If there is one thing you can't quite accuse Koei of recently, it's not at least attempting to branch out. Titles like Prey the Stars and Saihai No Yukue may have roots in other games, but they are new directions for the company. Monster Racers for the DS is very much the same -- it's clearly attempting to capitalize on the success of Pokémon, but hey, it's not Dynasty Warriors.

Koei has been making Monster Racers a huge part of its TGS presence, going as far as to unveil that ridiculous red dragon (photographed above by ParaParaKing.) The dragon was hilarious. It randomly came into the Koei press conference, proud as anything, but then started squeaking as it walked, and it couldn't see so someone had to lead it by its hand, and then it knocked into a chair.

The dragon entered with such pride, and left with no dignity.

Does Monster Racers have the same kind of grace as our shamed presser gatecrasher? Hit the jump to find out.

This video has moved! Try our new Destructoid HD video section

The aim of the game is to become the world's greatest Pokémon trainer Monster racer, capturing new Monsters, and defeating gym leaders the "Star Seven" to win badges trophies.

Yes, this game is a shameless Pokémon clone at heart, but it hopes to differentiate by cutting out the battle part entirely and focusing instead on a more interactive 2D racing element. They function the same as battles in other Poké-like games -- you capture wild monsters by winning them, you level up your various creatures, and you race against rivals throughout the world.

Koei had three race courses available for play and I had several goes on all three, mainly because I kept coming in third and I am NOT HAVING THAT! I stopped once I kept coming in first. Being good at videogames validates me. 

So, unlike Pokémon, the races are real-time and interactive, and take the form of platformer racing. As one of four monsters, your goal is simply to run from left to right until you get to the end of the course, making sure to avoid traps, pitfalls and fellow racers. If you've ever played Popeye: Rush for Spinach, then you have my sympathies, first and foremost. Secondly, you'll have an idea of how this plays. Only it's not that rubbish.

Dotted along the course are various power-ups which help give you an edge. These can give you special attacks such as fireballs, icicles and even meteors. Depending on the type of course, your monster may even be at an advantage or disadvantage, encouraging players to catch and use a variety of creatures. Each monster also has a "turbo" skill which, when filled, allows a further edge in the race. It could potentially enlarge your monster (phwoar) or make it invincible, among other benefits.

The racing is solid, but so far it has provided little of substance for my liking. The problem with platformer racing games is that they never seem to be as exciting as real racers, and are often pretty slow going. Monster Racers is the same, but there is potential for a lot more. The traps and pitfalls require one to memorize the course for a perfect run, while the rival racers are pretty competitive. If Koei perhaps enhances these elements then Monster Racers could be quite good. There should be greater focus on power-ups and fighting enemy creatures to make things a little more hectic than they are right now. 

The four monsters available in the demo -- Jupiter, Mars, Uranus and some blue thing that I wasn't given the name of -- essentially work the same way, save for their different turbo powers. The lizard-like Jupiter splits himself into three and surges ahead, while Uranus the white tiger rushes forward with the power to electrocute anyone it touches. They can each level up and improve their three main attributes -- HP, Speed and Power.

This is clearly a kids' game and it plays like one, but hopefully there is something deeper under the surface. I couldn't play the RPG parts of the game, but the races at least hold promise for something more. Maybe when courses get tougher and you catch better monsters, the game gets a lot more faster and action-packed, but the stuff I've seen is definitely best left to the children. If you've got a kid, be it through birth or theft, then I'd consider keeping track of this one for them. 

I will doubtless be reviewing this at some point in the future, so I'll find out if the game can become anything more later.