LEGO Racers (game)

Video Games → Racers

LEGO Racers
Item №:	5703 (N64), 5704 (PC), 5705 (PlayStation), 5719 (GBC)
LEGO Theme:	Racers
Price:	see Versions
Developer(s):	High Voltage Software
Publisher(s):	LEGO Media
Date Released:	Microsoft Windows: July 31, 1999, Nintendo 64: October 31, 1999, Playstation: December 17, 1999, Gameboy Color: December 29, 2000
Genre:	Racing
Mode(s):	Singleplayer, Multiplayer (2 players)
Rating:	E
Platforms:	Microsoft Windows, Gameboy Color, PlayStation, Nintendo 64

LEGO Racers is a LEGO racing video game developed by High Voltage Software and published by LEGO Media, released for PC and consoles in 1999, with a Game Boy Color version in 2000. The game is a racing game where players race minifigures in custom-built cars in order to become "the greatest LEGO racing champion of all time."

Gameplay

Being a racing game, the gameplay is centered around racing. You can race against computer-controlled (AI) opponents or against another person. There are four types of races: circuit, single, VS, and time.

In the game, you choose from different car frames and build upon them until you have your car. You also customize your character and race with him/her. There are 7 circuits, and each has a circuit champion.

The champions of the game were some of the most popular LEGO minifigures of the time. They are:

• Captain Redbeard (Pirates)
• King Kahuka (Islanders)
• Basil the Bat Lord (Fright Knights)
• Johnny Thunder (Adventurers)
• Baron von Barron (Adventurers)
• Gypsy Moth (Insectoids)
• Rocket Racer

The main antagonist, Rocket Racer, has never been made in a set.

Each circuit has four racetracks and all of them are hosted by other characters:

• Governor Broadside (Pirates)
• Rob-N-Hood (Forestman)
• Ann Droid (Exploriens)
• Pharaoh's Mummy (Egypt)
• Islander (Islanders)
• Royal King (Castle)
• Commander Cold (Ice Planet 2002)
• Achu (Amazon)
• Willa the Witch (Fright Knights)
• Blackjack Hawkins (Pirates)
• Sam Sinister (Egypt)
• Alpha Draconis (UFO)
• Black Knight (Castle) (from Royal Knights Raceway)
• Admiral (Pirates) (from Imperial Grand Prix)
• Gail Storm (Adventurers) (from Desert Adventure Dragway)
• Nova Hunter (Exploriens) (from Magma Moon Marathon)

These characters can be made to race as well as the champions as soon as you win the circuit. The tracks from circuits 1, 2, and 3 are mirrored for 4, 5, and 6. Rocket Racer's circuit (7) has only one track.

The tracks are based on different lines of LEGO themes. For example, 'Knightmare-Athon' is based on the Fright Knights theme.

Circuit Races

In this mode, you race AI opponents on one of seven circuits. Each circuit consists of four three-lap races on different tracks (with the exception of circuit 7, which contains only one track). Depending on how you place in each race, you get a certain number of points: first place is thirty points, second is twenty, third is ten, fourth is three, fifth is two, and last is one point. The points from each track are added to determine the winner of the circuit. (If you tie with an AI opponent, you will receive the higher place.)

Single Races

In this mode, you race against AI opponents around a single track. (You can only race on tracks you have unlocked). This mode is useful if you are having trouble with a certain track and want to practice without doing an entire circuit.

Versus Races

In this mode, you race against a human opponent around a single track. (You can only race on tracks from circuits you have unlocked). On the PC version, you can only use this mode if you have a compatible gamepad for your computer.

Time Races

In this mode, you race against a "ghost" of Veronica Voltage. This means that neither of you can affect the other in any way. Also unique to this mode is the placement of power-ups. They are arranged differently than they are in the other modes: the most common are green and white, red only appears when there is a shortcut that can only be accessed with it, blue only appears when there is a hazard on the course that can be avoided with it, and yellow never appears. If the player completes the Time Races, then they get to unlock the car.

Power-up bricks

Each track has a number of power-ups in the form of bricks placed on it. There are five different colors of bricks. Four of them (red, green, blue and yellow) allow the player to activate their respective power-up, whilst the fifth one (white) increases the power of the power-up. The following table displays the properties of each brick and the effect white bricks have on it:

Colour	Type	Basic Power-Up	One White Brick	Two White Bricks	Three White Bricks
Red	Projectile	Cannonball	Grappling Hook	Lightning Wand	3 Guided Rockets
Yellow	Hazard	Oil Slick	Barrel of Gunpowder	Magnetic Trap	Mummy's Curse
Blue	Shield	5-Second (blue) Shield	6-Second (green) Shield	8-Second (yellow) Shield (Reflects cannonballs and rockets, spins opponents on contact.)	10-Second (red) Shield (Reflects cannonballs and rockets, spins opponents on contact.)
Green	Turbo Speed	Turbo Boost	Double Turbo Boost	Flying Turbo Boost	Warp Turbo Boost

Hazards

Almost all tracks have hazards that slow down the player and other racers. They are physical obstructions (giant rolling stones, swinging axes or a falling pillar); hazards that mimic power-ups (cannon fire, falling bombs, electrical discharges, swinging boxes and ground volcanoes that make the player slip and turn, and mummy's curses); or unique hazards (a ghost that spooks the racer and a flying saucer that drags the racer backwards). All hazards can be countered using shields or by avoiding them.

