Micro Maniacs
Encyclopedia
Micro Maniacs is a racing video game developed by Codemasters
for the PlayStation. It is a spin-off to the popular Micro Machines
games, the main difference being that players control tiny characters where a few racetracks feature the use of vehicles. It was released in the October of 2000 as Fox Kids.com Micro Maniacs Racing in North America and on November 2, 2000 as Denku Sekka Micro Runner in Japan. The game was later ported to the Game Boy Color
.
: somebody who can prepare the planet for us when we are eventually minimised. In order to do this, the doctor enlists the help of 8 volunteers for an experiment. The experiment consists of racetracks that are considered various dangerous environments as to ascertain the suitable skills for the supersoldier
.
As opposed to previous games in the series, players control these small volunteers more than vehicles, the main difference is that the volunteers are able to jump and use individual abilities. The volunteers (or characters) are each slightly different. None are particularly realistic, but their unusual characteristics allow the characters to make use of various power-ups. These are used to attack your opponents in a race, and include things like black holes, atomic blasts, and laser mines.
Similar to the other games in the Micro Machines series, each course is based in a different environment, like a bathroom, a kitchen, a laboratory, a garage, and a bedroom. The goal is to race through the level and be the first to cross the finish line. Each course is marked out with a substance in the environment. These are related to the level in question, and include things like toothpaste, fish food and baked beans. Some courses require the use of vehicles like jet-skis, bees, motor scooters and skateboards.
Time Trial
TT Free Play, where 1 player attempts to earn a best time.
TT Challenge, where 1 player has to beat a set lap time within three laps to progress up rows.
TT Multiplayer, where 2 to 8 players attempt to beat their friends lap times.
TT Tournament, where players set a win score to reach, and do the same as in TT Multiplayer, but however, the players can either pick races or choose a pre-set tournament. A tournament ends when a player fills up their win meter first.
Vs.
Single Player Vs. where 1 player must race against one to seven AI opponents (which can be changed via the main Game Settings) which progresses in the same way as Challenge mode.
Multiplayer Vs. which 2 to 8 players race to get the most points.
Vs. Tournament, where 2 to 8 players race to get the most wins.
Vs. Teams
Training
Bonus Tracks
V4
Maw Maw
Mesme
Waldo
Pyra
Her attacks are Fireball and Flamethrower.
Vortex
Twister
Beatbox
Dynamo
Roach
Toxin
Project X
gave the game a score of 7.5, saying that while the gameplay is packed by a killer physics engine, it's just not fun without a friend.
Codemasters
The Codemasters Software Company Limited, or Codemasters is a British video game developer founded by Richard and David Darling in 1986...
for the PlayStation. It is a spin-off to the popular Micro Machines
Micro Machines
Micro Machines: The Original Scale Miniatures were a line of toys originally made by Galoob in the mid 1980s and throughout the 1990s. Galoob licensed the idea behind Micro Machines from Clem Heeden, a toy inventor from Wisconsin...
games, the main difference being that players control tiny characters where a few racetracks feature the use of vehicles. It was released in the October of 2000 as Fox Kids.com Micro Maniacs Racing in North America and on November 2, 2000 as Denku Sekka Micro Runner in Japan. The game was later ported to the Game Boy Color
Game Boy Color
The is Nintendo's successor to the 8-bit Game Boy handheld game console, and was released on October 21, 1998 in Japan, November 19, 1998 in North America, November 23, 1998 in Europe and November 27, 1998 in the United Kingdom. It features a color screen and is slightly thicker and taller than...
.
Objective
Micro Maniacs is possibly set in the near future, where the Earth's resources are being depleted and the very planet is at risk. However a scientist named Dr. Minimizer has an idea: using a device he calls "The Minimizer Ray" (named after his last name as the device suggests), he will shrink the planet's population to 1/360th of its original size, and so create a world more suitable to our current status. If this is to be successful, the doctor needs to create a supersoldierSupersoldier
Supersoldier is a term often used to describe a soldier that operates beyond normal human limits or abilities. Supersoldiers are common in science fiction literature, films, TV programs, computer, conspiracy theories, and video games, but have also made appearances in other related genres, such as...
