There’s a brand new racing game to rave about and it turns out to be a Hot Wheels game. No seriously, if you had told me six months ago that a game based on toy cars would be a contender for one of the best games of the year I’d have probably looked at you side ways. However, the mad lads at Milestone managed to accomplish just that with their release of Hot Wheels Unleashed.

Hot Wheels Unleased is a 2021 racing game, it is developed and published by Milestone and is available on PC and console.

Editor’s Note: A Nintendo Switch review copy of Hot Wheels Unleashed was provided by Milestone in support of this review. 

Your childhood playroom comes to life in Hot Wheels Unleashed.

No matter how old you are currently I’m sure everyone has experienced the allure of having Hot Wheels in their toy collection at some point in lives. Originally released back in 1968 the Hot Wheels brand had not only hosted cars based on real life automotive brands but also our favorite non-car brands of our childhood. Including Batman, James Bond, and literally hundreds of thousands of others Hot Wheels in it’s 60 years of life has been unanimous with much of our lives. While the brand has dabbled in video games before a lot of which are ok, I don’t think many have come even remotely close to ‘Unleashed’ in quality and that says a lot when you consider how many there are (18 at current count).

Gravity takes center stage in Hot Wheels Unleashed.

THE GOOD: On the surface Hot Wheels Unleashed appears to be your average kids racing game, but it actually goes pretty deep. At least as far as the gameplay is concerned that is. When you start you unlock five cars for “free” through loot boxes that are later 100% paid off with in-game currency that’s earned through playing the game such as story and online modes. Each car you unlock have distinct advantages and disadvantages such as better speed, weaker braking, etc. Most cars also contain nos which gives you a huge lead in a race when used strategically. Some cars also have multiple nos boosters. Nos is filled through just racing or hitting a drift just right which gives a huge amount of it. There’s a bit of difficulty in car handling that takes time to master so expect to lose quite a lot until you get the hang of it. I’m honestly impressed Milestone didn’t pull any punches with the gameplay difficulty even if the game is mostly aimed at kids. People really underestimate the fact that even children appreciate a good challenge and the rewarding feeling that comes from conquering said challenge.

Speaking of difficulty Hot Wheels Unleased also has a gravity mechanic which can be a bit of nightmare. You have limited control of your vehicle while in effect. I found this very annoying more often than I should have especially while trying to get a hand on the basic gameplay. It could be distracting and off putting, but it feels rewarding as hell once you get used to it. It can also and will most likely be the end of your run starting out in the game. Race track designs are surprisingly detailed with the track literally looking like it was built in a kid’s basement. You gotta appreciate Milestone dedicating the designs for these tracks as if they came from the mind of what you’d expect out of your average and even hardcore Hot Wheels fan. It often seems they went above and beyond with these aesthetics without going too overboard or not going far enough.

Race with your childhood in Hot Wheels Unleashed.

For those of you wanting to get your creative juices flowing Hot Wheels Unleashed also has you covered on that end with the Basement mode as well as the track & livery editors. Basement mode is funnily enough what it sounds like. It’s mode where you’re in a basement and you can customize it. When I say customize I mean customize. You can customize anything from the bar, to the posters on your wall, to even your living room & kitchen it goes that deep. Which leads me to the in-game track editor, you can use this mode to create tracks that haunt your friends dreams. It allows you to twist, turn, and curve the track in nearly any way you see fit. If you want a basic track to call your own for you & friends to race on cool. If you want to potentially ruin said friendships by creating a track focusing on the gravity mechanic awesome. The creator is near limitless in it’s potential for track creations and major Hot Wheels fans are gonna love it. You can also customize your cars with different colors, materials for tires & seats, etc.

I mentioned earlier that there are loot boxes and their are, but again they’re 100% free through in-game currency. Milestone plans on releasing more licensed cars & tracks via DLC, which is fine. However, I think they should invest in more modes like maybe some kind arcade mode with power ups and weaponry? Imagine the amount of chaos to be had in such a mode.

Customize cars and tracks as you see fit.

THE BAD: Though Hot Wheels Unleashed is looking at downloadable content aimed at new cars and tracks to keep the game fresh the base game does leave a lot to be desired. As of this writing the only modes available are City Rumble (story mode), multiplayer, the basement where you create, and the shop as far as actually doing any thing goes.

While extremely fun Hot Wheels Unleashed is lacking in much to do.

OVERALL THOUGHTS: Hot Wheels Unleashed is oddly & unironically one of the best racers I’ve ever played. Some might even consider it a potential game of the year contender. Game modes are unfortunately limited and I think Milestone would be wise to release more in future updates by it through DLC or otherwise. However, if you like a racing game full if passion and love then Hit Wheels Unleashed is absolutely worth your time.