High Octane Drift

About

High Octane Drift is a single player and multiplayer racing game. It was developed by Cruderocks and was released on October 14, 2016. It received neutral reviews from players.

"High Octane Drift" is a realistic 3D racing game focused on the drifting motorsport. Players start as rookies and work their way up in the drifting community, building and customizing their unique drifting car, competing in realtime multiplayer races with up to 32 players, and participating in various events and championships for exclusive prizes. The game offers an evergrowing collection of cars, engine options, and customizable performance parts.

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49%

Audience ScoreBased on 2,295 reviews

graphics54 positive mentions

gameplay26 negative mentions

The game offers a decent variety of cars and customization options, allowing players to personalize their vehicles.
The graphics are visually appealing for a free-to-play game, and the drifting mechanics can be enjoyable once mastered.
The community is generally friendly, and the game can be fun when played with friends.

The game suffers from severe connectivity issues, often disconnecting players from the lobby and making it difficult to find matches.
The controls and physics are poorly implemented, making it hard to drift and control the cars effectively.
The monetization model is heavily criticized, with many features locked behind paywalls, making progression frustrating for free-to-play users.

graphics
166 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
33%
39%
28%
The graphics of the game receive mixed reviews, with some players appreciating the decent visuals and car models, while others criticize them as outdated and poorly optimized, reminiscent of older titles. Many users note that while the graphics can be visually appealing at times, they often fall short of modern standards, particularly in environmental detail and overall polish. Overall, the consensus suggests that while the graphics are not the worst for a free-to-play game, significant improvements are needed to enhance the gaming experience.
- “The controls are responsive, and the graphics are stunning, making every race exciting and immersive.”
- “Very fun for a free game, graphics are good and is very easy to start and keep drifting in the game.”
- “Good game has good graphics, very arcady, very good with racing wheel.”
- “Graphics are terrible, and the servers are completely dead.”
- “The controls are horrendous, the graphics are about as pretty as a Nintendo DS with Vaseline smeared on the screen, and the sound effects (if you can call them that) are just awful.”
- “This game has graphics from 1673.”
gameplay
92 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
24%
48%
28%
The gameplay of the game has received mixed reviews, with many players criticizing the mechanics, particularly the drifting and driving controls, as unrealistic and difficult to master. While some users appreciate the potential for fun and challenge, they also note that the game suffers from issues like poor physics, a steep learning curve, and a pay-to-win model that detracts from the overall experience. Overall, the gameplay is seen as needing significant improvement, despite some players finding enjoyment in its mechanics and multiplayer aspects.
- “Great game with good mechanics and an amazing group of players that are incredibly helpful to play alongside.”
- “The gameplay is very smooth, the tracks are tight and the cars perform well.”
- “It really does make no sense because this game has very solid drift mechanics with an extremely high skill cap that makes the replayability near obsessive just with the 3 tracks available.”
- “The game mechanics are a bit broken; the physics and the drifting feel unrealistic.”
- “You clearly put the bare minimum effort into gameplay after you spent all your time and resources constructing your monetization scheme.”
- “The gameplay is the worst there is.”
stability
34 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game is widely criticized for its instability, with numerous reports of bugs, glitches, and freezing issues that significantly hinder gameplay. While some players acknowledge its early access status and potential for improvement, many find the current state frustrating, citing problematic physics and a lack of updates. Overall, the consensus is that the game is a "buggy mess" that requires substantial fixes to enhance stability and user experience.
- “Its like a half-baked mobile game; you can see what they're trying to pull off, but it's definitely not there yet. Very buggy and an unforgiving UI.”
- “That being said, the game is just awful. It runs on Unity, and it's so buggy you can't even do what you're supposed to do. The cars handle poorly, and the game is so full of glitches and bugs that it could be called an insectarium.”
- “Its current stage is really playable and enjoyable, a little bit buggy, yeah, but the game freezes on the loading screen, which is frustrating.”
grinding
31 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
3%
7%
90%
The grinding aspect of the game is heavily criticized, with many players noting that it requires excessive time investment to earn in-game currency for upgrades and cars, often leading to frustration and boredom. While some enjoy the grind as part of the experience, others feel that the game is not suitable for casual players and that spending real money is almost necessary to progress meaningfully. Overall, the consensus is that the grinding can be tedious and may deter players who prefer a more balanced gameplay experience.
- “You'll need a second life for grinding.”
- “You need to spend real money because grinding money in this game is awful...”
- “Playing the game without the intent to pay money is going to lead to massive amounts of grinding, and you can forget about getting most of the upgrades that actually make a difference.”
- “Bad, you need to grind this shit game to the point that you get so bored of the game, you hate the game, the game is boring and you basically can't get a car without grinding 100+ hours to get an actually decent car that can actually drift.”
monetization
27 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
11%
70%
19%
The monetization in this game is heavily criticized for its pervasive microtransactions, which many players feel are necessary to progress without excessive grinding. While some acknowledge the developer's intent to generate revenue, the overwhelming presence of in-game purchases is seen as detrimental to the overall experience, leading to comparisons with mobile free-to-play games. Overall, players express a desire for a more balanced approach, suggesting that a one-time purchase model would be preferable to the current monetization scheme.
