#Hot wheels unleashed unlock all cars series#

Coins are used to purchase new Hot Wheels. Gears are used to augment the cars you already own, by purchasing upgrades that improve a vehicle’s stats. Given the game’s approach to unlockables, anything less than a podium finish feels disheartening.ĭividends arrive in two forms. Even if you hit every boost pad and don’t flub the frequent jumps, frequent turbo use is the only way to beat the designated track time and earn the best rewards. But the campaign’s lap time challenges will have you trying to shave fractions of a second from your completion times. The competitions against other racers are pushovers at the game’s default difficulty setting. You’ll need as much turbo as you can get. However, the simplicity of the corner slide is entirely welcome, especially since it’s the fastest way to earn turbo. Sure, it’s lacking the granular approach of sim-style racers, feeling like Ridge Racer but without the worry of counter-steering. Drifting is initiated by a quick brake tap. Turboing from the start can be accomplished by holding the accelerator at just the right time during the countdown, like almost every kart racer released during the last two decades. But woefully, the latter two tend to commodify the nostalgia we have for those 1:64 scale, aluminum-zinc alloy hot rods.ĭrop into the game’s City Rumble mode, and you’ll quickly determine that Milestone did their racing game research. There’s even some recognition of Hot Wheels history and the thrill of opening a blind box. Like any respectable Hot Wheels adaptation, there’s a track editor which mimics the experience of setting up a circuitous track in your basement. Happily, Hot Wheels Unleashed’s racing is accessible, offering the kind of arcade-style racing where a podium finish is possible the first time you pick up a controller. (2017’s Gravel was their rather unremarkable exception, which focused on off-road competitions.) While Milestone can craft two-wheeled vehicular sims, their experience with creating pick-up-and-play racers is more limited.

Putting the property in the hands of Milestone, the Milan-based studio behind recent entries in the Ride and MotoGP franchises was an intriguing decision. Efforts at honoring the toy line’s 53-year legacy have been uneven as well. Most titles neglected to emulate the excitement of unboxing a mail-In Mystery Car or opening up a Mystery Model. But often, the licensed games have focused predominantly on the racing, with players careering down those iconic, orange-colored tracks and through the occasional loop. Sure, there have been a multitude of attempts to bring Mattel’s die-cast cars into game form. Price: $49.99 via physical media and digital distributionĪvailability: Steam, PlayStation Store, Microsoft StoreĪlthough Forza Horizon 3’s DLC was admirable, the Hot Wheels brand hasn’t enjoyed a truly faithful interactive crossover.

#Hot wheels unleashed unlock all cars series#

Platform: PC, PlayStation 4/5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, and Switch