Hot Wheels Unleashed

 PlayStation 5
User Score
7.3

Mixed or average reviews- based on 74 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 48 out of 74
  2. Mixed: 12 out of 74
  3. Negative: 14 out of 74
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  1. wiiroy
    Oct 3, 2021
    10
    This game is so much fun. It's the best arcade racer in the world at this time IMO. The game is like a spiritual successor to F-ZERO with it's speed, track designs and boost mechanics, but it has a physics-based engine that's unique and fresh. You can flip your car, or fly off the track. and this opens up huge depth for cutting shortcuts. The track designs are some of the best - possiblyThis game is so much fun. It's the best arcade racer in the world at this time IMO. The game is like a spiritual successor to F-ZERO with it's speed, track designs and boost mechanics, but it has a physics-based engine that's unique and fresh. You can flip your car, or fly off the track. and this opens up huge depth for cutting shortcuts. The track designs are some of the best - possibly the very best - track design I've played. The drift mechanics feel excellent and have a lot of depth. The AI is very engaging and fair (and not too difficult, as one other user has written). The music is great. And the cars... oh the cars, they are just awesome. It's so fun to collect and customise all the Hot Wheels. Oh and the graphics... my goodness the graphics are just delectable.

    It's a real shame that some idiots have rated this game zero and dragged the user score down for no good reason, because the game is absolutely amazing and no one should hesitate to pick it up.    … Expand
  2. Qofniak
    Oct 2, 2021
    10
    Lovely game for everyone. A bit too difficult but after adjusting difficulty it is fun
  3. Demeter_Kornel
    Oct 17, 2021
    10
    This is the real arcade racing game. Beautiful graphics, amazing vibe, awesome physics. I love it!
  4. StepHD
    Sep 30, 2021
    10
    Beautiful and fun game, the Hotwheels brand was given to the right people, I really can't imagine a Hotwheels game beign better than this, huge props to Milestone
  5. MinePlay512
    Sep 29, 2021
    10
    Hot Wheels Unleashed is a masterpiece. It's a amazing arcade racing game that has a lot of customization options and awesome gameplay. Milestone had once again made another masterpiece.
  6. Mog_3825
    Sep 29, 2021
    10
    Visuals are stunning, already expected since it was played on a PS5. 10/10. No bugs, plays flawlessly. Devs achieved exactly what they aimed for
  7. Cmgenius
    Sep 30, 2021
    10
    This game is a spectacular example of how to create an arcade racer. Mechanics are smooth but can be challenging. Addictive and fun to play I will be putting many hours into this game. Cars are customizable and the degree of detail is astounding. Thought has been put into every crevice of this game....
  8. spiton675
    Nov 3, 2022
    10
    Hot Wheels is an awesome race game. Very fun and not at all boring. People complaining about difficulty are just too lazy to acctually learn how to play the game.
    Buy it and you'll have at least 60 hours of fun. Level design is incredible.
  9. Solid_Gamer
    Jan 27, 2022
    10
    Such an awesome game it is really recommended for all types of gamers and even not gamers
  10. Kchewz
    Nov 19, 2021
    9
    Context: I played Hot Wheels Unleashed on a Playstation 5. I have experience playing arcade racers games such as Mario Kart 8, Trackmania Turbo, Pac-Man World Rally and Little Big Planet Karting. I have also played Hot Wheels Ultimate Racing for the Playstation Portable (PSP) and have watched the TV show Hot Wheels: AcceleRacers as kid so this review is tainted with nostalgia. To see theContext: I played Hot Wheels Unleashed on a Playstation 5. I have experience playing arcade racers games such as Mario Kart 8, Trackmania Turbo, Pac-Man World Rally and Little Big Planet Karting. I have also played Hot Wheels Ultimate Racing for the Playstation Portable (PSP) and have watched the TV show Hot Wheels: AcceleRacers as kid so this review is tainted with nostalgia. To see the credits roll, it took me roughly 80 hours to platinum the game (100%).

