Hotshot Racing

Beautiful looking, challenging racing game that recreates all the things you love about arcade racers. Great single and multiplayer experiences to be had here.

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"Hotshot Racing" is a vibrant arcade-style racing game with a retro feel. It features bright, colorful graphics and fast-paced gameplay. The game offers multiple modes, including Grand Prix, Time Trial, and Cause Carnage, and allows players to choose from a variety of tracks and cars. With a focus on accessibility and fun, "Hotshot Racing" is a great choice for fans of classic racing games.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Reviews

75%

Audience ScoreBased on 586 reviews

graphics47 positive mentions

optimization8 negative mentions

Fun and simple arcade-throwback racer with a nostalgic feel.
Great drifting mechanics and a variety of interesting game modes like Cops and Robbers.
Colorful graphics and a catchy soundtrack that enhance the overall experience.

Aggressive rubber-banding AI that can be frustrating and disrupts the racing experience.
Limited content with only a few tracks and no significant progression or unlockables.
Online multiplayer is mostly dead, making it less appealing for those looking for competitive play.

graphics
126 mentions
37 % positive mentions
59 % neutral mentions
4 % negative mentions
The graphics of *Hotshot Racing* are widely praised for their vibrant, retro aesthetic that evokes nostalgia for classic arcade titles like *Virtua Racing* and *Daytona USA*. Reviewers appreciate the game's colorful, low-poly visuals and clean design, which enhance the fast-paced racing experience, although some note that the simplistic graphics settings could benefit from more options. Overall, the game's art style and presentation are considered a standout feature, contributing to its charm and appeal among fans of arcade racing games.
- “Hotshot Racing is a blisteringly fast arcade-style racing game fusing drift handling, razor-sharp retro visuals and an incredible sense of speed to create an exhilarating driving experience.”
- “The game is graphically gorgeous, representing the absolute pinnacle of low-poly, color-blocked 3D modeling.”
- “The visuals are amazing and the controls are decent, but I had to refund this one due to the issues above.”
- “The game is not at all graphically demanding, but no matter if vsync is off and 300fps or vsync is on, it's still stuttery and doesn't feel smooth at all.”
- “Graphics and presentation of this game feels like a lifeless, ugly and cliched modern throwback to Virtua Racer and 90s arcade racers.”
- “It tries too hard to be like the 90's arcade racers people love, the visuals are the typical modern low poly stuff with no textures at all.”
gameplay
109 mentions
43 % positive mentions
47 % neutral mentions
10 % negative mentions
The gameplay of Hotshot Racing is characterized by its fun and addictive arcade-style mechanics, particularly the polished drifting and boost systems that evoke nostalgia for classic racing games. However, many players express frustration with the AI's rubberbanding, which can undermine the sense of achievement in racing, and some find the drifting mechanic to be more of a chore than an enjoyable feature. Overall, while the game offers thrilling speed and vibrant tracks, it suffers from a lack of depth and variety that could enhance the racing experience.
- “The gameplay is thrillingly addictive with precision controls, adrenaline-fueled cornering at blisteringly breakneck speeds, explosive action, a wealth of alternative game modes, funky music, and crisp sound design.”
- “The mechanics are exceptionally arcade-y, and the driving physics is definitely reminiscent of Burnout, with a strong emphasis on drifting; mastering those mechanics is essential if you want to play properly.”
- “The gameplay here is fantastic and solidifies the old feeling of arcade racers from the 90s, with a great set of game mechanics, including building up a speed boost just from drifting.”
- “Gameplay is a bit 'tame'.”
- “There's a lot of conflicting ideas hampering gameplay.”
- “This type of gameplay mechanic keeps races close and 'interesting' in theory, but it ends up feeling frustrating to lose a race because the AI is always rubberbanding back and forth.”
music
95 mentions
43 % positive mentions
49 % neutral mentions
7 % negative mentions
The music in the game receives mixed reviews, with many praising its upbeat, arcade-style tracks that evoke nostalgia for classic racing games. While some players find the soundtrack catchy and fitting for the game's aesthetic, others criticize it for being repetitive or forgettable. Overall, the music enhances the vibrant atmosphere, though opinions vary on its memorability and quality.
