Wreckfest 2 hands-on: The start of something spectacular

13 years since the original Wreckfest started its long and arduous journey to a full release, the long-awaited sequel has finally arrived.

Well, sort of, in ‘early access’ form at least. The fundamentals are in place, but the included content is extremely light.

Despite that, it has all the hallmarks of the best racing game to release this year…

Alright, that was an extremely hyperbolic introduction, but the importance of a new game in this series should not be underestimated. The first installment followed a strong lineage of FlatOut games created by Bugbear Entertainment and was literally on every device going.

No, seriously. Every device. PC (across three different storefronts), PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch, plus iOS and Android phones and tablets. Heck, there was even a Google Stadia version.

Consequently, hundreds of thousands have experienced Wreckfest’s madcap combination of crunching damage and vehicular hedonism, spread out over several years.

So the pressure is on for the long-awaited sequel. Mercifully, it doesn’t disappoint, thanks to tight vehicle handling, intense damage modelling and competitive AI performance.

But, before diving further into what makes it so enjoyable, let’s be clear about what’s missing.

Watch our hands-on impressions and gameplay from Wreckfest 2, above.

Missing In Action

There’s no in-game currency or experience point system. Cars cannot be upgraded. Any form of career mode is absent. Photo mode is missing and replays don’t auto-switch angles. The touted local split-screen and ranked multiplayer are nowhere to be seen.

On the run up to the publication of this article, the servers were not functioning to test the initial online experience – a separate Traxion article will cover that later.

For your ~$30 (albeit with a two-week 20 per cent discount), all you can do is create a single race against the AI or search for multiplayer servers. There are a measly four cars, all of which you can paint, and four venues to race or derby at. That’s it.

On paper, not the best value proposition, then.

Unlike some early access releases, however, Wreckfest 2 has already nailed the fundamentals. You get the impression that most of the hard work has already been done, now it’s a case of joining the dots and holding back the really cool content for the full release. In that sense, this is more like Tokyo Xtreme Racer early access, and less like BeamNG.drive early access.

This time, the end, or ‘version 1.0’ and console versions, seem realistic for early 2026 – as prescribed recently by its parent company.

The amount of polish present at this stage is impressive. On our PCs (other setups may vary), the action was smoother than a Finnish ice rink, despite 25 cars smashing into each other.

Not only was the action smooth, but the visuals are noticeably more detailed than its predecessor. Playing the original back-to-back only widens the fidelity chasm. Each car has more detail, but so do the environments, the Scrapyard venue in particular.

The road surface is perhaps the biggest change. The diminutive Speedway has an asphalt surface that is suitably weathered. The roads look as if they are as moody, embittered, as they should be considering the amount of banger racer they are subjected to.

The cars sound just as rough, too – the engines are sonically spectacular, with buzzing four-cylinders and thunderous V8s. The noise emitted from under the hood isn’t the only improvement, as you can hear the sound of doors clanging closed as they flap in the breeze following a side-swipe.

Crunching detail

These movable body parts are part of the revised damage system, which at first glance isn’t revolutionary. The last game was already a leader in this regard, and you can still flatten your vehicle to pancake status. Now there seems to be an extra layer of subtlety, with minor rubbing gently rippling bodywork, before the all-out destruction.

Extra detail in the car models is also borne out when picking your ride apart, with exacting brake and suspension components, but also dramatically improved cockpit layouts.

Vehicle handling is perhaps one area that flies under the radar. Think similar to its progenitor, but with added weight, less twitch and a slightly lower propensity to lose the rear in a tankslapper. Everything feels planted.

Perhaps the biggest plaudit goes to the AI-controlled rivals at this early juncture. The series has always been home to computer-powered rivals that can race, battle and jostle just as hard as an online human rival, but now they race quicker, smarter.

Of course, if you race around one of the more bonkers track layouts, with crossover elements, they will pile into each other. But simply trying to win a straightforward folkrace event is no longer as straightforward. Yes, there is some simplistic bunching on the opening lap, but from then on, there is genuinely competitive racing.

In a demolition derby, they are uncompromisingly savage, effectively using reverse should the front of their steed be caved in.

It’s in this mode that you are provided with a hint, just a hint, at the bonkers ideas in Bugbear’s crash-addled minds.

Selecting the Testing Grounds, you can jump outside the derby arena and explore loop-the-loops, the automotive equivalent of a pasta maker, a giant vehicle Bagatelle table and even car basketball – although the game resets your position just before you make it there. An intriguing taster, reminiscent of the Next Car Game playground.

Impatiently waiting for more…

Purchasing Wreckfest 2 on PC, via Steam, on 20th March could lead to disappointment – you can have fun for an hour or two, and then you realise there’s just not enough to do. Fret not. The most important element – the driving experience – is sorted.

If the anticipated extra modes and content perform as expected, the fundamental improvements will make Wreckfest 2 a worthy successor. We just have to wait for some time in 2026 to realise its abundant potential…