Review Hotshot Racing - Simple but stylish

Publisher:
Curve Digital

Developer:
Lucky Mountain Games

Release date: August 13, 2020

Platform: PS4, PC, Xbox One, Switch

Although the game's interface is minimalistic, because it is run at 60 FPS, the racing experience remains very stable most of the time. There are some situations where the FPS can drop quite a bit, such as when you play the Cops & Robbers circuit, the framerate drops to about 30 in handheld mode, but in general, in the main Grand Prix mode, everything runs very smoothly.

Speaking of Grand Prix, this is the game's money-making point and will be interesting enough to keep you going even if it's not revolutionary in any way. There are a total of 16 races divided into four cups and you can do them in Normal, Hard and Professional levels (12 trophies in total). Like any other racing game, you get points depending on your position and the winner is the driver with the most points after four races. 

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The track is where you show your 'steering' ability when you have to simultaneously observe and handle the situation quickly, and at the same time, you can also Drift by pressing the brake and pulling the gear to fill up. your boost bar. This seems like a feature to pay tribute to the legendary Ridge Racer series.

Hotshot Racing can boast of having a handling mechanism that surpasses that of ordinary arcade games. Cars give a realistic sense of the car's weight, but they're still nimble and sharp enough to follow your navigation instantly as you plunge into deep turns. Enabling drift isn't too much of a problem with a quick brake pedal, and it's very easy to add or decrease slip angle throughout a slide to balance your speed for the perfect exit angle. Boost is a powerful way to keep up with your opponents and allow you to take turns with force.

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On the other hand, the game seems quite difficult for you to be the leader and win. Even if you've stocked up on four boosts and activated them all in a row, your opponent will soon be swarming behind you, gliding softly, and ahead of you again. . In fact, many other racing games also use this mechanism, including Mario Kart, so players will not be too surprised, although it does mean that races to win the Expert Cup will increase blood pressure. Your pressure is suddenly high!

Of course, to attract players, simply arcade racing is not enough, Hotshot Racing has invested more in its character list. Instead of just picking your favorite car, you can also choose from one of eight characters, each with four different cars with their own stats. Race bonuses can be spent customizing these cars in Raceshop mode, which allows you to tweak anything from your car's design and paint color to the bumpers, exhausts, spoilers and more. even the top undulating on the dashboard in the cockpit.

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Each character also has their own distinct personality, from American athlete Alexa (who entered the race simply because she didn't want to be a mechanic like his old man), to Jamaican athlete Marcus . Each character has their own unique way of ending when you win the Grand Prix, which is quite an interesting point for the game to encourage you to play with different racers. However, the sound they play when racing can be quite annoying because it is often quite stereotypical and repetitive statements and this is where the game needs to improve.

Apart from the Grand Prix mode, everything is as expected. You can do single races: they include two different race types called Cops & Robbers and Drive Or Explode, neither of which stand out in particular. You can also play Time Trials as it allows split-screen multiplayer or wirelessly for up to 4 players, and theoretically this could even allow up to 8 players to play at the same time. a time. Saying 'theoretically' because honestly, not many people will actually spend time playing a low-profile racing game like this, when they can play multiplayer in high-end titles. higher level like Asphalt 9 or Need for Speed.

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If Hotshot Racing's interface appeals to you and you can appreciate the aesthetic minimalism of the in-game graphic design, it's a game that excels at delivering a racing-style experience. classic. Hotshot Racing is a great racing title that really perfects its driving mechanics and offers an exhilarating experience that will appeal to newcomers as well as seasoned ones.

Kareem Winters

Update 05 January 2022