Same as #25 and #27
also using winXP.

I installed it and run it now for the second time and nothing is saved.
Does anyone has an explanation/solution ?

Fine game though.

thanks for updating first post got it to save/load by installing real race from the websight u posted. copyed and pasted the save from that to race car and saves fine

is it me or the game has 2 cars, 2 race tracks and 2 modes ?

nothing unlocks and progress doesn't get saved ????

It worked for me on Windows 7 32bit without any compatibility mode.

I've installed it on WinXP, but it appears that the saved players don't save. Perhaps the same problem as Jay (#25) mentioned?

Sorry to post this so late, but I'd been having that issue of the game not saving. It just occurred to me to go see if the game was even creating a save file... and it wasn't. Under the 'Data' folder, there should be a 'Profile' folder with files called 'SLOT1' 'SLOT2' etc... It seems that creating that folder solves the issue (haven't really tested it, but it's now saving my name).

Anyway, thank you GGAOTD and Playrix!

It's a nice little time waster to play in between other games or when you've only got a couple minutes to spare. The controls are a little uncomfortable at first, and you'll probably find yourself off the road and finishing last for a couple races, but it seems once you master them, the opponents pose no threat. The AI really isn't the brightest. I was making a turn and one car decided to drive into me --- neither of us could move and that other car just continued to try to push through me until it apparently reset itself.

Just the same, I think it's worth its price. It reminds me of a game I played a long time back (but I can't remember the name right now). But you walk into it expecting a Need For Speed, Burnout, etc sort of experience, you'll be disappointed. However, if you just want a little arcade style game to toss on your laptop, this game is a great pick.

My suggestions would be to add more resolution options and the ability to set custom controls and/or use a gamepad without an external program (such as Xpadder or Joy2Key).

Once again, thanks to both GGAOTD and Playrix.

fairly good game just seems like its not saving making it kinda hard to unlock cars. i go to main menu no resume just start and no save file might be windows 7, is there a work around starting over every time i close the program makes me want to reach for the uninstall.

Doownloaded and installed on my Win7.64 Home Premium laptop without any issues. Nice little game. Not very fond of games requiring keyboard inputs and not really my genre prefere but one I will enjoy when I want a break from everything else.
I really appreciate the give aways and usually download and try them. I have kept and played quite a few of the games from this site.
I want to thank GGOTD and the Playrix.
Keep um coming!

I love these little racing games. As an old Commodore 64 racer, I find my motor skills (no pun intended) are actually not up to the task of the newer games. Thanks for another nice game.

Whiterabbit, I just did research on MyPlayCity. There are many people complaining of adware and hijacks.


...........................Moderator Comment...............................


Hmmm, looks like they are changing their policy again. I used to avoid MPC like the plague until someone pointed out last year that they had stopped with all the rubbish. when I last downloaded a game from MPC they were as clean as a whistle. Maybe they just wanted to draw the crowds back, then blam, hit them with adware etc. I'll look into it and make a decision as to whether or not to mention them again. Thank you for the information.

This is a good game that certainly takes your mind off whatever it was you were doing. It isn't spectacular, but doesn't need to be. I tried the free 1 hour version of it before I decided to d/l, and decided it was worth the few hours I will waste trying to keep my car on the road, and wishing there was NO power steering in this game. I would have liked to play this with a gamepad, as there's no real way of controlling your direction keys - sometimes it's all or nothing when it comes to making hairpin turns.

I have an issue with Playrix programmers needlessly throwing insane difficulties at you in the higher levels, and especially the final chapters in any game. I WAS on the very last level of Brickshooter Egypt from a few months ago, and totally frustrated, got rid of it. Again, what's the use of making the final levels so incredibly hard that what HAD been a good experience turns into a click of the "delete" button?


..........................Moderator comment..........

True. :)

Thanks Playrix and WR. I love WR's reviews for his knowledge of related games and links to gameplay clips. GGAOTD is where I get all my gaming updates nowadays. :) But back to this game...

Installed and activated fine on XP SP3 32bit. If anyone is still having trouble activating anything from GAOTD or GGAOTD, try turning off your firewall. If it works then you need to set an exception in your firewall to install software from this site. Refer to your firewall manual on how to do this.

Graphics-wise the game looks ok for casual games but (>15 years) old for racing games. Problem is it has higher system requirements to look this bad. My favorite vehiclular battle/racing game DethKarz (which is now free) looks much better and runs smoother as well on my old lappy, as well as being more enjoyable.

Audio is typical casual game fare. Nothing worth noting.

