely meant to contribute to giving the game an overall juvenile/festive atmosphere - but almost so simple that it became repetitive very quickly. There weren't many voice-overs for the characters, but when they were present they were done well. Sound/Special effects were crisp and clear.

Difficulty (8): Super Bombad Racing is not remotely a hard game by industry standards, but it's obvious that Lucas Learning had one heck of a tough job to tackle in trying to create a game to appeal across a large age range. Younger players may have a hard time accessing the multitude of different weapons available to the racers during the game. The controls are otherwise logical, easy to learn, and well thought out.

Concept (7.5): All in all, Super Bombad Racing is a Star Wars above-the-bar variation of kart racing games  - with the additions of Star Wars characters, spaceships to fly as opposed to earth bound karts, and a some neat new tricks and toys to play with.

Overall (8.5): Graphically impressive, VERY fun to play, and a great re-playability factor make Super Bombad Racing a real success. Bring Star Wars Episode I characters to fun and frivolous life on your PS2 - it's a definite winner whether you are Star Wars fan or someone looking for a wild romp in the world of racing games.