Motor Strike Racing Rampage Early Access Review: Chaotic Combat

Motor Strike Racing Rampage may have gone through quite a few revisions, as it doesn’t look like the game I was expecting. But that’s a good thing, as it’s pleasant on the eye and relatively easy to get into.

More importantly, the driving aspect is good in this Early Access title from FiveXGames, which is key, don’t you think? However, there are a few hurdles setting up a race, and the combat element put me off initially, but stick with it.

It’s encouraged to play with a controller over the keyboard as there are many commands. From shields to missiles, dedicated drift buttons to ‘titan’ missiles, there’s a lot to digest, and the keyboard is just a bit too awkward for it.

Motor Strike Racing Rampage Early Access Review

As this isn’t a full review due to Motor Strike Racing Rampage being in Early Access mode, I primarily focused on local play, with a second person hopping onto the keyboard, later a spare controller.

The modes on offer are:

• Fast race – single customisable race.
  • Fast race – you have to come first (tee hee!).
  • Point race – earn points through checkpoints.
  • Runaway Race – a survival mode where you have to avoid being hit by the Prometheus tank.
• Twin Cup – a single race, only you can unlock legendary perks.
• Tetracup – as above, but three races.
• Legend Mode – Unavailable at the time of review.
• Tutorials – Erm…
• Titan Strike – an experimental mode set over five battles to destroy the enemy titan.

Motor Strike Racing Rampage is massively ambitious, as there are so many modes, options and tracks that it’s initially overwhelming when you first look at it. 

Starting Checklist

When playing a Fast Race, starting one of the races is quite lengthy as you customise every aspect of it. From choosing a track and suitable vehicle to race in, you also have the option to fill a couple of these perk slots that can include anything from simple booster ramps to having tanks scattered throughout.

Have up to four players in a race, choosing to add or remove AI; then you’re on to the next step of difficulty setting. Quite bizarrely there’s a tier of Rookie Normal and Rookie Hard through to Expert Legendary. I’ve not come across a Rookie Hard mode and seems like an oxymoron. Is that the right term?

Then… once you’ve set up the difficulty, you can choose to have the race as a free-for-all or team-based (the orange or blue team) and then pick a car. No licensed vehicles here, but they’re all immediately recognisable such as the Batmobile, Ghostbusters’ ECTO-1 and the Mystery Van to name a few. As you progress, you can unlock skins as numerous weapons.

Combat Racing From A Third Party

Considering the number of options on offer, there are no alternatives to the view. Most people I know drive in the third-person viewpoint, but I’m a fan of first-person – y’know, like real life. However, in Motor Strike Racing Rampage’s defence, you need a more peripheral vision due to the incoming attacks.

The combat in the game was the thing I liked least, not exactly good when it comes to a combat racer, huh? First impressions were the completely unfair way you could be slaying a track then get shot from behind by bullets or a missile. It was relentless.

When playing on keyboard, it wasn’t clear about this ‘strike back’ technique, and I grimaced through each race, dreading to be ahead in fear of being obliterated. Fortunately, this strike back option is like something out of a Hong Kong action film as you flip around and shoot at your pursuers.

Funnily enough, this worked really well, and looked particularly good in the Aston Martin wannabe I was sporting. From here, I could now focus on my driving ability and win some races. The cars’ actual handling is good, in an arcade sense, and the added nitrous and ramps add to the variety.

Lots Of Features, Not So Much A Change Of Scenery

While there are tons of tracks, they do mostly feel the same. Though very sharp, the visuals are pretty understated with minimal textures, but it’s an aesthetic I admired and don’t have time for reflective bonnets.

Motor Strike Racing Rampage throws in a lot of extras such as tanks spawning mid-race due to the combat element. If you’re behind them, they’re relatively easy to take care of, but if battling it out with other players, and then overtaking them without taking them down, they can be a nuisance.

Still, the rewards of winning a race are quite literal. Aside from the rush of beating your mates or strangers, you’ll get a post-win stats review of how many enemies you wiped out, non-racing types, checkpoints and wins.

More importantly, you’ll unlock Striker emblems and experience that allow you to customise your favourite vehicles, and quite frankly, that’s a bit of a lure for me – especially as you get to see your vehicles due to the viewpoint.

At The Finish Line

First impressions of Motor Strike Racing Rampage weren’t mindblowing, but this was down to the combat aspect, and I hadn’t gotten to grips with it. If like me, I’d recommend playing quite a few custom races so you can eliminate the fluff. Still, if you want variety, the option’s there.

Though I liked the car models and tracks, if a little samey at times, I wasn’t a fan of the UI either. You can’t ‘play’ the UI, so it’s not that much of a big deal, but something you have to go through quite a few hoops for a simple race. It’s a preference thing though and doesn’t affect the performance of the game.

If you’re looking for a new combat racer with plenty of variety, with a focus on local and online play, make a note of Motor Strike Racing Rampage as it shows promise and might fulfil a need if you’re into this sort of thing.