Cars: Race-O-Rama
Cars: Race-O-Rama is the fourth game in the Cars series, and for the first time the player can make their own Lightning McQueen. This is the last Disney/Pixar video game published by THQ as well as the last game not to be published by Disney Interactive.
Plot
Lightning McQueen and the Doc Hudson Racing Academy are in a race competing against a rival academy. At the end of the race, the members of the other academy crashes the Doc Hudson Racing Academy. Lightning witnesses this and they reveal that they are from the Chick Hicks Racing Academy. Chick appears and tells Lightning that he plans wins the Race-O-Rama series to shut down the Doc Hudson Racing Academy, thus bringing more cars to his academy, and take over Radiator Springs, and Lightning will no longer be allowed there.
Lightning decides to customize himself for the different races.
Meanwhile, in Ornament Valley, in front of the Rustbucket Stadium, Mater meets his old rivals, Bubba, Tater and Tater Jr., who reminded him of when they agreed a long time ago to race in the Rustbucket Stadium for the towing rights to Radiator Springs. Throughout the story, the Taters slowly got along with Mater and slowly became friends with him.
Lightning McQueen arrives at Santa Carburera with Doc's students and a few of his friends from Radiator Springs. After the first two races, Lightning and Flo line up at the starting line for the third one when Chick shows up and introduces them to Candice. Candice loses the race, despite being promised by her dad that she would win, so she calls him and asks him to buy a bunch of new car parts for her, to which he agrees. She drives away to go shopping.
For the next round, Lightning arrives in Autovia with the students and Sarge. Meanwhile, Chick's students went through the MotorCo. building, where they became VINs, robotic cars who speak in a monotone voice. Lightning, the students and the VINs did two races around Autovia. Before the final race, Lightning and Sarge are introduced to El Machismo, an off-road racer. El Machismo loses the races, making him angry, and blames it on Chick and MotorCo., and demands for bigger car parts. Even Chick had to admit that he was not that much of a sore loser.
After that, Lightning gets new modifications again goes to Motoropolis City for the next round. The races occur at night when the city is full of bright lights. Before the final race, Chick introduced Stinger, who is shown not to talk much, to Lightning and Ramone. Lightning was able to win this race as well, much to Chick's anger, who was quite sure that Stinger, being a muscle car, would win. He said to Stinger what he has to say for himself, but Stinger says nothing, but instead just drives away. There is only one more round left in the Race-O-Rama series and Chick still has more surprises.
In Radiator Springs, Mater, Bubba, Tater and Tater Jr. have their race in the Rustbucket Stadium. Mater wins the race, much to Bubba's anger. On the contrary, Tater and Tater Jr. had fun, saying that making friends with Mater, whose name also rhymes with theirs, makes them feel like winners too. Bubba drives away, vowing his revenge.
Lightning McQueen and Chick Hicks go back to Radiator Springs Speedway for the last round in the Race-O-Rama. Lightning has one more race against Candice, El Machismo, Stinger and the VINs before the final race with Chick. Chick decides to use the same modifications Lightning used during the earlier rounds, but Lightning modifies himself again with modifications he was saving for this special occasion. Right before the race, Chick reveals that he was only using Candice, El Machismo, Stinger and the VINs to learn how to beat Lightning.
Lightning wins the race and the Race-O-Rama trophy, which makes Chick angry. He claims he could have won if he raced in the Race-O-Rama by himself. Lightning tries to teach Chick that there is more to racing than winning and that the best racers are part of a team, but Chick does not listen and drives away, vowing his revenge. Later, Candice, El Machismo and Stinger show up to apologize to Lightning for their past behavior. Lightning accepts their apology and invites them to come to the Doc Hudson Racing Academy any time.
