Hot Wheels Unleashed came onto the racing scene out of nowhere and established itself as one of the best arcade racers around. The tracks and cars present in this game are truly one-of-a-kind, and make for a wildly enjoyable experience as players race other model cars in basements, skyscrapers, and college campuses. These mundane settings that take on a whole new form when viewed from the perspective of a miniaturized car.
However, not everything about Hot Wheels Unleashed is perfect. There are some issues bogging the experience down, but most people won't mind bearing through these problems to enjoy a quality arcade racer that will keep them occupied for hours on end.
10 Love: The Feeling Of Speed Is Unmatched
The first thing that people will notice in Hot Wheels is just how impactful speed feels in the game. The player's car goes from a stationary toy to a speed demon in the blink of an eye.
With Motion Blur toggled on, the feeling of speed is truly exhilarating. Players will have an amazing time blasting through the tracks and trying to complete the various challenges present in the game.
9 Don't Love: The Checkpoint System Is A Bit Frustrating
Checkpoints are placed all over the tracks in Hot Wheels. It's a simple and effective way to ensure that players are on track all the time, but this system can be quite irritating at times.
This is especially true during open stretches of a level, where players might be caught off-guard and fail to trigger a checkpoint. This can lead to a rather frustrating situation where they are forced to respawn way back from where they were — an action that can potentially cost players the race.
8 Love: The AI Is Actually Competent
Unlike most other games, where the AI balance is all over the place, the AI of Hot Wheels is extremely challenging. Players who might not be all that familiar with racing games should try playing on Easy instead of Normal difficulty.
Normal difficulty is surprisingly challenging, and it'll take some work to secure the first position. Meanwhile, Hard and Extreme are on a whole another level, and only the most confident players around should try them out.
7 Don't Love: The Economy Is Completely Broken
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The economy of Hot Wheels is one of its most annoying aspects. Everything in the game costs a set number of coins, which can take a long while to procure in the game.
The fact that almost every cool thing in the game is locked behind a coin payment makes the early game extremely boring. Players who want to enjoy Hot Wheels Unleashed definitely need to power through its more uninteresting moments early on.
6 Love: Drifting And Boosting Feel Great
The act of racing in Hot Wheels Unleashed is incredibly satisfying, as it should be. The game is accessible enough that anyone can pick up a controller and play, but features a surprising amount of depth that will keep veterans occupied too.
The boost and drift mechanics are especially notable in this regard. Using both these elemets is crucial to winning races and completing time trials. Mastering them makes players feel unstoppable as they blast their way through the game's tracks.
5 Don't Love: Only Campaign Mode Gives Rewards
Players who want to unlock items and upgrade cars as soon as possible will be saddened to find out that the game doesn't reward any activity that takes place outside the main campaign. It's easily one of the worst design decisions in the game.
Basically, players who want to play with a friend or try out user tracks will have to accept the fact that their efforts will bear no fruit. It's a frustrating decision that could've been fixed easily, and leads to some disappointment from players.
4 Love: The Game Is Absolutely Gorgeous
Given how Hot Wheels Unleashed is based on toy cars, the game could have easily skimped out on the graphics and nobody would have minded it all that much. However, to Milestone's credit, they've ensured that the graphics are one of the best parts of Hot Wheels Unleashed.
Everything from the plastic models of the cars to the environment is jam-packed with excellent texture work and attention to detail. Players might find themselves distracted as they lay their eyes on the stunning graphical effects taking place in front of them.
3 Don't Love: Interesting Tracks Remain Locked For Awhile
The starting tracks of Hot Wheels Unleashed are pretty interesting in their own right, but don't up the ante too much in terms of variety. As a result, most of the races start feeling rather same-y and repetitive.
This is a shame, since Hot Wheels Unleashed definitely has a bunch of interesting tracks. However, they're all locked until the player either coughs up the coins required to unlock them, or just powers through the campaign to gain access to these tracks.
2 Love: The Variety Of Vehicles
Hot Wheels Unleashed is a love letter to the history of Hot Wheels. Each and every car present in this game has a rich history to it, and buffs of Hot Wheels will find themselves recognizing some of the more iconic toys in the game.
From joke cars to licensed vehicles, Hot Wheels sports a ton of variety when it comes to the cars that can be chosen in the game. This variety allows players to experiment around with different cars and get used to their boosting and drifting mechanics.
1 Don't Love: Some Cars Are Useless
While the variety of cars in Hot Wheels Unleashed is definitely impressive, that doesn't mean all these cars are equally useful. Some of the bulkier and gimmicky cars in the game serve no purpose other than to seem quirky.
In a race, these vehicles will be easily destroyed by the opposition, especially on Normal and higher difficulties. Players should always prioritize speed and take cars that are a jack-of-all-trades instead of the slow vehicles that can be chosen as well.