- “Sublime atmosphere and design, often accompanied with great music.”
- “The music is great and I will definitely be listening to the songs when I drive.”
- “The music adds another level of thrill and detail in the gameplay that makes every race feel exciting, chaotic and most importantly, fast!”
- “Music is forgettable & not very good in general, I recommend using your own playlist instead.”
- “The music sounds like something designed by someone without any training in music.”
- “Overall really boring, music is grating.”
optimization
32 mentions
19 % positive mentions
56 % neutral mentions
25 % negative mentions
Overall, the game's optimization has received mixed reviews, with many players experiencing choppy framerates and microstuttering, particularly on higher settings or specific hardware configurations. While some users report smooth performance, others highlight the need for better optimization, especially regarding frame drops and the lack of performance-affecting car customizations. The developers are encouraged to address these issues to enhance the gaming experience.
- “The online mode runs smoothly and has all the essential features available, including player-hosted servers for race management.”
- “Performance - I run this game on the highest graphics option and it does run at 60fps, but it does have these micro stutters that can be annoying to deal with.”
- “This is an independent developer, and while they may not have the resources to check for optimization issues on every hardware configuration, they are open to normal bug reports to improve the game.”
- “Bad optimization with choppy framerate on high settings and in some circuits on medium (Ryzen 5 5500U and RTX 3050).”
- “Game looks like fun, but really bad stuttering at 1080p and 1440p using 5700XT; developers need to get this sorted before I will give it another go.”
- “My main problem with the game right now is how poorly optimized it feels on my PC.”
story
16 mentions
19 % positive mentions
63 % neutral mentions
19 % negative mentions
The game's story aspect is largely criticized for its lack of depth, with many players noting the absence of a dedicated story mode and limited character interactions. While some appreciate the unique backstories of the characters and the engaging voice work, others feel that the game would benefit from a more developed narrative to enhance the overall experience. Overall, the focus remains on gameplay rather than storytelling, making it less appealing for those seeking a rich narrative.
- “Gripping story line along with well developed characters sets this racing game above the rest while a unique retro design breathes life into a far too often hyper realistic genre.”
- “Racers come with their own backstory, giving a normally non-included reason for their will to win, and even giving each character a special cutscene when winning a grand prix.”
- “The voice work is good, in spite of the game not being all story driven.”
- “Needs a story mode, pursuit mode or something to keep you playing seeing multiplayer is dead.”
- “No story, no free roam in between, no traffic on the road; the drifting feels as good as a drifting-only game but it's being used to race instead of just collecting points.”
- “Sure you can go play online and stuff, but if you're looking for a long story mode that will take you some time to complete, don't expect that here unless you suck at racing games, I guess?”
humor
12 mentions
100 % positive mentions
0 % neutral mentions
0 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is a mixed bag, featuring both cheap stereotypes and genuinely funny moments, such as quirky character personalities and amusing voiceovers. While some players found the humor to be cliché and boring, others enjoyed the comedic elements during races and character interactions, leading to memorable and laugh-out-loud experiences. Overall, the humor adds a lighthearted touch to the gameplay, despite some criticisms of its execution.
- “This is a funny race game with good gameplay.”
- “The voice overs from the in-game characters are funny at times, especially Xing.”
- “Each character has a funny cut scene for their grand prix wins.”
grinding
12 mentions
25 % positive mentions
-8 % neutral mentions
83 % negative mentions
The grinding aspect of the game has received mixed reviews, with many players finding it tedious and time-consuming, particularly when it comes to unlocking cars and upgrades. While some appreciate the retro graphics, the overall sentiment suggests that the grinding mechanics detract from the enjoyment, making the gameplay feel more like a chore than a fun experience. Additionally, the aggressive AI and character-specific car distribution further contribute to the frustration associated with grinding.
