TL;DR
Hot Wheels Infinite Rush is an open-world racing game featuring themed islands and imaginative cars. It excels with fast, crazy, and challenging gameplay, including fun enemy-bashing mechanics. However, driving around to find races feels tiresome, the toy theme is underutilized, non-race challenges outnumber races, and standard race timers are missing. It suits players who enjoy open-world freedom, while those seeking straightforward, traditional track racing should skip it.
In Hot Wheels Infinite Rush we steer our cars through a large open world that you unlock gradually as you play. It features imaginative themed islands and you have a plethora of vehicles at your disposal. Everything from fairly realistic cars to complete figments of imagination. Around the map, there are various locations where you can complete different challenges. It could be a race, stunt, destruction, or driving around photographing the surroundings. More challenges are unlocked as you complete them.
Comparison with Hot Wheels Unleashed
I reviewed Hot Wheels Unleashed and really loved the imaginative aspect of the tracks being set in our world and the cars actually being the size of a toy car. You could drive around in a garden, in an arcade, and many other common places with absolutely fantastic tracks. Unfortunately, that is not the case in Hot Wheels Infinite Rush; instead, it is now structured more like Forza and other car games where you have a large map and an open world to move around in. Personally, I find that to be a tiresome way to play. I want to race; I don’t want to drive around looking for a race…
Missed potential in the toy concept
Furthermore, it is also a shame that they haven’t utilized the fact that these are toy cars in a more creative way. Sure, the houses and surroundings break as if they were built of plastic, but where is the creativity? In the previous game, you could drive under a sofa or through a kitchen cabinet and out into the garden. There is nothing like that here.
The environments are colorful and the surroundings are well-made, but there was so much more the developers could have done to maintain the feeling that these are toy cars.
Challenges, photo missions, and the lack of a race timer
Something else that bothered me is that when I drive around the map looking for a race, I mostly find all the other challenges that I am less interested in. There are four photo missions for every one race, and it should be the other way around. Finally, in my now quite long list of annoyances, I come to the biggest one. For some reason, there is no race timer?! Every racing game has always shown your time and how far ahead or behind the other competitors you are. But in this game, there is no such thing. There are tracks where you are supposed to drive as fast as possible, and then there is a timer, but only for yourself.
The game itself – speed, madness, and entertainment
Now it might sound like I really don’t like this game, but there are definitely highlights. Just like in the other Hot Wheels games I have played, it is fast, fun, and challenging. The cars can also bash into enemies, which is also really fun to do, and it is as fast as it is unrealistic. I have never liked realistic car games; there should be speed and madness—those are the most fun car games, in my opinion. So gameplay-wise, there is absolutely nothing wrong with Hot Wheels Infinite Rush; it is just a shame they chose the open-world approach and removed elements that made the game stand out from all other racing games.
Final verdict
In summary, many people like the open-world layout where you can choose for yourself, but I don’t like it in racing games, and the other irritations (except for the timer) are trifles, so the rating is a pass. Because once you get to race, perform stunts, or just chase a new car through the open world, it is crazy fun. That makes up for it, but if the developers had put in a bit more thought, it really could have been epically good.
Milestone sent a review code for this test. Senders of material have no editorial influence on our tests.
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Review Highlights: Q&A
What type of game is Hot Wheels Infinite Rush?
Hot Wheels Infinite Rush is an open-world racing game where players unlock themed islands, collect vehicles ranging from realistic to imaginative, and complete races, stunts, destruction, and photo tasks.
How does the world design compare to Hot Wheels Unleashed?
Unlike the previous game's toy-sized tracks set under sofas or in gardens, this title features a large open-world map structured like Forza, with plastic-breaking environments that feel less creatively integrated.
What activities are scattered across the map?
The open map contains stunts, destruction events, races, and numerous photo missions, with roughly four photo missions appearing for every single race found.
Does the game feature a standard race timer?
No, standard races do not show split times or gaps between competitors. A race timer is only present during specific solo speed-run tracks.
How does the core driving feel?
The driving focuses on fast, unrealistic action with challenging races and entertaining mechanics, including the ability to bash your vehicle into enemies across the map.