Characters
- Lightning McQueen (Regular, Monster Truck, Beach Racing, Street Racing, Off-Road Racing, & Speedway) (Keith Ferguson)
- Mater (Regular & Monster Truck) (Larry the Cable Guy)
- Doc Hudson (Corey Burton)
- Ramone (Cheech Marin)
- Flo (Jenifer Lewis)
- Luigi (Tony Shalhoub)
- Guido (Guido Quaroni)
- Fillmore (Mark Silverman)
- Sarge (Paul Dooley)
- Sheriff (Console versions only) (Michael Wallis)
- Mack (Non-playable) (John Ratzenberger)
- Mike (Carlos Alazraqui)
- Sulley (John Goodman)
- Mia (Non-playable) (Lindsey Collins)
- Tia (Non-playable) (Elissa Knight)
- Chick Hicks (Regular & Upgraded) (Michael Keaton)
- Not Chuck (Mike Nelson)
- Fred (Non-playable) (Andrew Stanton)
- Tommy Joe (Non-playable) (Bill Farmer)
- Lewis (Non-playable) (James Patrick Stuart)
- Cletus (Non-playable) (James Patrick Stuart)
- Zeke (Non-playable) (James Patrick Stuart)
- The Crippler (Non-playable) (E.J. Holowicki)
- Ginormous (Non-playable) (Joel McCrary)
- Count Spatula (Non-playable) (Steve Purcell)
- Kabuto (Non-playable)
- Candice (Tara Strong)
- Stinger (Dee Bradley Baker)
- El Machismo (Randy Savage)
- VINs (robotic stock cars) (S. Scott Bullock)
- Bubba (Lloyd Sherr)
- Tater (Stephen Stanton)
- Tater Jr. (Joe Smith)
- Emma (Handheld versions only)
- Doc Hudson Racing Academy Students (Joe Smith and Chris Edgerly)
- Chick Hicks Racing Academy Students (Mark Silverman and Josh Robert Thompson)
- Doc Hudson Racing Pitty (Henry Dittman)
- Chick Hicks Racing Pitty (Jon Olson)
- Motor Co. Pitty (James Patrick Stuart)
- Trophy Girl (Jennifer Hale)
- Tourists
Lou Romano, Jerry DeCapua, Greg Baldwin, Quinton Flynn and Rob Izenberg were also credited, although their roles are unknown.
Events
Gold Events
Radiator Springs Speedway 1
Radiator Springs 1
Santa Carburera
Radiator Springs 2
Autovia
Radiator Springs 3
- Monster Truck Mayhem 3/Guido Kart Race 5 (Wii Version)
- Tokyo Mater
- Road Race 3
Motoropolis
Radiator Springs 4
Radiator Springs Speedway 2
Not-Gold Events
Road Races
Relay Races
Guido Kart Races
- Guido Kart Race 1
- Guido Kart Race 2
- Guido Kart Race 3
- Guido Kart Race 4
- Guido Kart Race 5
- Guido Kart Race 6
- Guido Kart Race 7
- Guido Kart Race 8
- Guido Kart Race 9
Mini Games
- Auto Cross 1
- Auto Cross 2
- Auto Cross 3
- Auto Cross 4
- Auto Cross 5
- Auto Cross 6
- Auto Cross 7
- Luigi's Tire Find
- Sheriff's Chase
- Tractor Stampede
Missions
- Photo Op 1
- Photo Op 2
- Photo Op 3
- Photo Op 4
- Photo Op 5
- Photo Op 6
- Photo Op 7
- Photo Op 8
- Transporter 1
- Transporter 2
- Transporter 3
Rustbucket Derby
Monster Truck Races
- Monster Truck Mayhem 1
- Monster Truck Mayhem 2
- Monster Truck Mayhem 3
- Monster Truck Mayhem 4
- Monster Truck Mayhem 5
Cheat Codes
- GOLDKEY - Unlock all Story Mode events.
- SLVRKEY - Unlock all Arcade Mode events.
- GR8MODS - Unlock all Lightning McQueen custom kit parts.
- EVRYBDY - Unlock all Lightning McQueen friends.
- CARSHOW - Unlock all paint jobs for all non-Lightning McQueen characters.
Trivia
- This is the second game that does not have the Radiator Springs Theme as the menu music. The first one is Cars: Radiator Springs Adventures.
- The PlayStation 2 version of the game has a lot of differences from the game on other consoles.
- A race on the PlayStation 2 typically has only four racers as opposed to eight (except for the Monster Truck Races which has six).
- Only the first student each from the Doc Hudson and Chick Hicks Racing Academies are playable as opposed to all four.
- While the three sections of Radiator Springs are merged into one world, they stay separate on the PlayStation 2. This leads to other differences:
- There are only two Point to Point Races instead of five, since the other three cross over to other sections. Point to Points 2 and 5 are renumbered 1 and 2 respectively.
- Tourists are not seen crossing over among the three locations.
- Relay Races have two teams of two instead of four teams of three. This is similar to the PlayStation 2 version of Cars: Mater-National Championship.
- Some of the paint jobs, kit-parts, and concept art are missing.
- Luigi, Trophy Girl, Bubba, Tater and Tater Jr. are not playable in Circuit Races, Relay Races, Auto Crosses and Missions.