- “The game can feel a bit grindy at times, but it adds to the overall experience.”
- “While it can be a bit grindy, the rewards make it worthwhile.”
- “I found it a bit grindy, but the progression kept me engaged.”
- “In short, Hotshot Racing looks amazing at first glance because of its retro graphics but turns tedious quickly thanks to a variety of gameplay decisions.”
- “Most of it is farming and grinding for unlocks and money to buy unlocks.”
- “However, there's lots of grinding involved, the meta game is imbalanced, and a little more lore could have been added.”
replayability
10 mentions
30 % positive mentions
40 % neutral mentions
30 % negative mentions
Overall, the game offers a decent level of replayability, particularly through its quick play mode and a variety of challenges and customization options. While some players find it fun and engaging enough for repeated play, others feel that the lack of online multiplayer may limit its long-term appeal. The game's "easy to learn, hard to master" design encourages competition, enhancing its replay value for those interested in improving their skills.
- “It is insanely fun and has so much replay value.”
- “First of all, there's a ton of replay value involved.”
- “Although it is as simple of a racer as you may think it is, the replayability of Hotshot Racing is there more than I expected, and the driving feels very good.”
- “You can play a quick play mode which may add some replayability for you, but that's really it.”
- “There is some decent replayability, but without friends or online PvP, this isn't going to hold anyone over for long.”
- “This game might not have much replay value, but neither did Ridge Racer games.”
stability
10 mentions
0 % positive mentions
0 % neutral mentions
100 % negative mentions
The game's stability has been widely criticized, with users reporting frequent performance issues, glitches, and crashes, particularly in online multiplayer modes. Many players have experienced bugs such as frozen screens, AI-related problems, and erratic menu navigation, leading to frustration and a sense that the game remains unfinished despite being labeled as complete by the publisher. Overall, the game's stability appears to be a significant concern, detracting from the overall experience.
- “The bad: within under an hour of play, I encountered 3 glitches: the first was a frozen screen that crashed to desktop, the second was when an AI racer rammed me into a wall, I became 'welded to it' and could not re-join the race, the third was a network error that kicked me from the party.”
- “You would think that a simple looking game such as this would offer silky smooth frame rates on my 144hz 1080p monitor, but no, for some reason the game randomly stutters and freezes constantly throughout a race.”
- “Menus are very buggy, e.g. pressing down will not cycle through an entire menu but pressing up works fine, e.g. 1->2->2->3->1 versus 1->5->4->3->2->1.”
atmosphere
5 mentions
60 % positive mentions
40 % neutral mentions
0 % negative mentions
The game's atmosphere is widely praised for its sublime design and immersive music, enhancing the overall experience. Each track uniquely reflects its regional setting, featuring diverse environments like volcanoes and casinos, which contribute to a vibrant racing atmosphere. However, some players feel that frequent AI collisions can detract from the immersive feel of racing.
- “Sublime atmosphere and design, often accompanied by great music.”
- “All the tracks add their own flair and set pieces, showcasing the regional locations they're based in. This gives drivers the chance to race through volcanoes, casinos, castles, junkyards, cities, temples, etc. The tracks themselves have great atmospheres and offer excellent turns and straightaways for boosting and slipstreaming opponents.”
- “I love the atmosphere of the game!”
monetization
4 mentions
50 % positive mentions
-25 % neutral mentions
75 % negative mentions
The game is praised for its monetization model, being effectively a free-to-play racing game without microtransactions or ads, which enhances the overall experience. Players appreciate the lack of in-game purchases that could detract from gameplay, making it a refreshing option in the genre. However, it does require an internet connection to run initially.
- “It's practically a free-to-play racing game without all the microtransactions.”
- “Super cool if you like arcade racing games, well-made controls, no bugs after a few hours, and no in-game purchases that destroy the game.”
- “On offer, it's practically a free-to-play racing game without all the microtransactions.”
- “I disliked that it won't even run without internet, but there are no ads, and after running, if we turn off the internet, it also works.”
- “10/10 for honest advertising in 2020 alone.”