Excitebike: World Challenge

Reinventing Your Wheels

Gear up for the rebirth of a NES classic that’s hitting Wii with a high-octane overhaul! WiiWare exclusive Excitebike: World Challenge retains the nuts and bolts that made the original ‘80s classic a firm favourite in homes and arcades of the era, challenging you to catch big air on ramps, avoid obstacles and balance your need for speed with the constant threat of overheating.

This time you’ll be able to opt for either classic or motion controls as well as take on the world via Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection! The improved Track Editor lets you share your custom-built tracks via WiiConnect24 and you can even race your Friends on your personal masterpieces!

However you play, it’s time to start your engines and rediscover a legendary racing experience in a thrilling new form!

Handling How You Like It

Holding the Wii Remote sideways like an old-school NES controller, you’ll race against the clock as you attempt to cruise past rival racers and finish in record-breaking time. Accelerate with the 2 Button and use the 1 Button for a turbo boost. Look for cooldown strips built into the track when using turbo because excessive boosting will cause your engine to overheat and you will lose precious seconds of your time!

Using motion controls you can tilt the Wii Remote to execute jumps and wheelies, so get some good speed and go for big air as you make your jump. If you’d rather control the action like you did back in the day, you can opt to turn the motion-sensing elements of the control scheme off and the +Control Pad will do the trick.

Always make sure to align your bike correctly to land after taking off from a ramp and switch lanes to steer clear of rival racers. You can even surprise your opponents by hitting morphing triggers that uplift the ground in front of you on the fly!

World Tour

In this single player mode, tear up tracks around the globe as you scramble to claim top spot in four action-packed cup competitions. You’ll have to slice seconds off your finishing times to earn the best grades possible and unlock new challenges, getting to grips with the motocross mayhem along the way to ensure every ride is full of more thrills than spills.

The Bronze, Silver, Gold and Platinum Cups will take you to 16 exotic locations around the world, but to win each cup you’re going to have to get at least B Grades on each of the four tracks included in each cup. Real pros will of course be aiming for S Grades all around…

Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection

Whether you’re just out of the starting gate or boast years of experience, Excitebike: World Challenge invites you to test yourself against other Excitebike players all over the world for the first time. Head online via Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection then take to the track against up to three other registered Wii Friends or random opponents as you bid to leave the world trailing in your dust!

After every online race you’ll be rewarded with points depending on your performance, which accumulate over time to unlock new customisation options for your motorbike. So not only can you put the rest of the world in its place out on the track, you can look good in the process!

Track Editor

Even back in the ‘80s, Excitebike encouraged you to let your imagination run wild by creating your own custom tracks to race on. These days, the spirit of creativity remains alive and well in Excitebike: World Challenge – only now there are more customisation options than ever before, as well as the possibility of sending the tracks you dream up to registered Wii Friends via WiiConnect24 or using them in online races.

Choosing from a vast range of alphabetically listed components, you’ll build your perfect track out of straights, jumps, obstacles, morph elements and more as you come up with a course that’s guaranteed to put you and your online opponents to the ultimate test.

Staying true to its roots, Excitebike: World Challenge puts you in the driving seat as you let your creative side run wild!

Times of Excitement

The WiiWare-exclusive Excitebike: World Challenge takes its place in a franchise spanning more than two decades of turbo-charged racing. Let’s take a look at the history of the series in Europe…

Excitebike (1986, NES)

Kicking things off in the ‘80s, the original Excitebike was a big hit on the Nintendo Entertainment System that introduced the core mechanics of the “Excite” series. Some arcades also hosted Vs. Excitebike, which allowed two players to compete simultaneously. The original game was also released for Game Boy Advance as part of the NES Classics range and can still be experienced today on Wii via Virtual Console.

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Excitebike 64 (2001, Nintendo 64)

This N64 release took the series into 3D and introduced four-player multiplayer but still required players to perfect their jumping skills as they boosted off muddy ramps, with a perfect landing on the other side required to maintain momentum. Curiously, the “Soccer” mode saw up to four bikers trying to get a massive football into the opposing team’s goal!

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Excite Truck (2006, Wii)

This spiritual successor ditched bikes for monster trucks in all shapes and sizes and took the action out of the circuits and into open roads all around the world. Thanks to the Wii Remote, steering and aligning your vehicle was now handled by motion controls, resulting in a highly immersive arcade experience. The thrill of emerging unscathed from a narrow tree-lined path before sending your truck soaring through the sky and landing it on the Great Wall of China is a rush few games can rival.

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