Gameplay is somewhat stiff due to control and road restrictions. I've played racing games with good keyboard control, and this game's, while not the worst, still could use some finetuning. I've also managed to both get stuck on a guard rail (requiring a game reset) and get a wrong way notation while following other cars. Suffice to say this game need more work.

Overall this is an ok racing game. It should be easy to improve audio quality (hint: community help), although graphics may take longer to fix. However I would have been willing to overlook both (even the keyboard controls) if it allowed more shortcut/offroad exploration, which would have made the gameplay immensely more enjoyable. Oh, and probably fix the wrong "wrong way" bug too.

If you are interested in racing/vechicular battle games, DethKarz would be a good start. For a pure racing fare, try Need for Speed series.


...............Moderator Comment.....................

Thanks for the info and short review M8R, I suspect the game you mention above is the same as the one that's been posted in the forums called Death Rally:

http://www.giveawayoftheday.com/forums/topic/6390#post-66356

As for the Need for Speed franchise, it's one of my favorites, though there are lots of other racing games as good. One of my favorites, for sheer fun is the Flatout series; you can usually pick the first two up for virtually nothing these days. The final one in the series called Flatout: Ultimate Carnage is a re-hash of Flatout 2. Not only does the game offer a good racing base, but offers several modes of play that includes stock car racing, a series of games that include using the car to do high jumps, long jumps and a whole host of other games, plus all the environments are destructible so you can smash everything up if you are so inclined. wWhat got me into that particular game was the damage modelling to the cars. It was the first game I ever saw that showed real damage to a car when you crashed it; to the point where doors are ripped off and your engine is on fire. The following game trailer shows some of the modes you get to play:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=swFLoCo5l88

Also you can fine tune your rides by spending the money you earn from races to upgrade various parts of your car such as engine, frame, body and tyres etc.

Sorry for my manners. Forgot to say....

Thank you Playrix Entertainment for the game and thanks to That Wrascally Wabbit for his review.


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Thanks Delenn, it's always a pleasure. :)

I am betting there isn't a tree out there that doesn't have a mark from my fender. Guess I am gonna have to drag out my game pad. I am terrible with keyboard. Simple game; should make it steering wheel compatible, instead of having to use XPadder. Like the retro look( I know it's old..so am I).

That is a nice game with decent graphics but don't expect the level of need for speed and such

Aviv

http://www.linucity.com

Installed on Windows 7 home premium 32 no probs.

A-OK w/Vista Home, HP Pav laptop-
Great One for me, easy on the eyes and this mix of sound effects didn't sound so 'canned' as a couple I tried....(I have never 'mastered' the driving games but I keep trying)-
A keeper for me, but don't be-a-lookin' for me up there in the top 100 LOL

Thanks for another one. Pass after reviews esp driving via keyboard.
Never ever had that work out. Looking forward to future games.

Runs okay on Win7 64 bit once set to run as administrator and in compatibility for win XP.

"Race Cars" installed and ran fine in Vista 32 Home. It's kind of disappointing - feels and looks like a plain 2D racing game; not a big challenge except that it's a driving game using the keyboard - NOT the best way to do it! Simplistic graphics, fair gameplay, so-so competition, basic options. Won the first race on my laptop but lost on the desktop - go figure.

All in all, I wouldn't go out of my way to get this, but it works OK for whiling away a few minutes here and there - which is surprising because IMO Playrix games are usually some of the best. OTOH, I love to play driving games like NASCAR for more serious challenges, and the 4x4Evo2 type for long stretches, where you can race or just drive, and use a wheel/pedal setup besides, which is much better anyway. This is nowhere near that league!

"Race Cars" just seems like a "toy" (as if you were driving Matchbox cars)--- and almost like an afterthought from Playrix --- but then I did expect better action, not having seen it during the previous giveaways. YMMV, but it just doesn't measure up IMO, though I'll keep it since it's free.

(Hi Stephen - glad you could make it, heh!)

...........................Moderator Comment......................

Thanks for your comment. :)

Hi..

Thank you so much for this game and a great review..

Car Racing is really my thing.. :D

Wrascally Wabbit, the program you are thinking about is [url=http://www.softpedia.com/get/System/System-Miscellaneous/Xpadder.shtml]Download Xpadder 5.3 Free - Simulates keypresses and mouse movements using a gamepad - Softpedia[/url]. I think that is the last version that was free. It is, now, a paid program.

Haven't downloaded the game yet..I got church. But I wanted to get that bit of info out so others could try it.


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ah yes, of course. Thank you Delenn, These darned opiate meds I take really mess with my memory.