    Hot Wheels Unleashed is the pinnacle of the Hot Wheels universe. Hot Wheels Unleashed offers a plethora of vehicles, cars, vans, trucks, buses and everything in-between including a rubber duck, all of which can be visually customized to your liking. Milestone's choice of presenting the cars and world at toy scale delivers the proper atmosphere, with circuits artistically braided through richly detailed, life-sized surroundings and filled with vehicles jumping out of a dinosaur's mouth. The collection tends toward newer models or new adaptations of older models however, there is no shortage of classics. You might have guessed it, I mainly used the RD-02 and Deora cars from Acceleracers to relive my childhood.

    The single player experience, known as Rumble City, is the main offering of Hot Wheels Unleashed. Rumble City is populated with Races, varying from 1vs1 to Boss Events, where tracks includes additional obstacles, and Time Trials, aiming to achieve a certain lap time where it's only you and your car on the track. These events reward you with (1) coins to buy loot boxes to unlock new vehicles, (2) gears to upgrade your vehicles, (3) basement and/or profile customizations to showcase your style and (4) legendary vehicles that cannot be unlocked from loot boxes. There really is a lot to unlock in Hot Wheels Unleashed. I had only a third of the available vehicles by the time I completed Rumble City but that could be thanks to my luck with loot boxes.

    This is the major flaw with Hot Wheels Unleashed. The content is there and it is replayable however, the grind necessary to get the currency needed to buy loot boxes, which only have a chance of containing the vehicle you want, is ridiculous. Excluding the rewards given from Rumble City events, as you can only collect those once, you earn at most 50 coins per race, that is finishing first place in a 12 player race, and you need 500 coins to buy a loot box. With over 100 vehicles, the odds are not in your favour. Individual vehicles can only be purchased from a selection of five random models that rotates every four hours of play. That is in-game time, not real life time. On top of unlocking vehicles, the only way to upgrade vehicles is by using gears which can only be obtained from dismantling your collection. The rarity of the vehicle you want to upgrade, determines how many gears said upgrade requires but, once again, you get little to no gears or coins, from dismantling vehicles in your collection.

    Jumping back to what Hot Wheels Unleashed excels at, Milestone's ability to make the cars look so real is a big part of what makes playing Hot Wheels Unleashed so much fun. Hot Wheels Unleashed vehicles have excellent handling. The brake-to-drift mechanic, found in almost every arcade racer, is basic and simple to pick up, but the air controls have some nuance. Boost accumulates quickly, yet the greater your car's core stats are, the less boost you'll have available. Hot Wheels Unleashed comes with 40 tracks out of the box but the game offers an involved custom track builder that allows you to create and share your own tracks. Let your imagination roam free. Tracks can be shortened, lengthened, slanted, twisted, curved, flipped, different terraforms or boost pads, the world is your oyster.

    In the end, Hot Wheels Unleashed is an unexpected and amazing arcade racer that is fun, fast, and even photorealistic. This miniature racer exceeds all expectations with incredible attention to detail, outstanding circuit design, and an approachable handling style that nonetheless rewards high talent. For a completionist, this game is a grind and will take a lot of patience. Luckily, the recently added Battle Pass offers players with a lot of coins and gears as rewards for completing challenges, thus reducing the grind. For a casual player looking for an arcade racer, I actually would not recommend this game. I believe Hot Wheels Unleashed caters to a niche audience and the casual audience is looking more for a Mario Kart, a Sonic Racing or a ModNation Racers, an itch that Hot Wheels Unleashed cannot scratch. Hot Wheels Unleash is easy to play and hard to master, and while some tracks offer obstacles, it does not compare with the constant sense of action that arcade racers with items offer.    … Expand
  11. JeepDaddyMac46
    Jul 22, 2022
    9
    If you want an incredibly fun arcade racer, look no further. Debated this vs the FH Hot Wheels expansion and caught this on sale with the 1st 2 DLC passes for less than $30, awesome choice! The FH Hot Wheels expansion looks much like the expansion on FH3, which I already have and enjoy. Hot Wheels Unleashed is different and fun. Hard to explain how much fun it is without trying it.If you want an incredibly fun arcade racer, look no further. Debated this vs the FH Hot Wheels expansion and caught this on sale with the 1st 2 DLC passes for less than $30, awesome choice! The FH Hot Wheels expansion looks much like the expansion on FH3, which I already have and enjoy. Hot Wheels Unleashed is different and fun. Hard to explain how much fun it is without trying it. They made excellent use of simple concepts.… Expand
  12. OnlyOneHere
    Oct 1, 2021
    9
    This game is very fun to play. The driving mechanics are great for an arcade racer. The tracks are well thought out. There are only 60 cars to choose on launch, despite there being a trophy to open 100 car boxes. Nonetheless, the car selection is neat and some of them are hilarious. There are Hot Wheels original vehicles, licensed vehicles, and even iconic pop culture cars such as K.I.T.T.This game is very fun to play. The driving mechanics are great for an arcade racer. The tracks are well thought out. There are only 60 cars to choose on launch, despite there being a trophy to open 100 car boxes. Nonetheless, the car selection is neat and some of them are hilarious. There are Hot Wheels original vehicles, licensed vehicles, and even iconic pop culture cars such as K.I.T.T. from Knight Rider and Back to the Future DeLorean.