Shortcuts

Every track except the Knightmare-Athon has at least one shortcut. Shortcuts can be open (e.g., a tunnel that turns from the track), hidden (e.g., a tunnel hidden by a waterfall) or can only be blasted open by projectile power-ups (e.g., a passage hidden by barrels). However, only the player can go through the shortcuts, as the other racers (except Veronica Voltage) will ignore them.

Notes

The Knightmare-Athon track had at least two shortcuts in the beta version of the game; however, they were removed, but the bricks that were inside the shortcuts can still be seen behind the walls. There is a shortcut in Tribal Island Trail. When nearing alligators, turn left at the statues. it will avoid all alligators.

Circuits

In the game, there are seven circuits. Placing first, second, or third on a circuit unlocks the next circuit.

Circuit 1

Champion: Captain Redbeard (Pirates)

• Imperial Grand Prix (Pirates)
• Dark Forest Dash (Dark Forest)
• Magma Moon Marathon (Exploriens)
• Desert Adventure Dragway (Egypt)

Circuit 2

Champion: King Kahuka (Islanders)

• Tribal Island Trail (Islanders)
• Royal Knights Raceway (Royal Knights)
• Ice Planet Pathway (Ice Planet 2002)
• Amazon Adventure Alley (Jungle)

Circuit 3

Champion: Basil the Bat Lord (Fright Knights)

• Knightmare-Athon (Fright Knights)
• Pirate Skull Pass (Pirates)
• Adventure Temple Trial (Combination of Egypt, Amazon and Islanders themes)
• Alien Rally Asteriod (Combination of Insectoids and UFO themes)

Circuit 4

Note: Circuits four through six contain mirrored versions of the courses in circuits one through three.

Champion: Johnny Thunder (Adventurers)

• Desert Adventure Dragway (mirror)
• Magma Moon Marathon (mirror)
• Dark Forest Dash (mirror)
• Imperial Grand Prix (mirror)

Circuit 5

Champion: Baron von Barron (Adventurers)

• Amazon Adventure Alley (mirror)
• Ice Planet Pathway (mirror)
• Royal Knights Raceway (mirror)
• Tribal Island Trail (mirror)

Circuit 6

Champion: Gypsy Moth (Insectoids)

• Alien Rally Asteroid (mirror)
• Adventure Temple Trial (mirror)
• Pirate Skull Pass (mirror)
• Knightmare-Athon (mirror)

Circuit 7

Champion: Rocket Racer

• Rocket Racer Run

Racers

Featured cars

• Joan of Kart
• Turbo Charger
• Scooter
• Roboracer

Opponents

• Circuits 1 & 4
  • Captain Redbeard (circuit 1 only) (Pirates)
  • Johnny Thunder (circuit 4 only) (Adventurers)
  • Governor Broadside (it actually isn't Governor Broadside, only an Imperial Governor minifigure with his name) (Pirates)
  • Rob-N-Hood (Dark Forest)
  • Ann Droid (Exploriens)
  • Pharoah's Mummy (Egypt)

• Circuits 2 & 5
  • King Kahuka (circuit 2 only) (Islanders)
  • Baron von Barron (circuit 5 only) (Adventurers)
  • Islander (Islanders)
  • Royal King (Royal Knights)
  • Commander Cold (Ice Planet 2002)
  • Achu (Amazon)

• Circuits 3 & 6
  • Basil the Bat Lord (circuit 3 only) (Fright Knights)
  • Gypsy Moth (circuit 6 only) (Insectoids)
  • Willa the Witch (Fright Knights)
  • Blackjack Hawkins (Pirates)
  • Sam Sinister (Egypt)
  • Alpha Dragonis (UFO)

• Circuit 7
  • Rocket Racer (World Champion)
  • Black Knight (Black Knights)
  • Admiral (Pirates)
  • Gail Storm (Adventurers)
  • Nova Hunter (Exploriens)

• Time Trials
  • Veronica Voltage

Sequel

A sequel, titled Lego Racers 2, was released in 2001, developed by Attention to Detail, with Pocket Studios developing the Game Boy Advance version.

Gallery

• LEGO Racers - PSX-Box.jpg

  PlayStation Box

• LEGO Racers - PSX-Cover-Front.jpg

  PAL PlayStation Cover Art

• 

  Gameboy Color Box

• LR1 Green Disc.jpg

  PC 2001 Release Green Disc

• LR1 Purple Disc.jpg

  PC 2001 Release Purple Disc

• LR1 Silver Disc.jpg

  2001 Release Silver Disc

• 

  PlayStation NTSC Disc

• LEGO Racers - PSX-Disc.jpg

  PlayStation PAL Disc

Trivia

• Rocket Racer is the only Circuit Leader without any relationship with another. The Islanders are part of the Pirates theme so Kahuka and Redbeard met each other. Baron Von Baron is the arch-enemy of Johnny Thunder. Also, according to this video, the Insectoids invaded Castle Planet, which is where Basil's castle is. [1]
• Lego Racers is the first Lego game to be released on consoles worldwide.
  • Earlier Lego games were only on PC, or in the case of LEGO Fun to Build, exclusive to Japan
• Lego Racers was the only Lego game released for the Nintendo 64.
• For many years, Rocket Racer was the only boss character that didn't have a physical minifigure in any sets.
  • In 2018, a redesigned version of Rocket Racer was included in Minifigures series 18 named Race Car Guy, and a second redesign was included in 60298 Rocket Stunt Bike in 2021 which used his design from Lego Racers 2.
  • Some rumors back in the day suggested that a Rocket Racer car set was supposed to release in 2000, but there is no evidence this was ever planned.