Bike Rivals Review

There are a lot of physics-heavy motorcycle racing games on the App Store. In fact, we made a whole video about it. And at first, Bike Rivals doesn’t appear to add anything new to the mix. However, despite some freemium annoyances, it succeeds through good old-fashioned quality level design.

But let’s get the bad stuff out of the way. First, Bike Rivals doesn’t look too hot. The 2D illustrated visuals are fine but overwhelmingly bland. And while having nearly 100 stages is impressive, the repeating themes across different areas like fire and ice worlds get old. The style is too subdued to be arcade fantasy while the explosions and boosts are just crazy enough to be implausible. But what’s worse is just how restrictive the freemium timer system is. Players can barely get through a handful of levels before they are forced to wait for “gas” to refill or pay for it themselves. Even replaying completed levels drains the meter. It’s a shame because it’s keeping customers unnecessarily at arm’s length from an otherwise addictive experience.

As for the gameplay, Bike Rivals initially seems pretty standard. Players bike their way through environments, boosting and braking carefully to keep their rider steady and in one piece. They can perform tricks like wheelies to get nitrous boosts or brake and accelerate simultaneously to do burnout boosts. Using these techniques to barely scrape by perilous obstacles is the difference between life and death, until the end where the rider always dies anyway as part of the glorious victory celebration.

But what makes Bike Rivals so fun is just how clever the levels are. In one part players are boosting away from a falling boulder over a wooden bridge, in another they're riding alongside the outer rim of a razor-sharp fan trying not to get shredded. The most exciting portions typically involve the landscape dynamically changing. As players start a loop there might be a stone column blocking their path forward, but as they finish the column will collapse and form a ramp. Some sections even involve light platforming as players park on boats or metal sheets to cross dangerous terrain.

Even though it’s visually dull and artificially padded with frustrating freemium mechanics, simple creativity helps Bike Rivals stand out in a crowded genre. Sometimes that’s all it takes.