Hot Wheels is one of the most recognized and renowned toy brands in the world, giving Hot Wheels Unleashed a legacy that is deceptively hard to live up to. A Milestone Hot Wheels game has even higher expectations, as the studio operates almost exclusively as a racing team.
We're a few months away from the launch of Hot Wheels Unleashed, but after about a week with certain modes in the game, I have a feeling that Hot Wheels fans old and new will find something to enjoy with Unleashed, even if it just lacks a bit of the childlike imagination that toys inspire in fans around the world.
At first, I was worried that Hot Wheels Unleashed was too grown up for ownership. Milestone makes great sim racing games, but historically Hot Wheels games have always rightly been closer to go-kart racers.
I have to admit, the awesome visuals are what first put me off. These games have never looked better than this, not even in the context of their own release eras. It makes it look like it must have the biggest budget of any Hot Wheels game to date.
So far it seems like money well spent. I was able to play Quick Race during my time with the game, choosing from nearly 30 original Hot Wheels or "fantasy" cars.
Fans nostalgic or still passionate about the flame will recognize many all-time greats and new favorites, such as Twin Mill, Rip Rod, Roller Toaster and Exotic. Like most Hot Wheels games, Unleashed doesn't seem set to feature licensed cars. Rather, it's a tour of Mattel's in-house creations.
Each car has its own stats that are clearly visible when choosing which to use, making it more like other kart racers and giving younger or inexperienced players a quick guide to deciding on their future favourites. The game even divides these cars into tiers, including Common, Rare, Legendary, and Super Treasure Hunt vehicles.
This last group is based on real life and normally the ones collectors are looking for, although I can't access them in the preview. I'm told that players can also upgrade their cars in the full game, both for fashion and function.
The cars are also faithfully recreated. In the selection screen, close-up models reveal an uncanny attention to detail. Plastic windows reflect as they should. Each paint job is remarkably realistic. I had a good time inspecting each toy car, comparing them to the 600+ my son has in his room. In the end, every major and minor detail is present in Unleashed and it's a pleasure to watch.
These keys are nice for fans, however, they mean nothing if the race itself is poor. But again, it's Milestone. The team seems set to deliver a racing model that's easy for younger players and still has a skill cap (and an option for brutally difficult AI) for more experienced racers.
The medium difficulty AI was already giving me a hard time, although I was warned that the difficulty wasn't properly balanced yet, so I'm expecting that to be fixed by launch.
The tracks themselves are perhaps the most exciting part. Divided into difficulty levels, even the easy tracks exude the love of high-speed hijinx fans with things like boost pads and turbo meters that always push the speedometer to its limit. The best tracks are in the higher tiers, where fantasy elements like spiders shooting webs at players and looping bits of track almost perfectly capture the spirit of Hot Wheels.
Where that element is lacking, however, is in its atmosphere.
Although the tracks are necessarily built much wider than their real life counterparts, they are still mapped to worlds much larger than the cars, in an effort to capture the scale of the toys. But those college dorms and skate parks seem rather lifeless as outskirt decor. Meanwhile, the soundtrack doesn't help either, as sterile, pre-recorded rock music plays as you spin around each track.
Hot Wheels has done well to constantly reinvent itself in the real world with new lines of toys like Hot Wheels AI, tons of licensed crossovers like Rocket League, always walking a tightrope between modernity and timelessness. Thus, I find myself taken aback by the musical selection of Unleashed, which seems torn from the commercials I saw as a child 20 years ago. Adding more "life" to the world beyond the tracks themselves would go a long way to staying true to Hot Wheels.
In the full game, players will be able to take on a career mode featuring boss races, play local or online multiplayer for up to 12 racers, and best of all, play with a track editor to create their own custom races. Nothing in the game really matters more than that, given the brand. Right now I have high hopes for this arcade racer, but I need to get my hands on this part to give my final verdict on the game.
Hot Wheels Unleashed will debut on Xbox, PlayStation, PC, and Switch on September 30.