: somebody who can prepare the planet for us when we are eventually minimised. In order to do this, the doctor enlists the help of 8 volunteers for an experiment. The experiment consists of racetracks that are considered various dangerous environments as to ascertain the suitable skills for the supersoldier
Supersoldier
Supersoldier is a term often used to describe a soldier that operates beyond normal human limits or abilities. Supersoldiers are common in science fiction literature, films, TV programs, computer, conspiracy theories, and video games, but have also made appearances in other related genres, such as...
.
As opposed to previous games in the series, players control these small volunteers more than vehicles, the main difference is that the volunteers are able to jump and use individual abilities. The volunteers (or characters) are each slightly different. None are particularly realistic, but their unusual characteristics allow the characters to make use of various power-ups. These are used to attack your opponents in a race, and include things like black holes, atomic blasts, and laser mines.
Similar to the other games in the Micro Machines series, each course is based in a different environment, like a bathroom, a kitchen, a laboratory, a garage, and a bedroom. The goal is to race through the level and be the first to cross the finish line. Each course is marked out with a substance in the environment. These are related to the level in question, and include things like toothpaste, fish food and baked beans. Some courses require the use of vehicles like jet-skis, bees, motor scooters and skateboards.
Game modes
Challenge- Challenge is one player. The racer is up against 4 AI opponents in a 3 lap race. The player must come in 1st or 2nd to win a race and advance a row. However, on the Final Round, you must come 1st to win the game.
Time Trial
- In Time Trial mode, 1 to 8 players can race, using either one, or separate controllers. There are four Time Trial modes:
TT Free Play, where 1 player attempts to earn a best time.
TT Challenge, where 1 player has to beat a set lap time within three laps to progress up rows.
TT Multiplayer, where 2 to 8 players attempt to beat their friends lap times.
TT Tournament, where players set a win score to reach, and do the same as in TT Multiplayer, but however, the players can either pick races or choose a pre-set tournament. A tournament ends when a player fills up their win meter first.
Vs.
- In Versus mode, 1-8 players have to make the other opponents disappear off the screen by running as far in front as possible to score points. The player who either fills up their points gauge, passes the finish line on the final lap with the most points, or in Play-Off (which is activated on the final lap if everyone has the same amount of points when the leading player crosses the finish line)who is the last player standing. Players are defined in 8 different colours. There are 3 Vs. modes:
Single Player Vs. where 1 player must race against one to seven AI opponents (which can be changed via the main Game Settings) which progresses in the same way as Challenge mode.
Multiplayer Vs. which 2 to 8 players race to get the most points.
Vs. Tournament, where 2 to 8 players race to get the most wins.
Vs. Teams
- Vs. Teams is the same as Vs. mode, but with one difference. Instead of players scoring points for themselves, they score it for their team. This mode requires 3 to 8 players. There are four different team colours to pick.
Training
- Before any of the races begin, a training mode is started. Players can train in the circles as the level loads. This mode will also show who you are up against and any vehicles that level uses. When the loading finishes, players then press START. They stop in a running position and they're circle flashes. When all the circles flash, everyone is then dropped through a starfield and then onto the track.
Bonus Tracks
- In this mode, the player runs through a maze. The aim is to collect all 30 power ups within the time limit. If the player wins, they win an extra life. If they lose, they win nothing. There are 4 different bonus tracks: Blue, Green, Red and Yellow. These tracks can only be entered via Challenge, TT Challenge or Single Player Vs. if the player wins 3 races in 1st place in a row. These tracks cannot be accessed regularly by track select.
Characters
These are the characters you can use, including the 4 unlockable charactersV4
- V4 is a bikerBikerBiker may refer to:* a rider of a motorcycle, i.e., one who participates in motorcycling* a member of a motorcycle club* a member of an outlaw motorcycle club* a rider of a bicycle...
that got severely injured in a motorcycle accident. Dr. Minimizer stuck parts of his destroyed motorcycle inside him so he could stay alive, then he shrank him so he could compete in races. He wears a leather biking suit with a zip over his mouth and an engine on his back. His attacks are Plasma Punch and Energy Trail.
