58 people found this review helpful
4 people found this review funny
Recommended
0.0 hrs last two weeks / 1,144.7 hrs on record (940.8 hrs at review time)
Posted: 24 Jun, 2016 @ 7:48am
Updated: 21 Nov, 2018 @ 9:49pm

I think it is about time for me to write a review on my most-played game, in time for the Summer Sale! Even with my hours, I will try to remain as unbiased as possible within my review.

So let's start with the basics: Next Car Game: Wreckfest is developed by BugBear, creators of the infamous FlatOut series. This game is all about smashing cars in Destruction Derbies and Banger Races.

Development rate on the game has, recently, been extremely good, with valuable content appearing once a month, give or take a week. Several updates have occured just before summer/winter sales, and I can't be entirely sure if this is a business practice or convenience. The pricetag on the game, as far as Early Access games go, is expensive for the content that it contains, I think.

The content in the game, at the time of me writing this, is pretty good: 8 cars and a Lawnmower, 27 Variations of 12 Racetracks, and 5 Demolition Derby arenas. However, one car is obviously the best car in both speed and durability. The parts market is okay, but there is only a small variety of parts, and only one really fast combination. Fine tuning is very limited. Derby arenas are rather boring, and don't have many interesting props.

AI in the game has become rather competetive over the last few updates, and is also more likely to hit other cars. They can be very fun to race against. Online has a steady playerbase during peak times of around 1-2 full servers (10-30 players), but during non-peak times, it is hard to find players.

Do I recommend this game? Absolutely. I wouldn't have my hours if I didn't. Remember though, it is still an EARLY ACCESS game, there are bugs, unfinished things, and other wonky stuff. The game is a bit expensive when it's not on sale, but you can still go to nextcargame.com and buy a Steam Key for $25. I'm up for answering questions if needed.
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15 Comments
Skylar 14 Jul, 2016 @ 11:00pm 
@LairdNasty, the physics certainly does not act like it did in Build 6 a few years ago, but the new physics is much more polished than it was when it was first introduced!

@Knee_Grows No, there is no local Co-op. You can, however, set up your own server and password it.
Jam 14 Jul, 2016 @ 10:46pm 
Does this game have local Coop yet?
LairdNasty 14 Jul, 2016 @ 6:37pm 
I really liked this game back when it was first released to EA. The amount of damage and parts that would fly off was great fun. Then they released an update that completely screwed all of the wonderful mayhem. Based on your review I may install it again to give it another try.
Engi 7 Jul, 2016 @ 10:32am 
Well, they did improve car-to-car collisions back in May and will probably keep on improving what the game is about.
✯ sp34gl3-3y3 6 Jul, 2016 @ 7:56am 
Well if 2 cars hit each other at high speed, t hey should both be turned either into a pulp or be smashed high into the air or something rewarding. But when you barely get a reaction it isnt fun. From what you are telling me it seems the crash system didn't change much. Oh well, at least the racing was fun.
Skylar 6 Jul, 2016 @ 6:48am 
That doesn't happen so much anymore. About the only instance I can think of that happening is when you and another driver are moving the same speed and hit Head-On. Other than that, if you hit someone they might not move alot at first, but you can push or roll them down the arena.
✯ sp34gl3-3y3 6 Jul, 2016 @ 4:05am 
1 year ago roughly. And it was bad. You could crash into someone at 80 mph and hed just move slightly.
Skylar 5 Jul, 2016 @ 9:15pm 
Around what time were you playing that the derbies were so bad? I think that right now the cars, when they collide, act much heavier at low speeds, you aren't going to do anything more than spin a guy around when you clip his back corner panel. T-Bones feel really good, slow the cars down a fair amount too. The Health Bar addition in the last update has made derbies much more strategic, by aiming for those with less health while trying to preserve your own as much as possible.
✯ sp34gl3-3y3 5 Jul, 2016 @ 8:45pm 
I gotta question is derby still shit? crashes used to feel so fucking weak back when I played.
Skylar 3 Jul, 2016 @ 7:49pm 
Which I have provided. Check both the "News" tab in the Wreckfest Steam Community, and steamdb.info and search for "Wreckfest". You will find that my facts are supported. I'm not going to go spewing nonsense like a lot of the people who make reviews.