For starters, Choro Q is not going to make anyone’s heads turn visually. The game is made up of little cutesy cars, insanely colorful, and allows drivers to move about in some of the craziest tracks that have ever graced a console racing title. You even divide most of your racing time with traveling the over world that is filled with paint shops, part shops, homes, other racers, and many other locals to frequent. This would all seem so cool if the visuals were more than Nintendo 64 graphics. The polygons are below even first generation PS2, the presentation is elementary, and the overall look is just bland. Even in some of the cooler areas, the visuals just do not provide much punch to them. Toss in a ridiculously slow sense of speed, and most racing fans will not give the game a second thought. The shame of it all, as mediocre as Choro Q looks, the game has an insane amount of depth that will please gamers if they can find it in themselves to be passed the visuals.

Audio doesn’t fair much better as the engine sounds are quirky, and the jazzy music will not be winning any gaming awards soon. What the game does do well is provide a nice multitude of engine sounds for the various vehicles you drive. A big rig sounds different from a coupe, which in turn sounds different from F1 racers, and so forth. The cartoon sounds of bumping, grinding, turbo boosts, etc, really show which direction this developer was shooting for when designing the game.

Choro Q stutters at the starting grid with its most obvious flaw, the game play just is not riveting. As mentioned before it is the sense of speed that kills the game. I know that this game is based of Penny Racers, but for my vehicle to wisp by at no more than a feeling of 30-40 mph is just snooze inducing. What’s more the controls, even at the tortoise like speed are float and poorly responsive. Lastly, the A.I. is programmed to drive one strict course of action, which keeps the notion of accurate competition from rearing its head. The only plus behind such programming is you will never worry about experiencing rubber band A.I.

Now with the last three paragraphs said and done, you may wonder if there is anything redeemable about Choro Q that may interest gamers who like originality. My answer to you is yes indeed. It is obvious that the game did not get the C review based on its looks, sound, or even innovative game play. Choro Q saves itself from the budget bin of mediocrity by giving gamers, who can look past all of its flaws, an experience like no other. When touted as a Car-PG, one can only think of Pro Race Driver, which boasted the same catch phrase. Let me just tell you good people that Pro Race Driver has NOTHING on Choro Q when it comes to RPG elements. You have an over world in which you talk to towns folk, buy upgrades, change your paint job, get licenses, buy cars, visit homes, and much more. Choro Q has over 160 races that vary from Haunted Castles, earthquake courses, and even in space. You have over 200 vehicles to choose from, all fully upgradeable in body styles, interchangeable parts, and even color. Heck, you can race even over 30 mini games, including head-to-head-multiplayer races. This depth is by far Choro Q’s strongest asset, and is enough for curious gamers to at least give it a rental.

Choro Q is not for everyone, this is for sure. This game was designed for gamers who like titles such as Devil Dice, Intelligent Cube, Firefighter FD, Jumping Flash, and various other off the wall crazy games that spur a cult following. Thankfully, the budget price of 20 bucks will peak the interest of some gamers who want a lot of game for little pocket money.