After an initial installation problem, the game was successfully installed. The graphics and sound are fine, but playing a car racing game using only the keyboard to accelerate and steer is not an easy task. If the developer makes one improvement to include the option to use the mouse or a joystick this would be an outstanding game.

WOW! If I had waited for Whiterabbit's review I would never have downloaded the game. Still glad I did. I had to set Comodo firewall to game mode however as it froze up. Raced again (still used the Mars) and came in 1st. I love racing games and play GT and Nascar type games on the pc and gaming platforms, but this little jewel is fun and yes - retro. Maybe that is why I enjoy it. I use my left to turn with and my right hand (index finger) to accelerate. Floor it and ease off around tight corners. To paraphrase a line from one of my favorite movies, "Brakes, I don't need no stinking brakes". I play Grand Tourismo and Dirt to Daytona the same way. (successfully I might add). I did think it strange that sys reqs was Windows all and agree with Stephen, XP is probably the best bet for this game. Stranger still is that the game will work on ME when I always thought ME didn't work. Oh how I long for my Atari. HaHa. Excellent and informative review as always Whiterabbit.

Don't expect to much - driving a car solely with your keyboards buttons doesn't make me happy - but:
nice graphics, nice sound...

nice racegame, 1 thing i dont like: no SAVE option.... always have to start new



...............................Moderator Comment............................


If you play the tournament it does save, you have to complete a race then go to the next one for progress to be saved. Also when you restart make sure you click on the continue (or words to that effect) rather than start a new race.

Thx GGAOTD and Whiterabbit,

It's not realy my type of game but loaded and tested on my Windows Vista 32b machine.

I liked the graphics and game play but one thing bothered me very much of what i think the developers should do something about.

The keyboard i use is 'azerty' (french) but the key locations are as 'qwerty', this is very irritating trying to type in your players name.

The good it liked is the option menu, all settings are easy done, toggle between fullscreen and window play (window size is not adjustable)

Overall i think it's a nice game especialy for the race lovers

general
- points, no azerty keyboard controls and not adjustable window size
+ all other

Willy


...........................Moderator Comment..........................

Thanks for the feedback

@ 1 - I usually wait for Whiterabbit's review before downloading a game offering - BUT RACING! COOL! (at least I hope so).
Fast, easy install in XP sp3 (of course! it will run in 98 - wish my 98 pc wasn't being converted by the penguin). Was it worth downloading and playing without the Masters review? YES! I enjoyed my first race even though I finished fourth. Even made the second best in time!(LOL). Can't wait to race again and unlock tracks and cars. Its not GT, but it is a keeper. This game is worth the purchase IMO.
Thanks GGOTD and Playrix. Cheers, Whiterabbit, and thanks.


...........................Moderator Comment..........................

Sorry for the delay in posting my review. I was unable to access the admin cdonsole until four hours after the game giveaway started.

I dont know what to say about this game. It is a piece of ****. Where should i start hmmmm. The *****y ai: which only follows some waypoints they wont try to go around you they will just hit you in the back. The graphics are ****: you can actually see the pixels on the road. Stupid level design: obvious shortcuts in level but you can't use them game resets your car.And little obstacles that isnt possible to notice while driving. The game is too easy even on extreme diff. without using powerups. The sounds are ****. There is no gear shifting sound like your using an electric car that has no gears. Even todays mobile phones have better games for free. I cant believe that some1 would actually spend a penny on this ****. ps. Dont mind my bad language.


...........................Moderator Comment..........................

This is a family site so I would ask that you don't use unecessary bad language. (I've starred out all of your bad language) Thank you for your feedback though. You have to remember this game is several years old, so graphics won't be as good as we are used to today. I booted up a 7 year old game the other day (Battlefield Vietnam) and was shocked to see how pixillated it was, yet when I used to play it regularily back before BF2 was relased in 2005 I used to think the graphics were amazing. Such things are relative. You have to remember there has been a revolution in graphics over the past several years. Just check out the latest video for Battlefield 3. It looks amazing (far better than any Call of Duty graphic that many rave about. ;-)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wi2tae2PmmU

For some unknown reason, I haven't been able to activate anything since Incinerate (I'm clicking on Setup, the little box says Activating/Connecting... and this box never becomes anything else, until I delete it with 3-button system). Luckily it seems today's game is titled Race Cars: The Extreme Rally, which made me think of it as the sequel to Race Cars, but as I didn't find more games titled as Race Cars from Platrix, then I guess they just changed the name so gullible people could buy it and then find out, that the title is not actually the long awaited sequel, like it claims to be.

.........................Moderator Comment......................

