REVIEW – Race with Ryan Game PS4

Have you heard about the new Race with Ryan game yet? If you know anything about my girls, you’ll know that they both love a bit of YouTube. Whilst I never quite understood the fascination of watching another child opening packaging, they are absolutely obsessed, and during their quiet time on their tablets or as a bit of a treat, will happily sit calm and content watching the surprise reveal of a new toy being opened and put through it’s paces.

It appears that many many of us, parents and children alike, have spent time watching YouTube superstar Ryan at Ryan’s World – a 7 year old kid from California who became famous for his s unboxing and playing with toys who now  has over 21 MILLION (yes you read that right!) subscribers to his channel.

Ryan has gone on to launch his own toy range including collectibles and surprise eggs of his own, and on the 1st November 2019, added to this with the release of a brand new video game from Outright Games.

What is Race with Ryan?

Race with Ryan is a brand new multi car kart racing game aimed at children aged 3-6 years and is available on PS4, Nintendo Switch, Xbox One and PC. Race with Ryan retails at £29.99 and is exclusive to Smyths Toys.

With a real retro Super Mario Kart vibe, something which my inner 80s child got pretty darn excited by, Race with Ryan is a game that the entire family can enjoy.

We were sent a preview copy of Race with Ryan to put to the test, and our full verdict is below!

Our Experience of Race with Ryan

Think Super Mario Kart, with a modern Ryan Toys Review twist and you’d have hit the nail slap bang on the head.

Race with Ryan is a fun multi kart racing game featuring Ryan and all his friends including Policeman Ryan, Red Titan, Gus the Gummy Gator and Pirate Combo Panda.

There are 6 different zones (which can be played forwards or in reverse) within Race with Ryan, including Ryan’s Play Room, Fantasy Park, Spookyland, Wild West, Toy Shop and Treasure Island. The zones are fun, bright and colourful, with detailed backdrops and scenes and some have an almost 3D feel, so you really do feel like you’ve been transported into the slightly trippy environment of each zone.

Ryan’s Play room is my favourite, with an almost Toy Story vibe of toys and their hidden adventures. Whilst I love the choice of zones (with each one having something different to offer), I do wish there had been a few more than 6, as I do think there is the potential to get bored fairly quickly. That said, as Erin is starting the game on easy, there is definitely scope for her to progress and develop through the difficulty settings as she increases in confidence.

There are a variety of different modes of play including careers, quick racing and split screen options so that up to four players can play together (subject to the number of controllers you have available). Unfortunately we only have one, so took it in turns instead. I definitely think having multiple controllers would help you really get the best out of the game, but at the £45 mark per controller, it’s just not something I can justify purchasing at the moment, so ask your friends to bring their own!

Race with Ryan has assisted steering and automatic gas options for younger players, something which was great for Neve who has literally no idea how to navigate a controller but equally hates to feel excluded – she really felt like she was joining in and was able to celebrate doing well despite having no element of skill whatsoever! 🙂

There are easy, medium and hard settings, so when we took it in turns we could change to ensure that the difficulty was based on the competency of the player. In other words,  Mike played on Hard, I was on medium and Erin stayed on easy.

During the game play, something which is colourful and bright with a slight “pop art” feel, Ryan himself occasionally pops in from the side of the screen to congratulate, encourage or sympathise. I personally found this a little bit annoying, particularly his exclamations of “oh yeah!” but Neve found it hillarious, repeating him every time he did so. I think this is just part of his normal personality, so the children will be used to his enthusiastic exaggerated vibe!

Whilst racing round the track on the mission to top the leaderboard, the aim is to collect eggs (which appropriately look just like Ryan’s World Giant Mystery Egg toy available in shops), all of which contain a variety of super powers that help you on your mission.

Egg surprise powers include burger shields (a bit random), sticky slime (to strap the players coming up behind) and trick surprise eggs which are slightly darker in colour and explode should you hit one in error! You must also navigate around obstacles, and avoid getting squished by bouncy balls or traps from your opponents.

With simple controls and a tutorial guide for those who have never played before, the girls have really enjoyed playing Race with Ryan, and I love the fact its a game we can all enjoy together, competing and celebrating each others successes.

Whilst Ryan himself can be a little annoying for the grown ups (sorry Ryan), I think the game is ideal for it’s target age group, and a nice flashback to my childhood too. I’ve enjoyed embracing my inner child this weekend, and think that Race with Ryan is a great option for any mini Ryan fans who are looking to first enter the world of gaming!

*Disclosure – We were sent a press copy of the game to put through its paces in exchange for our honest review. As always all thoughts and opinions are my own*