Wreckfest offers banger racing with real character, and it's helped by a car-list that's brilliantly offbeat (and fictional, it should be pointed out, though seeing as cars seem to be modelled directly from their real-world inspiration here's hoping that the licence-holders don't take note and rob Wreckfest of one of its strongest suits). That's underlined by some deliciously weighty handling - forward-wheel drive cars need some proper coaxing into corners, while the longer, louder rear-wheel drive cars take a more pendulous approach that needs some taming. This is a muscular, elbows-out brand of racing, met by a glorious feel. And even when you're in a pure multi-lap race, the truth is you're always wrecking and racing. A few little wrinkles aside, Wreckfest keeps things very simple - you're either racing or wrecking, placed into a pool of twisted metal in demolition derby events or into a stream of cascading chaos in races that take place across dusty makeshift tracks. The damage model here is exceptional, the soft body physics just a few notches down from the standard setting BeamNG.drive but benefitting from the fact they're placed in a very tangible, winningly traditional game. Though truthfully it's still about smashing the crap out of everything in sight.Īnd Wreckfest really has a lovely line in tearing cars apart. There's more to just finishing first - or being last car standing - with objectives and rivalries offering a little extra motivation in events. Unassuming it may be, but it's also absolutely wonderful, a knockabout racer that sticks to what Bugbear does best this is all about cars lunching one another in a variety of events that are tuned towards maximum carnage, and as ever there's a cathartic joy to be found in seeing fields of pre-loved machinery crumble at your fingertips. The end result, after all that time and toil, is a surprisingly modest affair a simple no-frills game that's more Destruction Derby than Flatout, evoking a different era for the racing genre with its no-nonsense approach. Availability: Out now on PC, PS4 and Xbox One.All the while the Flatout series that made the studio's name veered into disrepute (even if Kylotonn did restore a little pride with last year's outing), and Wreckfest itself has never really had it easy either, birthed from a failed Kickstarter and seeing several false starts across its four years in Early Access. Wreckfest, which has finally left Early Access, is only the talented Finnish developer's second game within the last decade - and the other, sadly, was Ridge Racer Unbounded, a brilliantly muscular racer that might have earned itself a place alongside close contemporaries such as Split/Second and Blur if it wasn't for the baggage that the Ridge Racer name weighed it down with. It has been, you sense, a bit of a rough ride for Bugbear Entertainment. They're small, noticeable problems that are a shame, but don't detract from the greatness on offer here. This review is from the PC version last year, and very much still applies to this week's console release - though be warned that load times are excruciatingly long on Xbox One and PS4, and even playing on an Xbox One X you're going to be falling well short of 60fps. We thought as much last year when it released on PC, and having spent a while with the console versions that opinion hasn't changed a bit - if anything, it's lovely to have Bugbear's brilliance back on console where it belongs. Wreckfest is, quite simply, the best Flatout game to date. The creators of Flatout channel a little of the classic Destruction Derby as this brilliantly destructive racer emerges from Early Access.
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