Anki Drive Starter Kit comes with two cars, chargers, a starter track, and the basics you need to race against Anki Drive AI with an ios or android controller.
Anki Drive is basically old school track cars, meets video game, meets AI, controlled with your phone, and it’s all very smooth and intuitive. As cool the Anki starter kit is, the full experience of racing with friends versus the AI requires more cars. Unless you have friends with Anki cars you should prepare to pick up at another car or two for a complete experience.
What is Anki Drive?
Anki Drive takes “track cars” (or whatever we used to call those little cars that went around on a track) to a whole other level, and by whole other level we mean you can literally level up and fire virtual weapons at the other cars.
How Anki Drive Works
Essentially your ios or android device works as a HUD handling all the video game aspects and controls of the cars. The Anki cars are little robotic cars with AI capabilities, your track has little pieces of code underneath letting the cars track where they are at, and everything else is handled through the app.
Storability
Not only does the track roll up and store easily (no more permanently sacrificing the ping-pong table or the entire room to your track cars).
First Impressions
Upon opening up the Anki Drive Starter Kit you are greeted with a few simple parts. The name of the game is charge up the cars while you install the free Anki App. After a few load screens you get a tutorial that couldn’t be more straight forward. This whole thing is easy enough to get going and easy enough to learn. Everything works just how you assume, cars go on the track, that plastic over the charging dock does come off, and the first 15 minutes of play time simply involve following simple instructions.
It’s One Player Out of the Box
So the starter kit is a one player game with two cars. See the other car is the “enemy” AI. You can race versus a friend, but since both cars are balanced it’s little more than a novelty. You really need more cars and to spend some time “leveling up” before the game presents any sort of challenge or competition.
Leveling Up
As mentioned you can level up your car. Essentially the owner of a car (you take ownership through the app) can play missions and level up their car. They can then bring that car and profile to a friends house and race against their cars on their track. Of course, this requires friends who have Anki Drive.
Specs
- Toys and video games collide in a first-of-its-kind real-life robot battle- racing game.
- STARTER KIT includes two physical robot cars, BOSON and KOURAI, and the STARTER TRACK.
- Easy setup: Roll out the 8.5′ x 3.5′ STARTER TRACK on any floor or table, download the free app, and take control of your car. Rolls back up and stores just as easily.
- Use the free Anki DRIVE app to command and customize your cars with upgrades – make them faster on the track, boost firepower, and tons more.
- Battle up to three friends or self-controlled robot cars per race. Each player must have an iOS or Android device to take control of a car. (Specific devices listed below.)