    The visuals are stunning. The attention to detail on the cars are jaw-dropping. I can't think of single detail missing in this game that you would expect on Hot Wheels diecast cars. The cars even have the "Made in" text on the bottom of the car. The customization options in this game are great. You can change the color of cars and the wheels. While you can change the color of the rims, it is disappointing that you can't change the rim design. You can customize your own livery on cars with so many cool layers. The track builder in this game is biblical. It is so complex and advanced. This gives the game tons of replay value.

    The online multiplayer is fun and you can have up to 12 players in a race. There is even offline split screen multiplayer. It is incredibly rare for a game to include singleplayer, multiplayer, and offline split screen all in one package. And the developers are only asking $50 for this game that is rich in content and quality. That is $10 or $20 cheaper than what your average AAA game would normally cost. I definitely recommend this game.    … Expand
  13. Joshibaby
    Feb 14, 2022
    9
    Let me start by saying buy this game if you love to have fun
    For years i haven't found a single racing game that was just for fun fortuntley i found it I have it on PS5 the amount of detail is insane when it comes to the tracks and the crash mechanism is very realistic I haven't heard about Milestone games before bit i would totally look into future games they are very good at what they do    Let me start by saying buy this game if you love to have fun
    For years i haven't found a single racing game that was just for fun fortuntley i found it I have it on PS5 the amount of detail is insane when it comes to the tracks and the crash mechanism is very realistic I haven't heard about Milestone games before bit i would totally look into future games they are very good at what they do Hope you enjoyed thiscreview    … Expand
  14. midas77
    Oct 1, 2021
    9
    Great arcade racer! Fun for all ages and not too difficult for the kids. Please ignore 'Otherside' down below, clearly a troll or just really, really bad at games!
  15. MrDeven
    Sep 29, 2021
    9
    This game is super-fun!! I was honestly a little worried going in that it would just be another boring modern racing game that focuses on realism over actual enjoyment, but Milestone miraculously managed to avert that by making one of the most vibrant and exciting games in its class. The cars are diverse, the physics are dope and the tracks are genuinely inspired. HIGHLY recommendedThis game is super-fun!! I was honestly a little worried going in that it would just be another boring modern racing game that focuses on realism over actual enjoyment, but Milestone miraculously managed to avert that by making one of the most vibrant and exciting games in its class. The cars are diverse, the physics are dope and the tracks are genuinely inspired. HIGHLY recommended whether you’re into the racing genre or not.… Expand
  16. MatisseThybulle
    Oct 5, 2021
    9
    Quite a fun arcade racer, very action packed and the twists and turns of the track will keep you on your toes throughout. The game can be pretty challgeng, but that just provides some great incentive to master the drifting and boosting mechanics to take on random strangers online. Only drawback is the fact that there are only a few themes, and that the only new content that will be addedQuite a fun arcade racer, very action packed and the twists and turns of the track will keep you on your toes throughout. The game can be pretty challgeng, but that just provides some great incentive to master the drifting and boosting mechanics to take on random strangers online. Only drawback is the fact that there are only a few themes, and that the only new content that will be added to the game is through 30 dollar expansions, which is quite steep for a 50 dollar base game. Would've appreciated some free content additions throughout the life of the game, but as it stands, this a great, refreshing arcade racer, that is everything 8 year old me watching Acceleracers could have ever dreamed of. Definitely check this one out if you're a fan of Hot Wheels, or just arcade racers!… Expand
  17. MechGundam13
    Mar 7, 2023
    9
    If you are into arcade Racer this is a must have for you.
    Graphics and Handling is nearly perfect, good selection of cars and tracks.
    There is also a track editor which is very in-depth. There is also a Split Screen play option, which is rare these days. So why isn't it a 10/10? The difficulty on the standard settings is to easy, if you bump up the difficulty it becomes very hard,    If you are into arcade Racer this is a must have for you.
    Graphics and Handling is nearly perfect, good selection of cars and tracks.
    There is also a track editor which is very in-depth.