Maw Maw
- Maw Maw was used as Dr. Minimisers "guard dog" he is a combination of three animals, which are a pigPigA pig is any of the animals in the genus Sus, within the Suidae family of even-toed ungulates. Pigs include the domestic pig, its ancestor the wild boar, and several other wild relatives...
, an apeApeApes are Old World anthropoid mammals, more specifically a clade of tailless catarrhine primates, belonging to the biological superfamily Hominoidea. The apes are native to Africa and South-east Asia, although in relatively recent times humans have spread all over the world...
, and a Jack Russell TerrierJack Russell TerrierThe Jack Russell terrier is a small terrier that has its origins in fox hunting. It is principally white-bodied smooth, rough or broken-coated which is commonly confused with the Parson Russell terrier and the Russell terrier with the term "Jack Russell" commonly misapplied to other small white...
, so he got shrunk and included him in the contest. He looks like a small yellow ape of some sort with sharp teeth and a pigs nose. His attacks are Tongue Grab and Fireball Fart.
Mesme
- One of Dr. Minimizer's patients that lives in a foster home and cannot talk because of a tragic event that happened to her when she was younger. However, she looks like a little girlLittle Girl- Songs :* "Little Girl" * "Little Girl" * "Little Girl" * "Little Girl" , also covered by The Banned* "Little Girl ", a song by Pulp...
but has a space alien headHeadIn anatomy, the head of an animal is the rostral part that usually comprises the brain, eyes, ears, nose and mouth . Some very simple animals may not have a head, but many bilaterally symmetric forms do....
without a mouthMouthThe mouth is the first portion of the alimentary canal that receives food andsaliva. The oral mucosa is the mucous membrane epithelium lining the inside of the mouth....
. She even has special psychic powers. So her attacks are Nightmare Projection and Psychic Grab.
Waldo
- A rival scientist who was developing a similar device to the Minimizer Ray. However, he was unable to find any volunteers to test it on, so he used it on himself. This backfired, leaving his body much smaller than his head. Dr. Minimizer agreed to help him if he took part in his experiment. Waldo has grafted his body into a robotic suit in order to race. Since he has no organic abilities as such, he uses his suit to attack his enemies. His suit can fire a laser cannon and laser mines.
Pyra
- Dr. Minimizer's unfortunate lab assistant. One fateful night, she accidentally mixed the wrong chemicals for an experiment,which exploded and bathed her in the mysterious cocktail. And unfortunately, while she's in a condition of permanent spontaneous combustion, Dr. Minimizer is determined to find a cure, but without the original formula he's got no idea where to begin.
Her attacks are Fireball and Flamethrower.
Vortex
- One of Dr. Minimizer's students of astrophysicsAstrophysicsAstrophysics is the branch of astronomy that deals with the physics of the universe, including the physical properties of celestial objects, as well as their interactions and behavior...
at a universityUniversityA university is an institution of higher education and research, which grants academic degrees in a variety of subjects. A university is an organisation that provides both undergraduate education and postgraduate education...
he also works at. She has a high interest in black holes and enlisted the help of him in that topic. He agreed, if she would participate in his experiment. Later Dr. Minimizer provided Vortex with the power to produce smaller versions of these phenomena. now half of her body has normal skin tones and blonde hair, and the other half is a bluish colour with dark blue hair. Vortex can create a White Hole (a white sphere that deflects attack) and a Black HoleBlack holeA black hole is a region of spacetime from which nothing, not even light, can escape. The theory of general relativity predicts that a sufficiently compact mass will deform spacetime to form a black hole. Around a black hole there is a mathematically defined surface called an event horizon that...
(which sucks opponents in should they get too close. When this move is upgraded, the black holes become larger and more difficult to avoid.
