DethKarz

About DethKarz

DethKarz is a single player shooter game. It was developed by Beam Software and was released on August 21, 2020. It received overwhelmingly positive reviews from players.

Reminiscent of Twisted Metal, DethCarz pits players against each other with 25th century battle cars. The game features a total of four different environments, split up into 12 tracks.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player

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Reviews

98%Audience ScoreBased on 46 reviews

music4 positive mentions

stability3 negative mentions

Nostalgic and enjoyable combat racing game with a unique blend of fast-paced racing and battle mechanics.
Well-preserved gameplay and music that deliver a strong old-school arcade racing experience.
Runs well on modern systems with some minor tweaks, featuring solid tracks, cars, and immersive futuristic atmosphere.

Occasional technical issues including crashes, freezing at startup, and graphical glitches that can disrupt gameplay.
AI behavior is uneven, with rubberbanding and difficulty spikes that may frustrate players.
Limited controller support and lack of widescreen resolution options reduce comfort and accessibility.

graphics
11 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
27% positive mentions, 46% neutral mentions, 27% negative mentions
The graphics are clearly dated, reflecting their late 90s origins with a nostalgic, futuristic aesthetic that has aged better than realistic visuals might have. While not flawless—occasionally causing frame drops and minor glitches—they complement the gameplay well, appealing primarily to fans of classic racing games rather than newcomers seeking modern graphics. Overall, the visuals hold charm and serve the game's fast-paced racing focus despite some limitations in track variety and AI appearance.
- “Incredible game for its time, considering it was made in the late 90s. It had solid graphics back then, and the driving mechanics are still fairly comfortable even by modern standards. For $10, it's an absolute steal for nostalgic enjoyment.”
- “And as for those tracks and the visuals in general; they've held up rather well with a futuristic yet grounded aesthetic that has aged better than an attempt at realism. The tracks are decent though not unique in locations, which is the only downside.”
- “Despite its primitive graphics, it is still so much fun to play.”
- “Frame drops aren’t common, but when they occur, they can lead to incredibly disorienting teleportation (I only noticed this occurring on Red Planet - medium with the graphical settings maxed out).”
- “- Graphics glitches.”
- “Yes, the graphics are dated, but the gameplay is as tight as ever and it stands out as that rarity of rarities: a combat racing game where the emphasis is on the racing instead of the combat.”
gameplay
10 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
30% positive mentions, 40% neutral mentions, 30% negative mentions
The gameplay offers a fast-paced, intense racing experience with smooth controls, blending classic drifting mechanics and battle elements that complement the overall feel. Despite dated graphics, the game remains engaging and immersive, with balanced AI and car selection mechanics adding strategic depth. Overall, it stands out as a solid combat racing game focused more on racing than combat, providing nostalgic enjoyment and lasting appeal.
- “The heart of Dethkarz lies in its fast-paced and intense racing gameplay.”
- “Smooth controls and gameplay make it an immersive experience that will keep players hooked for hours.”
- “Yes, the graphics are dated, but the gameplay is as tight as ever and it stands out as that rarity of rarities: a combat racing game where the emphasis is on the racing instead of the combat.”
- “The vehicles are quite floaty, but in a way which complements and contributes to the overall feel of the game, and it’s got some old-school drifting mechanics, but you get used to them after the first few laps.”
- “As far as ports go this is a pretty stock standard one with my main issues being no widescreen and the controller support being a bit lacking but overall its a smooth experience with the one bug I've encountered being a visual glitch on the loading screens that occurs infrequently and does not affect gameplay.”
- “There also seem to be some mechanics built around car selection.”
music
9 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
44% positive mentions, 23% neutral mentions, 33% negative mentions
The game's music features a dynamic and energetic electronic soundtrack that enhances the adrenaline-pumping atmosphere and overall vibe. With eight main tracks plus additional themes, the soundtrack varies by circuit and contributes significantly to the immersive driving experience. Additionally, the game's music is easily modifiable, allowing players to customize their audio experience.
- “The game features a dynamic soundtrack that adds to the adrenaline-pumping atmosphere.”
- “Runs great, it has all the slowdowns I remember at the exact same locations when maxing out the view distance; the physics are still fun, the upbeat electronic music still fits the game, and the tracks flow as great as I remember.”
- “There are a total of eight musical tracks the game switches between depending on the circuit, plus a credits track, replay track, and main menu theme.”
- “It seems like this game could be fairly easy to mod with a little research, at least for music/texture replacements.”
- “It seems like all of the models use various proprietary file types (e.g. .track, .x, .walls, etc.), however the textures are mainly bitmap and targa files, and the music is entirely comprised of .”
stability
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
25% positive mentions, 0% neutral mentions, 75% negative mentions
The game generally runs well but experiences consistent graphical glitches during races and occasional freezes related to specific Windows settings. Despite these issues, performance remains stable when view distance is adjusted.
- “Runs great, it has all the slowdowns I remember at the exact same locations when maxing out the view distance, the physics are still fun, the upbeat electronic music still fits the game, and the tracks flow as great as I remember.”
- “Almost every single race experiences a glitch at least once.”
- “Graphics glitches are frequent.”
- “The game freezes until you disable sticky buttons in Windows after receiving a warning in the background.”
atmosphere
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100% positive mentions, 0% neutral mentions, 0% negative mentions
The game's atmosphere is enhanced by a dynamic soundtrack that effectively amplifies the adrenaline and intensity of the experience.
- “The game also features a dynamic soundtrack that adds to the adrenaline-pumping atmosphere.”
optimization
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
0% positive mentions, 0% neutral mentions, 100% negative mentions
The optimization is notably poor, with significant slowdowns even on RDNA2 hardware, contrasting with smoother performance on older systems like Windows XP/7 and under Wine/Linux.
- “Poor performance with heavy slowdowns (unacceptable on RDNA2 machine. It always worked really well under Wine/Linux and on Windows XP/7 machines).”