Konami continues pumping out their "Disney Sports Network" series, and this time they've brought the stock standard of Disney characters into the (cough) exciting world of Motocross. You'll be able to select from Mickey, Minnie, Donald, Daisy, Goofy, and Big Bad Pete. But honestly, with all the characters in the Disney Universe, why not pick some more exciting characters? How about Uncle Scrooge with his top hat and cane? Or the Beagle Boys? Or Gyro Gearloose? Or for that matter, Emil Eagle? Now THAT would make for some exciting racing.

But that’s enough fantasizing about my dream Disney lineup. Disney Sports: Motocross may feel familiar to older Nintendo players, because it borrows heavily from Excitebike. You're able to turbo boost -- and if you do so just before a jump, you'll gain more height and speed. Your turbo boost gradually drains, but you can max it out by collecting turbo icons that are scattered along the courses. Should you happen to completely run out of turbo, your motorbike will sputter, and you'll trail behind at a snail's pace. You're also able to tilt your motorbike backwards or forwards accordingly while in the air to decrease your chances of bouncing or stacking, both of which cause you to lose speed.

Something else that is focused on heavily in Disney Motocross is tricks. Throughout the courses, large and small diamonds are scattered all over the place. Collect enough of these diamonds and you'll be able to perform a trick, which will earn you points and increase your speed. There are three levels of tricks for each character, and it's up to you whether you want to use your level 1 trick and get a smaller boost now, or wait until you've collected enough gems for a level 3 trick, which not only gives you a longer boost, but also causes all the other players to slow down -- great for causing players to plummet down a hole if you time it right. While you may think that it's best to just save your diamonds until you get a level 3 trick, it's not necessarily a good idea, as crashing will cause you to lose all the diamonds you presently have. And just like how Sonic can’t recover all of his lost rings, you won’t be able to recover all of your diamonds either.

Disney Motocross has plenty of varying modes for players to try out - aside from the "Challenge Cup", there are also tutorial, mini-game, time attack, score attack and multiplayer modes. There are seven different tracks, one representing each character plus the "Disney Sports Network Stadium", the practice course. Each of the courses is laid with its own tricks, traps, and holes, and you'll have to know each one of them thoroughly before you'll be able to pass them properly. If you perform well in most races, you'll earn an item that will enhance certain statistics, so strategy can be tied in as well. You can also copy earned items over to a friend's game via the Link Cable.

The graphics are colorful and clear -- each of the Disney characters are easy to distinguish from each other and well animated. The special attacks also add a bit of eye-candy, but nothing to distract your focus from racing. Tracks are detailed, and for most levels, bright enough to be played without the aid of a light. The menus are also very easy to use, and it doesn't take much fuss to get started.

The sound effects for Disney Motocross are fairly standard. Motors rev (or sputter), rockets whoosh, hearts sparkle (don't ask), and all the sounds do their jobs well. The music is varied; there's a different song for each track, and the menu music, although short, is catchy too. Most of the music seems to loop a bit too quickly, especially once you've heard it a few times. One great thing about the sound is that it hasn't suffered from the horrible scratchy down-sampling that seems to affect even Nintendo's own games. It's all crisp and clear.

Overall, if you're a fan of Excitebike and Disney, then this might just be your thing, but even looking past the license, Disney Sports Motocross is still a decent game. It won't win any awards for ingenuity, but it certainly won't cheat you out of your money either.