The game is several years old. I'm sure when it was released it was a good game to purchase. as for the problem you are having. Try clearing out the giveaway cookies from your internet cache. sometime they become corrupted and can stop you activating or even downloading games from the game giveaway servers. If that doesn't work try rebooting your modem and/or router.

Sorry for the delay in moderating for some reason I wasn't able to gain access to the admin console until now nearly 4 hours after the game giveaway started.

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Race Cars: the Extreme Rally was originally given away back in March 2007 when it received 79% of 282 positive votes. There were 77 comments made about the game; then it was given away again in January 2008 where it received a positive 61% of 422 votes with 87 comments. You can see all previous comments made via the following links:

March 2007:

http://game.giveawayoftheday.com/race-cars-the-extreme-rally/#comments


Jan 2008:

http://game.giveawayoftheday.com/the-extreme-rally/#comments (Check out game seekers comment #21 and #54, and my comment #32)

Installation


The game downloads to a 22.2Mb zip file that unpacks to a dual activation and set up file, plus a read me stating the terms and conditions. By default the game installs to C:\Program Files (x86)\Playrix Entertainment\Race Cars - The Extreme Rally (Vista and Win 7) or C:\Program Files\Playrix Entertainment\Race Cars - The Extreme Rally (XP) and the installed game is 45.2Mb. You can select another installation path during the installation wizard if you wish.

Shortcuts are installed to both the Desktop and Start Menu via All Programs/Playrix Entertainment. You’ll also find an uninstaller in the All Programs folder.

I couldn’t get this to work on either of my Win 7 installations (even in compatibility mode) but it does work on Win XP Pro 32 bit. I’ve not got around to testing it on Vista yet, but I suspect that it won’t work; hopefully someone will disprove my theory. ;-)



Introduction:

Drive the super-fast race cars and see if you could have been or perhaps still can become the world's best racer. This fabulous 3D game will put you to a test of speed and skill. With 12 fastest race cars to choose from, a number of bonuses to help you win and various difficulty levels to help you improve, participate in over 50 tournaments and win the grand prix. Compete on a variety of race tracks in different weather conditions and climates and prove that you are really fast and furious!

Reference http://download.cnet.com/Race-Cars-the-Extreme-Rally/3000-2099_4-75323292.html accessed 17th april 2011




The Game:

Race Cars: The Extreme Rally is a top down third person racing game with a retro feel to it. To play the game you use a limited number of keyboard keys. These are the arrow keys for acceleration, braking and reverse as well as steering plus a reset key to take you back onto the road if you crash, the Esc key to restart the game, just in case you are hopelessly out classed and a camera key (C) which changes the camera position three times. You can also use the space bar to brake or reverse as well as the down arrow key. :lol:

There are around 50 tournaments spread over 15 different races including countryside1 & 2, Wild West 1 & 2, Greece, Texas, a military base, an Aztec site, a UFO crash site and a few others, most of which you have to unlock. Initially you only have two cars to choose from, but as you progress through the game you’ll unlock another 10 cars. Each car has slightly different attributes such as speed, acceleration, handling and weight. Of the two cars you get at the beginning, the Beemer is probably the best choice because it has better handling properties than the Mars although the Mars has better speed and acceleration. That said, these differences are very hard to spot when you are actually racing.
You can change the screen resolution via the options menu, though these are limited to 640 x 480 x 16 to 1024 x 768 x32 as well as graphic detail and brightness. There are also sound and music sliders to change the in game volume

You can choose from a quick race or tournament. The latter has two difficulty settings Normal and Extreme, though I couldn’t see much difference between either apart from the cars seemed to set off a little faster. After some practice I was able to win all races with relative ease and my 10 daughter with no practice at all won her first race. If you choose quick race you’ll find three of the 15 tracks open, (Countryside 1, Wild West 1 and Greece), the rest you have to win races to unlock, though once you’ve unlocked them via the tournament mode you can always access them via the quick race mode. Apart from being able to play races in any order there’s little difference between the modes. You can save your progress but if you want to change difficulty you have to start from the beginning. It’s possible to set up multiple profiles, so rather than lose progress it’s better to create a new profile. .

I found the keyboard controls a little sensitive and needed to practice quite a lot just to get around most corners when I first played this game four years ago. I was constantly going off the road and ending up last. Once in that position it was very hard to get ahead especially as power ups were being picked up by those ahead of you. To pick up a power up you have to drive over them. They include an acceleration bonus (Yellow diamond with letter A), a red diamond with letter ‘T’ which slows down your car as well as a ghost car (White box with letter G and stylized image of ghost) and finally a slow motion bonus that slows down all of your opponents (Green diamond with the letter S). Being in last position is disadvantageous because you end up missing out on the good bonuses, though they do re-spawn, but not immediately. To unlock new races and cars you need to win races.

