M&M's Kart Racing

Both the Wii and DS versions of the game were widely panned by reviewers, who criticized its poor graphics, vehicle handling, and level design; the lack of items and music; and the underwhelming implementation of the M&M's license. Retrospectively, it is considered one of the worst racing games of all time.

• Title — M&M's Kart Racing • Developer — Frontline Studios Calaris Studios • Director — Jakub Goryszewski • Producer — James Davis • Programmer — Sebastian Zielinski • Artist — Dominik Zielinski • Composer — Lukasz Stasinski • Platforms — Wii, Nintendo DS • Released — Wii Nintendo DS • Genre — Kart racing • Modes — Single-player, multiplayer

• Illustration — An example of gameplay from the Wii version of M&M's Kart Racing M&M's Kart Racing is a kart racing game in which each player controls one of five sentient M&M's (Red, Yellow, Blue, Green, or Orange), who serve as the game's playable characters. The remaining characters are all controlled by artificial intelligence (AI). Although a player's character has no effect on their performance, the racing vehicles vary in speed, acceleration, handling, and braking. All of M&M's Kart Racings game modes are centered around at least one player racing across one or more race tracks based on unique environments, including a chocolate volcano, a chocolate factory, a forest, a farm, a sea carrier, a house, a city, the Arctic, an alien spacecraft, and a colosseum based on that of ancient Rome. The Wii version of the game features a total of 15 tracks. Players can collect chocolate coins scattered across each raceway; these coins can be used to unlock additional vehicles in the garage, such as a hovercraft and an SUV. Each player controls their vehicle with a Wii Remote, tilting to turn and pressing a button to accelerate. While on the starting line, a player can quickly spin their Wii Remote for a turbo boost that lasts between three and five seconds. Moreover, the B button can be used to drive in reverse after the player's vehicle has come to a complete stop. One of the Wii version's single-player game modes, Quick Race, revolves around racing against computer-controlled opponents on a single track. Another single-player experience, Training Mode, allows the player to drive alone on any chosen track for practice. In Arcade Mode, the player must accumulate as many points as possible by collecting items and performing stunts, such as jumping or driving on two wheels. In Tournament Mode, the player competes against computer-controlled racers on all 15 tracks, with the player's finishing positions, performed stunts, and collected items all factoring into their score. Playing through Tournament Mode is required for unlocking certain advanced tracks. There are also two multiplayer game modes with split-screen gameplay: Quick Race, a one-lap race with only human players; and Full Throttle, a three-lap race with human and AI racers. The Nintendo DS version of the game differs from the Wii version in multiple ways. One of the single-player modes is Tournament Mode, in which the player races on several tracks, being allowed to replay tracks as well as swap vehicles and characters between races. The other single-player mode is Time Trial, which tasks the player with racing as fast as possible while collecting time boosts, reaching certain areas before their timer expires, though their time is not actually recorded. Although single-cartridge multiplayer is not supported, up to five human players can race via local multiplayer, provided that they each have their own copy of the game. Additional differences include the DS version featuring 11 race tracks instead of 15, the D-pad being used to steer the vehicles, and tracks being shrouded in mist to cover up the draw distance. The bottom screen displays a map of the track while the player is racing, and there are arrows on tracks that greatly but briefly boost the player's speed. Moreover, there are additional power-ups, including a homing missile that allows players to slow down racers in front of them, a barrel of oil for slowing down racers behind a player, a cup of hot chocolate that provides a brief speed boost, and a bag of M&M's that refills a fuel tank, which causes the player to slow down as it depletes. Additional collectibles include rainbow-colored M&M's that improve a player's score, as well as giant M&M's that appear in the Time Trial mode as checkpoints.

M&M's Kart Racing was developed by Frontline Studios in co-production with Calaris Studios. The game was published by Destination Software, which had previously published M&M's Break' Em, a 2007 puzzle video game for the Game Boy Advance and Nintendo DS. M&M's Kart Racing was also published by Zoo Digital Publishing in the United Kingdom. Jakub Goryszewski served as the game's director, while James Davis served as its producer. Additionally, Sebastian Zielinski programmed the game, Dominik Zielinski was its artist, and Lukasz Stasinski was its composer. The Wii version of M&M's Kart Racing was released in Australia on November 29, 2007. The Wii version was subsequently released in North America on December 5, 2007, with the DS version being released in the same region on March 24, 2008. Both versions of the game were released in Europe on April 25, 2008.

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