    There is also a Split Screen play option, which is rare these days.

    So why isn't it a 10/10?
    The difficulty on the standard settings is to easy, if you bump up the difficulty it becomes very hard, sadly there is no middle ground.
    Also the soundtrack cycles through the same four songs every time, so they get annoying quickly.

    Overall it's a fun game with minor flaws.    … Expand
  18. xiaolinstyle
    Dec 21, 2022
    8
    Awesome presentation, pretty good arcade racing mechanics, a banger ass sound track, and a toy box full of cars makes the COMPLETE EDITION a heck of a fun title. Do NOT buy just the base game!
  19. SuperkenGaming
    Oct 2, 2021
    8
    Hot wheels unleashed
    great for the creative
    Hot wheels unleashed is an arcade racing game with an equal amount of good as bad… firs the good.. the amount of customization and attention to detail in this game is insane.. as you play youll earn coin and blind boxes, giving you random hot wheels cars all with their own stas and are upgradable with different rarities, and yes I did pull    Hot wheels unleashed
    great for the creative
    Hot wheels unleashed is an arcade racing game with an equal amount of good as bad… firs the good.. the amount of customization and attention to detail in this game is insane.. as you play youll earn coin and blind boxes, giving you random hot wheels cars all with their own stas and are upgradable with different rarities, and yes I did pull legendaries… you can also earn these cars in the story mode.. and each of these cars you can customize all th way down to the wheel.. really making this feel lik your toybox wich brings me to the track creator.. im not one to care about these type of things anymore.. but the early teen in me loves the fact you can build a track around your room like the good ole days, having sleepovers with your friends.. coming up with the most ridiculous jump and loops possible.. and yu can play these tracks locally as well as online, though I don’t see the option to download other created tracks which is a bummer, you can however download other players customized cars.. up to 100… when it comes to racing, hot wheels unleashed is best locally or online.. its fast and fun drifting around corners trying to outdo everyone around you.. its hwen you play solo that hot wheels unleashes problems start to show… theres an adventure mode here where youre going through races and time trials basically back and forth, clearing these hllenges to unlock new track bulding items, earn coins, and cars.. and imemdietly I relized, oh no.. theres rubber banding.. unfortuntaly there is no sweet spot difficulty to make racing through this game solo thrilling… easy is essentially free roam mode cause the AI cant keep up, and the rubber banding in medium and hard ruins races.. turning this basically into nothing but time trials essentially.. one wrong move and youre in last place.. that’s how bad the rubber banding is… might as well restart.. much like again.. a time trial.. when I sit down to race.. iwant to race.. don’t pretend theres added difficulty by making the ai slingshot to catch up with me… jst make the ai better the harder it gets.. so unfortunately playing solo turned this into a map cleaner more than anything else.. made worse by how uncreative the tracks are.. The game focused so heavily on detail they forgot to focus on zany fun… sure there are obstacles thrown in there like a spider that shoots a web,but no childlike imagination.. making forts out of pillows, throwing bouncy balls here and there, making me drive over a bowl of water.. a cat swiping at you while you drive around… an insanine incline down a flight of stairs to fly across the room… nothing really to remind me im dirving a hotwheels car.. other than the ocassional vent or couch to drive across, but its so in the background hat I stopped paying attention.. really making getting through the campaign a drag at times, as it is just recycled the same 8 tracks over and over and over…
    That being said if you plan to race online or locally with friends.. hot wheels unleashed has potential to be a staple in your collection.. creating tracks to challenge eachother, designing a staple hotwheel..
    This is a must have for racing fans..
    I give Hot wheels unleashed
    a 7.5/10    … Expand
  20. anfil18
    Oct 10, 2021
    8
    Si tendria 13 años seria el juego que a dia de hoy me acordaria de el... PD: tengo 36
  21. Ardho
    Dec 21, 2021
    8
    not bad...........................................................................
  22. PMG-Writer
    Nov 1, 2021
    8
    "Hot Wheels Unleashed" left a very positive impression on us. From the first second, the game gives the impression that the developers from Milestone have put a lot of love and heart into the game. The presentation of the cars and tracks are great and the gameplay ideas are also interesting. Unfortunately, the editors and also the lootboxes are not well solved. If you like to drive the"Hot Wheels Unleashed" left a very positive impression on us. From the first second, the game gives the impression that the developers from Milestone have put a lot of love and heart into the game. The presentation of the cars and tracks are great and the gameplay ideas are also interesting. Unfortunately, the editors and also the lootboxes are not well solved. If you like to drive the small cars, you should definitely check out "Hot Wheels Unleashed".… Expand
  23. Beast979
    Aug 5, 2022
    7
    Love the idea, the game is good looking driving is good.....my biggest problem is the change in difficulty between easy and normal. It is a huge spike where easy to too easy and normal is really pretty darn challenging. you can drive really well and the game seems to rubber band cars to you, making it very hard to get any kind of lead...and they constantly turbo past you after rubberLove the idea, the game is good looking driving is good.....my biggest problem is the change in difficulty between easy and normal. It is a huge spike where easy to too easy and normal is really pretty darn challenging. you can drive really well and the game seems to rubber band cars to you, making it very hard to get any kind of lead...and they constantly turbo past you after rubber banding. The other downside to this, is that to be competitive on normal, you have to use the fastest, overall best handling car you have in order to compete, which limits what cars you can use to race with if you want to be at all competitive in the race. It's unfortunate since there are a lot of cars in game.

