Cro-mag Rally is a racing game from Pangea Software, who has been bringing a lot of different games to the iPhone and iPod from a wide range of genres. How does this one compare to their others?

Like most of their games, the one thing they do get down really well is the controls. In Cro-Mag Rally, you steer via the accelerometers, and accelerate via an on-screen button, as opposed to automatically like in other racing games, so you have more control. You also have the ability to use weapons that you pick up, and these are used via another button which allows you to throw items either in front of behind you.

Here, you can see all of the controls. The arrow on the left is the accelerator, which you can easily use and go in reverse if necessary. The bone on the right controls the weapons and items. The arrow heads on the top are used with the Gather mode, discussed later.

The other settings and options are fairly robust as well, with the ability to set the difficulty, from easy to hard, change the sensitivity of the turning, set the volume, and even change to first-person view if you like. The easy difficulty is far too easy, allowing you to be victorious no matter how bad you might be, and hard isn’t too much of a challenge either, but it may give you some problems.

As far as the actual game options go, you have 9 tracks to play on and 11 vehicles to choose from. You can also choose between either a male or female character. All the tracks are really detailed and focus on a specific time period and area, such as the Egyptian pyramids, Great Wall of China, and other time periods, such as Medieval and Vikings. The vehicles too are really unique from one another and have their own stats which very noticeably change the style in which you must play.

Unfortunately though, there are only two modes, Race and Gather, and neither are a Grand-Prix-type experience, so you can only play one level at a time. Race is your standard race, while Gather sets 8 arrow heads around each track which you must collect in order to win. Aside from that small detail though, they are exactly the same, pitting you against 3 other racers. To help you in your quest to victory, there are a ton of different weapons scattered about, which range from projectiles, to boosts, to oil slicks, and there are a ton of different projectiles at your disposal, although you won’t really need them in order to win.

Overall, the game is decent, with lots of unique tracks and vehicles to choose from, however, with a lack of difficulty and a tournament feature, there isn’t much to come back to, although it does work for playing a race here and there, which is what iPhone games should be about. It is also important to note that while the controls are pretty spot-on, you do tend to spin around quite easily, making it frustrating at times. The game only goes for $1.99 though, so it’s a steal in comparison to other, better racing games out there, like Crash Bandicoot, so if all you are after is a quick racing fix from time to time, then Cro-Mag Racing is your best bet.

SCORING BREAKDOWN

STORY – 0/10

No story in this one, but that doesn’t detract from the game at all, as it has a good theme to it.

GAMEPLAY – 7/10

A driving is pretty good, with actual speed controls and the ability to change the sensitivity of the accelerometers, although you still can get spun around fairly easily. There are a variety of options and features and weapons, so you won’t get bored too quickly, especially if you only race here and there, on the go. If you do plan to sit down with this game for awhile though, you will notice its shortcomings.

GRAPHICS – 7.5/10

The graphics are pretty good, with detailed tracks that are all unique, and decent animations and effects with the items.

MUSIC – 7/10

The music is rather impressive as well, with nice tracks that mirror the environment very well to give the entire thing a good atmosphere.

OVERALL – 7/10

A pretty good racing game, with good controls and a variety of tracks and vehicles to keep you busy for a bit, although there isn’t any grand-prix mode, so it is best to play this game a little bit at a time to make the experience and joy last. However, with a price point of only $1.99, you can’t lose.