KORa is a racing game developed by Peme. It features a single player career mode as well as multi-player (over bluetooth) and online tournaments. There’s not really a lot to choose from if you want a racing game for your precious N97, is KORa the solution?

Installation and technical notes

Installation works without problems and loading times are almost non-existent. Graphics are acceptable if not stunning and there is no stuttering. So far so good! The game is by no means made exclusively for the N97, and as you can see from the screenshots the game controls take up almost half of the screen. A pity. Also, you are really forced to run the game in portrait mode – even though there is actually a setting to rotate the display – since it looks just awful in landscape mode. It would have been nice to have the picture full screen and to use the directional pad instead of the built in touch controls, but ah well…

Gameplay and spinning the wheels…

I’m somewhat torn regarding controlling the cars in the game. When you get it right and dive into a hairpin turn with just the right speed and angle,  there’s that satisfying flow that every good racing game should have.  However, believe me, most of the time you will not get it right, at least not until after hours and hours of practice!

Gameplay in general is also a very frustrating and unforgiving experience. Miss a turn or a jump and you pretty much have no other choice but to restart the entire race… This combination is evil! I could accept unforgiving gameplay if control was easy to master – or an unforgiving control if gameplay was allowing me to make mistakes – but now it feels like I’m being punished for trying KORa!

So… Is it a gas?

Nah! Control is after all suspect at best and gameplay is extremely frustrating. However… It has an addictive quality to it, it has a ton of nice settings and most of all it has lots and lots of gameplay to offer both in single player and online mode. There is a nice (and free!) demo version available which gives you every opportunity to test drive, and if you want to unlock the full version – it’ll cost you nothing more than $0.99! If only the control had been a little more precise, this might actually have been a killer game! As it stands, I’ll look out for future versions of KORa, but for now my search for the first really good racing game on the N97 continues.

Summary

Pros

• Lots of gameplay
• Price
• Great potential for future versions

Cons

• Control is (too) difficult to master
• Gameplay is frustrating
• Only partially suited for the N97 screen and controls

To find out more and to download/buy, visit: KORa official website