    It's a fun game, but the difficulty between easy and normal should be addressed.    … Expand
  24. Cz3rw0ny
    Jun 14, 2023
    7
    Good graphics, fun gameplay and pretty good controls. Some trials and races are just annoying and difficult to the extend of not being fun anymore. Otherwise its a pretty decent game.
  25. ZzjimbozZ
    Feb 20, 2022
    7
    Overall a fun experience !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
  26. BallzyDan
    Aug 6, 2022
    6
    decent fun factor here, but this developer has earned a boycott. Loot boxes and microtransactions every where, is what makes this atrocious. This is for kids?? The tracks can be fun and the track editor is cool. Ultimately the game is too hard, even on easy, as time trials have the same time requirement, no matter what difficulty
  27. anton1453x
    Oct 16, 2022
    6
    A good multiplayer and a terrible single player experience end up being a decent game for me. If you only want to play multiplayer it's pretty good! The downside of playing it 2022 is the seasons and challenges are not existing anymore. That's fine, the multiplayer experience is still good! The single player experience however is straight up being and repetitive.
  28. tonyozhelev
    Nov 15, 2022
    6
    It's a decent game but for me it is bare-bones. There is an option for metric/imperial units which I didn't notice to affect anything which for me says the ge is unfinished. All in all gameplay is super basic. The tracks are fine and the cars are nice. There are some major issues though. The shop uses in game time. You have to spend 1.5 hours IN THE GAME for cars to rotate. MultiplayerIt's a decent game but for me it is bare-bones. There is an option for metric/imperial units which I didn't notice to affect anything which for me says the ge is unfinished. All in all gameplay is super basic. The tracks are fine and the cars are nice. There are some major issues though. The shop uses in game time. You have to spend 1.5 hours IN THE GAME for cars to rotate. Multiplayer uses track voting, but you can't downvote bad user tracks and there are some real monstrosities out there. There are only two modes of racing - race and time trial. Perhaps there could have been some different ones. Anyways I picked the game for free on PS plus and I had fun with it, but def wouldn't pay full price.… Expand
  29. BrianDavid94
    Oct 21, 2022
    5
    Quick background on me the reviewer, I tend to like single player games that is heavy on narrative the most. I also play a lot of racing games and use to play multiplayer games in my high school days but now that it's hard for me and my friends to find a good time to link up so now it’s rarer for me to get into a multiplayer game. Up to try any genre of games and sometimes I find somethingQuick background on me the reviewer, I tend to like single player games that is heavy on narrative the most. I also play a lot of racing games and use to play multiplayer games in my high school days but now that it's hard for me and my friends to find a good time to link up so now it’s rarer for me to get into a multiplayer game. Up to try any genre of games and sometimes I find something new that I didn't think I'd like. I own a PC (built by me), Xbox One X, Xbox Series X, PS3, PS4, PS5, and a Switch. I prefer Playstation due to their focus on narrative games. For scoring, I’ll be using the Gameinformer review scale and of course influenced by my personal opinions.

