For what it’s worth,
Wacky Races is an amazingly tight presentation of power-up based racing on a Game Boy. You pick one of four racers (eight, once you’ve unlocked them all), and compete against the others on a variety of courses. In the grand style of this genre, as you race, you open up both new characters and new tracks. None of the beginning tracks are particularly challenging, with the really interesting ones showing up later in the game. But they’re all gorgeous. Once again, I’m amazed at what the developers did with this title. The power-ups themselves are standard fare -- you’ve got your missiles, your speed-ups, your invincibility, your instant-zappy-death. The enemies drop bombs and oil slicks, it seems; neither of which you’ll ever find in the races, but I suppose that is a small concession to make.
The racing itself is fun, if a little droll. Each racer has a unique ability, from being able to repair the vehicle in no time to being untouched by slicks in the road. You’ll find that they have different top speeds, though, and choosing a fast vehicle often makes the difference between winning and third place. Careful driving will get you out in front, and you shouldn’t find the game itself to be all that much of a challenge. For the time that you play it, however, it’s a damned fun ride.