On anything but its easiest mode, opposing AI cars are simply far too good to finish anything above middle of the pack…a problem as a top 3 placement required to advance in the game’s linear branch system.
Which is the saddest of ironic statements for a game based on a beloved toy line. It pains to me type this: Hot Wheels Unleashed just isn’t much fun to play. Then the cherry on top: as there insufficient track guides and some really head scratching paths, expect a lot of respawn and/or race restarts. With these foibles, racing devolves into bashing into other cars sans consequence of any kind, mixed in with some needed turbo button presses and pseudo-drifting around turns to occasionally pass AI. Then there’s little/no DualSense vibration to create immersion/car feel, nor damage potential. Drifting works fairly well, but then gets bogged by the often-peculiar level design. Collisions most certainly do not feel/sound like toy cars, as cars boringly clunk when hitting each other and walls. Finally the ho-hum techno/rock music and generic engine and tire noises throughout.Ĭar physics are very mediocre, and – despite four different categories for each car – these seemingly fun and fast toys handle as if stuck in kinetic sand. The gorgeous visuals and crazy fast gameplay of Hot Wheels Unleashed trailers were likewise noticeably lesser quality on the released game. Car models appear last gen…even on the PS5 and a 4K TV. Sure, the Hot Wheels cars are there…but they look lifeless, flat and bland against uninspired race textures and often questionable track design. Now, I completely understand that trailers rarely perfectly tell the story…but this was a completely different tale in execution. Then there the fantastic lighting, dramatic jumps, and diverse race settings which combined to even further fuel the giddiness. Specifically, attention to detail on famous Hot Wheels cars was stellar, likewise the game’s ambitious tracks replicating legitimate Hot Wheels racing sets. The oodles of mesmerizing trailers leading up to launch only increased enthusiasm for Hot Wheels Unleashed. Now with a 4-year-old little dude, it’s a ridiculously guilty pleasure to relive this joy with him. Like many of my age group, I grew up a huge fan of both Matchbox and Hot Wheels, spending hundreds of hours pretend racing them all throughout the house. As a dude in his mid-40s, if there was one 2021 game I was truly looking forward to on the PS5, it was Hot Wheels Unleashed.
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