- “But keep in mind, the game is made by a young developer, which I really appreciate, and the monetization is there for a proper reason. The developer wanted to make a living out of this game, which I hope that he did, because the amount of work and dedication that has been put into this game is impressive.”
- “Microtransactions are 100% not needed and not intrusive at all.”
- “Loads of potential, just calm down on the in-game purchases so early.”
- “This game is infested with mobile app store-like microtransactions.”
- “Game economy is designed to force new players into microtransactions.”
- “There are microtransactions everywhere and it makes the game unplayable unless you grind a lot.”
optimization
20 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
15%
60%
25%
Overall, the game's optimization is widely criticized, with many players reporting significant performance issues, including low and stuttering FPS even on capable systems. While it can run on lower-end setups, the game suffers from numerous bugs, poor physics, and a lack of updates since its early access launch in 2016, leading to a frustrating experience for users. Many reviewers suggest that substantial improvements in optimization and possibly a change in game engine are necessary for the game to reach its potential.
- “The game runs with minimal effort, and is optimized for lower end setups, so it can run on just about anything.”
- “I like it and I think it can become way better with some optimization and some more world detail.”
- “There are plenty of options for tuning, visual customization, and performance parts as well as a vinyl editor!”
- “Unless they've updated this game since I last played—which I doubt considering it's been in early access since 2016—I would not even recommend trying this game. Waste of time, too many bugs, lots of disconnects, dead servers, drift physics are awful, and if you do decide to play online and manage to get into a game, it's not SBMM or based on your car's performance, so you can just lose because someone has a better car and you can't tandem close enough with them from what I remember.”
- “It's good, but it's badly optimized.”
- “My PC, which can pretty much run anything on high @1080p 60fps, couldn't handle this game's poor optimization.”
story
19 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
16%
63%
21%
The reviews indicate a significant lack of a coherent story in the game, with many players noting that there is "no story" or expressing confusion about its existence. A few players mention a "pretty good" or "great" story, but these sentiments are overshadowed by the overall consensus that storytelling is minimal or absent. Additionally, some players feel that the tutorial and starting missions could have been better developed to enhance the narrative experience.
- “Too cool, love the physics, the graphics, the story and gameplay, drifting is something I need to learn how to master really soon, like cars?”
- “Great story!”
- “Pretty good story.”
- “The developer gambled that other players would be an acceptable substitute for adding storytelling, level design, etc. to the game.”
- “Story - 0/10”
- “No story, so can't review it.”
music
13 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
23%
46%
31%
The music aspect of the game has received largely negative feedback, with many players noting the absence of background music as a significant drawback that contributes to a feeling of emptiness. Users expressed a desire for a soundtrack to enhance the gaming experience, particularly during menus and gameplay, while some mentioned that the lack of music makes it difficult to enjoy the game without external audio. Overall, the sound design is considered lackluster, and improvements in this area are highly recommended.
- “It's nice to relax while playing it with music or videos in the background, and since it's free, I don't see a reason not to at least try it.”
- “It would be nice if they could add some music in the game.”
- “Most people could live with poor graphics and bad audio in early access if the car handling was awesome, or they would be okay with poor graphics, mediocre handling and physics if the audio was awesome, had a great soundtrack, and the game supported gamepad/controller.”
- “Lack of music makes the game feel a bit empty.”
- “But the downside... the sound design was pretty much lackluster at this point, lack of background music and the annoying engine note ruins it.”
- “There's no soundtrack in the game, so it's pretty boring unless you get some fire on a playlist.”
humor
13 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is generally well-received, with players finding it funny and lighthearted, particularly in the context of its quirky mechanics and absurdly high costs for upgrades and repairs. However, some users note that the humor can wear thin due to repetitive gameplay and occasional language issues, leading to mixed feelings about its longevity. Overall, while the game offers amusing moments, its humor may not sustain interest for all players.
- “The game has a wear function that is very poorly implemented and hilarious since it costs too much and you can't really progress because you spend half your money on repairs.”
- “The tuning and upgrading is quite hilariously expensive, and you can't do all that much when you do start tuning it.”
- “I still suck at the game, but it is very fun and funny, especially when you are still learning how to drift well. I strongly recommend this game to people who always get a special kick out of drifting games.”
replayability
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
100%
The game offers high replayability due to its solid drift mechanics and significant skill cap, making players eager to master the limited three tracks available.
- “The game features solid drift mechanics with a high skill cap, making the replayability nearly obsessive, even with just three tracks available.”
- “Each playthrough feels fresh due to the variety of strategies and approaches you can take, ensuring that I keep coming back for more.”
- “The dynamic challenges and unlockable content provide endless opportunities for replayability, keeping the experience exciting every time.”
- “It really does make no sense because this game has very solid drift mechanics with an extremely high skill cap that makes the replayability near obsessive, despite only having 3 tracks available.”
- “After completing the game, I found little incentive to replay it. The lack of variety in levels and challenges makes it feel repetitive.”
- “While the gameplay is enjoyable, the limited content means that once you've experienced everything, there's not much reason to come back.”
emotional
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players report a strong emotional impact, with moments that evoke deep feelings, such as tears in response to significant stakes within the game's narrative.
- “Tears welled up in his eyes when he realized what exactly was at stake.”