Once you’ve mastered the cornering, the game is okay. You can change the camera view via the C key or reset if you come off the road by pressing R, but this does not restart the game it just places you back on the road. To restart a race press the Esc key and choose Restart Race. There is a small map of the circuit to the bottom left of the play area, this can be of use in preparing yourself for any hairpin bends etc.


Images:

Will post some later today.

Video

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5dHgBuzLAiE


Conclusion:

After playing some of the best racing games around (all the Need for Speed games, most of the Colin McRae Rally games including the two Dirt games, Richard Burns Rally, Fuel, Race 07, Grid, Toca Race Driver, F1: 2010, Moto GP, Flatout II and Ultimate Carnage as well as loads of open world car based games such as Test Drive Unlimited I & II, Grand Theft Auto IV, III, Vice City, San Andreas, Saints Row II, Wheelman, Crash Time I & II , Burnout Paradise and even my old favourites Motocross Mania Motocross Madness II, Midtown Madness I & II plus loads more too numerous to mention here, I could never get into this game. It was uncomfortable to control with only keyboard controls to play the game with (that is no gamepad or wheel inputs) though the AI wasn't that hard to beat once you've mastered cornering. I spent many hours when this was first given away trying to enjoy the game, which initially I did because I’d never bothered with previous incarnations of this type of racer, much preferring the first person style racer.

Unfortunately I’m too biased to give a fair deal or to score this relatively old game because of the massive collection of racing/vehicle based games that I already own. I'm sure it's worth more than I'd give it. The graphics are okay, the music becomes very annoying, but thankfully that can be turned off or even changed, but make sure you convert any music you want to use to .ogg files and rename them to the four titles in the music folder (C:\Program files (x86)\Playrix Entertainment\Race Cars - The Extreme Rally\Sound\Music).

I can only suggest you download the game and give it a try yourself. It’s not a large download, so for those on capped bandwidth, you’re not going to lose a significant amount of your allowance and to those still on dial up, it should only take around 6 minutes to download .

If you liked Micro cars (from around 10 + years ago), you’ll probably like this one. There’s a bunch of this type of games available from MyPlayCity and Gametop which I’ve linked to below. There’s also an emulator that enables you to use a gamepad instead of the keyboard, but for the life of me I can’t remember the name of the program at the moment. Hopefully someone with a better memory than me will post a download link for the program. :lol:



Other Information/games:


You’ll find a totally free copy of this game, which they call Real Cars over on the Gametop site that I reference in my previous comment, though I didn’t mention this game then.

http://www.gametop.com/download-free-games/racing/

It’s always useful to know where to get the game free just in case you lose today’s giveaway to a full format or a fresh installation of windows. There are several car racing games available free from that site.

Another site to visit would be MyPlayCity where you’ll find nearly 40 racing games from top down to 3D, Cars and Trucks to drag racing and motorcycles. Check them out via the following link:

http://www.myplaycity.com/free_racing_games/

Finally you’ll find loads of free racing/vehicle related games in the giveaway forums via the wheeled games thread and the free games synopsis.

Free Games Synopsis (around free 2000 games available):

http://www.giveawayoftheday.com/forums/topic/4534

Wheeled Games thread:

http://www.giveawayoftheday.com/forums/topic/2574#post-17105

For free I highly recommend Trackmania Nations, Death Rally and an online racing game called Darkwind. (Trackmania Nations is also online, but you can play a single player game. However, if you are a real racing aficionado, I can only suggest some of the latest commercial racing games such as Need for Speed: Shift 1 & 2 and the updated Need for Speed Hot Pursuit, though if you want a rally type game you can’t beat the Colin McRae Rally games (including Dirt and Dirt 2), Richard Burns Rally or for loads of ‘smashing’ fun try out the Flatout series of games (for cost I recommend Flatout 2 rather than Ultimate Carnage because they are basically the same game except Ultimate Carnage has had a face lift so you get a better looking game plus you race against 11 instead of 7 other cars' apart from that all the races are the same). Finally if you fancy an open world racing game why not try Fuel ; which was released nearly 2 years ago. It covers many of America’s beauty spots such as the Grand Canyon via thousands of miles of roads and tracks, or if you’re feeling dangerous explore on freeride There’s over 14 000 sq Km that you can explore; with gorgeous graphics, a day and night cycle plus weather systems that include hurricanes, this is a great game. (Check out the video below)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P85HCuPc5fg