Twister
- Another one of Dr. Minimizer's patients who has been in and out of mental asylums too many times. Dr. Minimizer enlisted his help as he is unusually nimble for the age of twenty-three, and he seems most comfortable in unusual surroundings. He looks like some strange sort of clown with sharp teeth and cones sticking out of his head. And he uses a spinning yo-yo and a tornado attack to attack his opponents.
Beatbox
- A guy who loved to DJ and got modified and shrunk to race. He looks like an ordinary person, although his face resembles that of a radio (he has one speaker as his mouth, one as his eye and a cd tray as his other one). His attacks are Sonic Boom and Shatter Notes.
Dynamo
- A space alien from the planet Ohm. He has a lightbulb headHeadIn anatomy, the head of an animal is the rostral part that usually comprises the brain, eyes, ears, nose and mouth . Some very simple animals may not have a head, but many bilaterally symmetric forms do....
and electrical powers. He even helped Dr. Minimizer by creating the power for the Minimiser Ray. His powers are an electrical discharge and an electrical magnet shield. He can be unlocked by winning all the races on the 2nd round.
Roach
- Dr. Minimizer's nephew. After catching him using animal abuse as an act of a hate crimeHate crimeIn crime and law, hate crimes occur when a perpetrator targets a victim because of his or her perceived membership in a certain social group, usually defined by racial group, religion, sexual orientation, disability, class, ethnicity, nationality, age, gender, gender identity, social status or...
on spiders, he decided to turn him into a humanHumanHumans are the only living species in the Homo genus...
insectoidInsectoidInsectoid denotes any creature or object that shares a similar body or traits with common earth insects and arachnids. The term is a combination of "insect" and "-oid" . Compare "humanoid"....
in order to make him feel guiltyGuiltyGuilty commonly refers to the feeling of guilt, an experience that occurs when a person believes that they have violated a moral standard.Guilty or The Guilty may also refer to:-Law:*Guilty plea, a formal admission of legal culpability...
of what he did. Because of that, he ended up with green skin and an extra pair of arms. His attacks are Parasite Missiles and Web Mines. He can be unlocked by winning all the races on the 4th round.
Toxin
- A trespasserTrespasserIn the law of tort, property, and criminal law a trespasser is a person who commits the act of trespassing on a property, that is, without the permission of the owner. Being present on land as a trespasser thereto creates liability in the trespasser, so long as the trespass is intentional...
that Dr. Minimizer captured for sneaking into his laboratoryLaboratoryA laboratory is a facility that provides controlled conditions in which scientific research, experiments, and measurement may be performed. The title of laboratory is also used for certain other facilities where the processes or equipment used are similar to those in scientific laboratories...
and for almost escaping with the ideas for the Minimiser Ray without permission. He has green skin and half of his faceFaceThe face is a central sense organ complex, for those animals that have one, normally on the ventral surface of the head, and can, depending on the definition in the human case, include the hair, forehead, eyebrow, eyelashes, eyes, nose, ears, cheeks, mouth, lips, philtrum, temple, teeth, skin, and...
is concealed by a gas maskGas maskA gas mask is a mask put on over the face to protect the wearer from inhaling airborne pollutants and toxic gases. The mask forms a sealed cover over the nose and mouth, but may also cover the eyes and other vulnerable soft tissues of the face. Some gas masks are also respirators, though the word...
. His attacks are Virus Splat and Super Sneeze. He can be unlocked by winning all the races on the 6th round.
Project X
- A robotRobotA robot is a mechanical or virtual intelligent agent that can perform tasks automatically or with guidance, typically by remote control. In practice a robot is usually an electro-mechanical machine that is guided by computer and electronic programming. Robots can be autonomous, semi-autonomous or...
created by Dr. Minimizer using the geneticsGeneticsGenetics , a discipline of biology, is the science of genes, heredity, and variation in living organisms....
of the other contestants, and shows a worrying amount of aggression. His attacks a helix ray and an atomic blast. He can be unlocked by winning all the races on the final round.
Reception
IGNIGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
gave the game a score of 7.5, saying that while the gameplay is packed by a killer physics engine, it's just not fun without a friend.