    (5) Flawed. It may be obvious that the game has lots of potential, but it’s most engaging features could be undeniably flawed or not integrated into the experience.

    An arcade racer that does a lot of great things with one major flaw. The best thing about this game is the art in which all the cars actually look like real hot wheels. It has the real toy look that I found really cool. There are also a lot of different vehicles to choose from and a good variety of tracks with the traditional hot wheeel track add ons. I like how the hot wheels world is all in the basement of the house too which you can customize and see those customizations you made when you continue with the career mode. The major flaw that this game does though is how hard this game is and changing the difficulty does not help you. It's fine for me, although I feel like I have to be perfect in order to win, but for the kids that this game is advertising are struggling to get a podium finish even on easy. My best guess is that it's because the AI don't follow the same physics as you and are set to rubberband mode so they are always able to catch up and feels like they always have boast to repass you ass soon as you pass them. I hope that they'll update this game but with it being a year old now they should have already done it.    … Expand
  30. Kostas_Spirou
    Apr 13, 2023
    4
    Well it's not really a bad game but personally I'm disappointed to say the least.

    The game plays fine, the cars look great and collecting cars is satisfying, but there's so much paid content, the game literally feels unfinished. Some of the mechanics don't work well either, tilting the car mid-air, or drifting, don't feel good. There isn't enough content, every race feels the same, even    Well it's not really a bad game but personally I'm disappointed to say the least.

    The game plays fine, the cars look great and collecting cars is satisfying, but there's so much paid content, the game literally feels unfinished.

    Some of the mechanics don't work well either, tilting the car mid-air, or drifting, don't feel good.

    There isn't enough content, every race feels the same, even the boss races are just normal races but longer.

    As for the stages, I really like how they look, and the stage builder is a nice addition.

    Final Rating: "Weak" ~ 4/10.    … Expand
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Awards & Rankings

61
#61 Best PlayStation 5 Game of 2021
50
#50 Most Discussed PlayStation 5 Game of 2021

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
75

Generally favorable reviews - based on 41 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 25 out of 41
  2. Mixed: 16 out of 41
  3. Negative: 0 out of 41
  1. IGN Adria
    Jan 20, 2022
    60
    Despite the phenomenal graphics and details, sim-specialized authors from Milestone stumbled a little bit while trying to make their trip to the arcade genre fun enough.
    Read full review
  2. Worth Playing
    Jan 3, 2022
    75
    Hot Wheels Unleashed is perhaps the best stand-alone game to use the license by far. It nails the feeling of racing with tiny die-cast cars and melds it with a presentation that looks far better than what you'd expect for a licensed title. The race variety is lacking, given the presence of only two race types, but the track variety greatly makes up for that shortcoming. It may have flown under everyone's radar, but Unleashed is worth everyone's attention.
    Read full review
  3. Games.cz
    Nov 30, 2021
    80
    This is a surprisingly well done, fun racing game, full of thrill and fast toy cars. It’s highly addictive, the car designs are adequately crazy and there’s a robust editor to satisfy your creativity.
    Read full review
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