Game: Wildshade: Unicorn Champions
Genre: Arcade, Racing
System: Nintendo Switch (Also available on Xbox One/X/S, PS4/5 and mobile)
Developer | Publisher: Tivola | Nacon
Age Rating: US Everyone | EU 3+
Price: US $39.99 | UK £34.99 | EU € 39,99
Release Date: November 30th, 2023
Review code used, with many thanks to Dead Good Media.
Wildshade: Unicorn Champions teleports you to the fantasy world of Wildshade, where you get to race magical horses and unicorns with the aim of being the champion of champions.
Will it go the distance and be a photo finish, or will the magical spells backfire?
Who Are You?
Before you can start racing, you need to choose your rider. There are eight pre-defined characters, with no additional customisation. There isn’t a great deal of uniqueness, which is a shame considering Wildshade: Unicorn Champions is set in a fantasy world full of magical spells.
You then get to select your horse or unicorn. Only six at the start, but as you win tournaments and progress through the campaign, you unlock many others. Although a random name is given, there is an opportunity to select a new one from an extensive list. So rather than Foal Luck, my caramel-coloured horse was renamed to Fire Dance.
You then head to the start line and compete in a tutorial race. On-screen instructions explain how to steer, use magic and drift. Do horses drift? Apparently, magical ones and unicorns do.
Racing in Wildshade: Unicorn Champions
There are three different types of racing in Wildshade: Unicorn Champions: a campaign mode, a tournament mode, or a race.
All races have a magical aspect to them. At various points around the course, there are magical potions. Collecting one of these flasks allows you to cast a spell. It could be a whirlpool of leaves, a stack of ice or a heat ring to cause the competition to stumble and fall. However, it could be a speed boost, a shield or Pegasus wings to help you win.
In campaign mode, you gain stars by finishing in the top five, and stars open up new levels. Generally, it takes three stars to unlock a new level. So, if you finish first several times, you can open up multiple levels in one go. Occasionally, you will unlock a new horse or unicorn instead of a new level. You need a total of 135 stars to complete the campaign mode, which I managed in about two hours. I liked not having to finish first in each race to progress, but it means you can finish the campaign without even attempting all the levels.
In the tournament mode, you select your horse and rider and then compete against seven other riders in a four-race league. There are five leagues, each with three levels of difficulty. All five leagues are available from the start. Various customisation items are received depending on your overall finishing position. You might even receive a new horse. Get first in all four races, and your trophy comes with stars.
The race mode uses the same layout as the tournament, but you select just a single course from the 20 available. Both tournament and race mode allows for local multiplayer gaming. Wildshade: Unicorn Champions uses a vertical split-screen for two players and a quadrant split for 3 or 4 players.
Breeding and Customising
One of the highlights of the Wildshade: Unicorn Champions should be the breeding option. However, although it’s interesting to find out what the offspring will look like, it is just a different skin. The characteristics of the new horse or unicorn don’t affect performance, and this is a missed opportunity.
You can alter the bridle, saddle and blanket of your horse or unicorn in the stable, as well as give them different hair colours and styles. There is a wide range of options to unlock via the tournaments.
Gameplay
The gameplay in Wildshade: Unicorn Champions is smooth, and I didn’t experience any frame rate issues, even in local multiplayer mode. The controls are simple; in fact, you don’t even need to control the horse, as it will go round the course by itself, although you are unlikely to win! The camera following the action is also automatic. Wildshade: Unicorn Champions works well in both handheld and docked modes, and there is some touchscreen functionality whereby you can tap instead of pressing A, but there is nothing within the actual races.
The loading screens show tips and explain the various magical potions, which is useful as there are no other descriptions. The mini-map shown during each race is helpful, especially to show the alternate routes. The 20 courses are varied, with the campaign mode using a mirror version of some of the levels.
Wildshade: Unicorn Champions autosaves at the end of each race. The races are either 2 or 3 laps and take around 2 to 4 minutes to complete.
Conclusion
Although I enjoyed the different course locations and the concept of unicorns rather than karts or motorbikes, Wildshade: Unicorn Champions doesn’t bring anything new to the racing genre.
If more could be made of the breeding option, allowing the characteristics of the horse or unicorn to have some bearing on performance, it would make Wildshade: Unicorn Champions a more exciting and memorable racing game.
As it is, it seems off the pace and, for me, fell at the first hurdle.
Final Verdict: I’m Not Sure 