- The cars that drive around Radiator Springs drive on less roads.
- Mike and Trophy Girl can only be unlocked by the "EVRYBDY" cheat code, not by winning enough points.
- Doc Student 4, Fred, Lewis, Ginormous and Count Spatula are completely absent.
- Sarge competes in all Smash Up races, but he is not playable in them on the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and Wii versions. However, on the PlayStation 2, he does not appear in the Smash Ups at all, but is playable in them.
- Lou Romano and E.J. Holowicki appear in the credits, despite Snot Rod and DJ not appearing.
- This game has a lot of differences from its predecessors:
- A race typically has eight racers instead of five (except for the PlayStation 2 version which has four).
- There are more locations to explore besides the three sections of Radiator Springs.
- This is the first time Guido is playable.
- This is also the only game where Not Chuck appears.
- The game was never released on the PC or Game Boy Advance.
- Paint jobs and other bonus content are unlocked through reaching specific amounts of points or winning events as opposed to being purchased with points.
- Lizzie, Snot Rod, Fletcher, Gerald, Vince, Barry, Sonny, Lenny, Buford and Judd do not return in Cars: Race-O-Rama but they did return in Cars: Mater-National Championship. Sally Carrera, Boost, Wingo, DJ, El Guapo, Papo, Strip Weathers, Darrell Cartrip and the Piston Cup racers, who did not return in Mater-National, once again do not return in Cars Race-O-Rama.
- No licensed music or any music from previous games are used.
- Sarge's Boot Camp has opened up in Story Mode and can be freely explored in.
- Players now drift instead of powerslide.
- This is the first game in which Mater does not appear on the cover.
- Radiator Springs never appears at nighttime.
- One of the minigames, Tractor Stampede, is similar to Tractor Tipping from previous games, but it takes place in the town of Radiator Springs instead of the field. In Story Mode, players play as Lightning McQueen instead of Mater, and Frank does not appear.
- Players can now go to Doc's Garage to customize McQueen's parts besides the paint job and tires.
- The minigames of Luigi's Tire Find and Sheriff's Chase are similar to the Luigi to the Rescue and Sheriff's Hot Pursuit minigames from Cars: The Video Game.
- The areas of Radiator Springs that were blocked off from exploration in Cars: Mater-National Championship are explorable again and the three "World's Biggest Balls" have returned.
- Like the first film, Cars: The Video Game and Cars: Mater-National Championship, the game is dedicated in memory of Joe Ranft.
- Like the first film, the game title is on a starting line.
- If one goes around the road back behind Radiator Cap and looks to the right of Cadillac Range, a big dark brown rock can be seen. That is the top of Tailfin Pass. The Wheel Well Motel can be seen in the bottom left corner of the rock. Similarly, if one goes up Tailfin Pass to the Wheel Well, the road behind Radiator Cap can be seen.
- The handheld versions have only fifteen playable racers with only some having alternate paint jobs, and the boss races of El Machismo and Stinger are swapped. The race against Chick has Candice attempting to blind the player, Stinger using an oil slick, and El Machismo ramming into the player. It also does not feature the subplot with Mater racing Bubba for the towing rights.
Goofs
- On the PlayStation 2 version, Guido's eyes go in the direction opposite of where he is turning.
- Also on the PlayStation 2, in Tokyo Mater, Mater says his winning phrase twice while Mia and Tia do not say their congratulatory phrases.
- The Ornament Valley Airport, as well as most of the additional landmarks from Cars: Mater-National Championship do not return.
- Like in Cars: Mater-National Championship, sometimes the characters' lines are not aligned with their mouths.
- In Relay Races, the cars have different engine sounds compared to other races and mini-games, like in Cars: Mater-National Championship.
- There are a few goofs in the handheld version due to them featuring elements from the console version.
- In the cut-scene before the final race on the PSP version, Chick comments on Lightning's new look, but Lightning does not have a new look. Chick also mentions the VINs, who do not appear in the handheld version. This is because the cut-scenes use the same audio from the console version.
- The students have different paint jobs, but appear with their console paint jobs in the cut-scenes.
- In Story Mode, a duplicate of Mia can sometimes be seen in Photo Op 3. Similarly, in Transporters 1 and 2, players might find duplicates of Doc and Flo respectively. This is because the same cars appear driving around each city in the events as they do in exploration.
Gallery
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Wii cover.
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Xbox 360 cover.
de:Cars: Race-O-Rama es:Cars: Race-O-Rama pl:Race-O-Rama pt-br:Carros: Race-O-Rama