Tails Noir: Rebel Rush Review - Car Parkour Or Leave The Car Parked?

Tails Noir: Rebel Rush? Isn't that a spin-off of Backbone - no, Zipp's Cafe - no, Tails Noir? On the contrary, it's in the same universe as the original Backbone (changed its name to Tails Noir, but the only similarity with Zipp is the species). I'll tell you what else it isn't: a driving game.

Look at the screenshots or moving images, and it's not unreasonable to assume this must be a racing game. The characters drive cars, drift on road-based surfaces, and sport a steering wheel (an assumption). The characters are also anthropomorphic animals, drive on the sides of buildings, and defy gravity.

Tails Noir: Rebel Rush is, in fact, a parkour game, it just so happens that you're using a car as your mode of transport rather than a pair of beat-up New Balances. It's also quite a niche with its 'hip' dialogue, unusual mechanics and a decent soundtrack.

Tails Noir: Rebel Rush Review

Conversations in the game feel like an in-joke: like eavesdropping on a bunch of beatniks, crossword mixology with Anthony Burgess, then developing imposter syndrome due to your understanding of your mother tongue. I didn't get it. All references to the earlier game and world-building were out the window, and I wondered whether this visual novel wasn't for me.

But it's not a visual novel; that's just the dialogue between racers during one of the 20 or so levels. The meat and potatoes of Tales Noir: Rebel Rush is the precision platforming. Yes, we've seen off-the-wall interpretations with What The Car?, yet Soup with Friends and Eggnut's take on parkour and platforming with a car is also... unique.

Unique is a good word if it's not a gimmick and you want to keep playing. Tales Noir: Rebel Rush isn't a gimmick, but will you want to keep playing? The principles are as follows: Reach the finish line as swiftly as possible and unlock various goodies, but will you be able to grasp the mechanics?

Floater Or Sinker?

Driving is relatively easy, and you've driven a car before. We can rule out the narrative elements unless you're switched on, unlike me, so the focus is timing and positioning. Timing is knowing when to jump and using boosts; positioning ensures the car faces the right way for landing. Otherwise, you'll be repeating it.

From the outset, Tails Noir: Rebel Rush clarifies that there will be plenty of jumping as you're introduced to ramps in the tutorial and tasked with pressing the jump button at the right time. Then, various animals will cling to the roof - Death Proof style - and when airborne, you kick them off and get another jump, boost and whatnot.

The problem with the airborne stuff is how floaty it all feels. After all, you're driving a car, so there will be some give and take for the physics. However, the number of times I missed a road, clipped a stationary police car (after giving them the finger), or landed facing the wrong way to miss out on another star was painful. Still, there's that competitive element of wanting to do well and giving it another go.

Quit If You're Ahead

Taking intermittent breaks each time I'd have to bail and restart a stage or not having enough to progress to the next stage took a toll, and the game was sidelined on and off. Jumping back in (no pun intended), my saved game had disappeared and had to start again, collecting hearts to unlock new cars besides the Initial D look-a-like and unlocking the tracks again.

Really? However, from previous experience, it wasn't hard to jump straight back in. Tails Noir: Rebel Rush is a relatively short game, as reflected in its fair price. It didn't take long to accumulate the finesse to do well in stages and even better than before.

Tails Noir: Rebel Rush Review Summary

It'll boil down to whether you 'get' the mechanics. If you can handle those, then there's a fair amount of replay value as there's a lot invested in finding hidden items and shortcuts to improve on time. Though I enjoy driving games, this didn't resonate as much with me, and I prefer Tails Noir. Then again, I'm a point and click simp.