Jingle Bells, Batman Smells… like burning rubber! Two brand new micro-sized Batman Scalextric sets have slid down the chimney and along the Bat-Pole into SciFiTower’s very own Bat-Cave this month. Having suitably distracted the team on every lunch break from their usual diet of Space Invaders and Tron we took a look at both kits in a little more detail.
Using a more boy-wonder-sized friendly 1:64 scale (rather than the usual 1:32), these micro Scalextric kits both come with over 3.5m of track, two controllers and two cars. Making the most of these being more compact sets, the micro range is actually battery-powered. Fortunately, there’s no need for atomic batteries, just six AAs will do the job, which means no more faffing with external power adaptors and their extra cables trailing everywhere. It also makes the set-up and break down really quick and easy.
Riddle Me This…
The first set we took a look at was Batman vs The Riddler. The Batmobile looks great with more attention to detail than we would have expected. The second car, unsurprisingly, is Riddler inspired – bright green and covered in question marks. It also features a sleek profile that’s just cool enough to let you concede to let someone else be Batman.
The track has nine possible configurations detailed on the box, though there’s probably more if you’re feeling creative. The options boil down to either a simple loop or you can use the bridge pieces to make a cross-over/figure eight layout.
Being Riddler-themed, there had to be some sort of booby trap and the kit comes with a rather villainous lap counter system. You can use the mechanical dials to define how many laps you want to compete for but if you cross the finish line after your opponent, the trap will send your car flying through the air. It’s an entertaining gimmick, but a bit fiddly to set up and can be quite frustrating to try ans bypass it.
The small size of the cars means you need a little bit of extra momentum to be able to trip the lap counter. It certainly adds to the fun but we’d have liked to have a more dynamic track layout to compliment the chaos the trap causes.
Crown Prince of Crime…
The other set in this new release is Batman vs The Joker and boy will it make you smile. Unlike the Riddler set there’s no real dedicated gimmick with this track, but there is a loop-the-loop which perhaps provides more long-term playability and fun. The magnetic attraction the cars have to the track makes the inverted racing all the more entertaining and helps with keeping cars on track.
The track layouts are also more creative with different upstands allowing for crossovers and even a vertical horseshoe bend that is way more captivating than it should be.
As well as the Batmobile you also get a Joker-themed mean machine with a maniacal grin plastered across the front. One really nice touch is a DC heroes-themed centre piece to sit inside of the track. While it doesn’t perform any real function, it helps to tie the Batman theme into the set and we’re always here for things that look cool. While we’re not suggesting that people will buy both sets, it would have been cool to have a different batmobile design for each.
Although squarely aimed at the kids market with its compact size and easy construction, it’s still addictive enough for adults and is a great compliment to the 1:32 Batman set, meaning there’s a nice upgrade path for any budding boy wonders.
Micro Scalextric – Batman vs The Riddler, and Micro Scalextric: Batman vs The Joker are both out now. Buy yours here.
