Drifts and dunes

There certainly isn’t a shortage of Kart Racing games at the moment. Mario Kart on the Switch is still doing gangbusters, and even Crash Bandicoot is getting back in on the action. With all the seriousness that comes with games like Dirt, Forza and Project Cars there is definitely a market for the less intense racing game. Up steps Beach Buggy Racing 2: Island Adventure; a game with a bit of a legacy.

Made by Vector Unit, the developer behind titles like Riptide GP, Hydro-Thunder Hurricane and the original Beach Buggy game, who have made a name for themselves in the arcade racing genre; Beach Buggy Racing 2 continues the same style of racing which has given the studio their success.

Platforms: PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox (Reviewed), Switch
Price: $19.99
Multiplayer: Up to 8 players – Offline only

The game is a budget title, and although it does lack the kind of polish a higher budget game would undoubtedly have, it still manages to feel like a quality product with a lot of content; albeit with some certain limitations.

Aesthetically the game reminded me of Modnation Racers, a game that was released way back for the PlayStation 3 and PSP. The characters all have a nondescript look, but all differ in their actual style (there is a Mexican wrestler, a pirate, a robot and even a man in a bunny costume), which does at least make them stand out from each other, as does their special abilities. Along with the various power-ups that can be collected during a race, each character has a special ability that can be activated twice per race. These differ wildly, but are all there to give the players an edge when needed. Some abilities give a speed boost, some knock racers out, while others distract the other players. It is a cool feature not often seen in other kart racers.

Of course, there are the normal power-ups that are scattered all over each course. The things that you come to expect are here of course; homing missiles, boosts, traps et al. But there are
also, some wacky powers that can be found; things like firing goo that slows down an opponent or anti-gravity weapons that lift a kart up, making it almost impossible to control. It is this variety and inventiveness that really stood out to me and made the game a lot more fun and chaotic. A kart racer also lives and dies by the racing mechanics. They have to feel tight enough so that driving under the influence of a power-up doesn’t feel too annoying, but also forgiving enough for the game to be enjoyed by anyone of any age.

Luckily BBR2 gets this mostly right; sure, it isn’t as tight as say Mario Kart, but it is damn close and feels like a joy to play. Drifting can feel a little more imprecise however, which can be frustrating when having to clear the drift attack races. But overall, the controls feel good and do not get in the way of a fun experience. Where the budget does feel tight is in the course design. I honestly cannot remember any particular course; nothing that stood out above the rest. They all seem to blend into one another. There are mirrored versions of the courses, which doubles the amount that can be raced on, but I never felt excited to play a particular course again.

The main Story Mode is broken up into areas, each with a number of different races to complete and earn stars in. Earn enough stars and the next area will be unlocked. Each area also has an unlockable character to earn, as well as multiple upgrade stations which give a boost to all of the unlocked car’s stats. It’s a meaty campaign, with four levels of difficulty, meaning the game ranges from a casual fun experience to something that would give even a battled hardened karter a challenge. There are five types of race to beat; a standard race, time trial, last kart standing, drift attack and finally firework fury.

All but the last mode is self-explanatory, with firework fury being a mode where the player has to navigate a course within a time limit, all while avoiding crates of fireworks placed along the course. Along with story mode is Championships, which offers nine different Championships to take part in, again each with four levels of challenge and multiple rule sets that can be applied. Both of these modes can be played locally with up to eight players, but amazingly there is no real online multiplayer mode, which I find to be an odd omission in this day and age, and especially as if you live alone in this post COVID world, you are unlikely to have lots of friends round. The only way you can interact with other real people online is through the Tournaments mode; which offers a small selection of races to compete in and register your score on. These are then compared to other players on a leaderboard.

All in all, Beach Buggy Racing 2 is a fab entry in the kart racing genre; keeping things familiar enough but adding plenty of unique power-ups to stand out. It certainly is punching above its weight (and price). But I really think that the game is doing a disservice by not having an online multiplayer mode.

Review copy of game provided by publisher.