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0 From the publishers that brought you What The Golf? and What The Bat? Triband has released their latest and greatest, What The Car? Described as a silly physics, racing game, players will race against the clock to earn the best time and golden crowns, with a few whacky twists and turns. What The Car? is available on Apple Arcade as part of their subscription service for £6.99 per month or PC players can get behind the wheel for £8.50 on Steam.
Brake-ing down Triband’s What The Car?
Have you played any of Triband‘s previous titles and if so, how does What The Car? compare? Let us know down below!
Gameplay
As mentioned, What The Car? is described as a silly physics, racing game with twists and turns. You play as a little yellow-orange car, traversing this universe in various ways. The catch? Sometimes this doesn’t involve using wheels. As you begin the tutorial, the car spawns legs and this is where you begin your journey as a little car with legs for wheels. Yes, it does get weirder.
The main goal is to complete the level by reaching the finish line. There is a timer, and depending on how quickly you pass the finish line, determines if you get a bronze, silver, or gold crown. There are over a hundred levels that are organized into episodes. Once you complete all the levels in one episode, you move on to the next. Each episode has its own theme, such as Jumping, Sports, and Working. There are 9 episodes in total, with each having a big chunk of levels within. Players can replay the levels as many times as they want. There are lots of hidden achievements to find, cards to collect, and of course the incentive of trying to improve your own PB.
The other twist in this game is you can never really anticipate what obstacle you might face until you start the level. You might have small legs, big wobbly legs, an umbrella, or be driving backwards. It could be anything and everything. One level is a game of playground jump rope, where you hop through the track while two bears spin a jump rope. Not every level is based on a track. Some involve playing football, some include swimming, chopping vegetables, and fishing.
Car go vroom
Not only are there premade levels, but there are also player-made levels to further challenge yourself. You can also express your creativity by designing and publishing your own level.
There isn’t a story to the game but a small sense of world-building. The majority of the world is seemingly run by bears, who work construction jobs, assist you on the tracks, have picnics, and just enjoy their beary lives.
The game is most comfortably played using a controller but can be played with a mouse and keyboard, if necessary. The controls are quite simple and easy to grasp as there are only 2 -3 buttons used within the entire game. This involves the thumb stick to manoeuvre the car, and A to jump. The car automatically drives itself once you are launched out of the cannon and onto the track, which allows the game to be quite accessible to any player of any age to enjoy the game.
What The Car? is also Steam Deck verified, so players who own one will have an even cozier experience amongst the chaos.
Graphics & Audio
For this review I played the Steam version of What The Car? which ran perfectly without any frame rate issues or glitches. It isn’t a very demanding game so a lot of players won’t have an issue running it. Similar to its whacky gameplay, the art style is fun and silly with bold colours, goofy characters, and whimsical settings. There is a variety of scores throughout the levels that match each theme, with fun special effect noises that celebrate your wins but also your losses. You will be singing “whaat the caaAAR” for several days.
The only accessibility options offered are turning off the controller rumble and screen shake. You can adjust the volume sliders for different sounds.
Longevity
Depending on your play style, most players would probably be able to play through all the levels in an afternoon, as it roughly takes 3 hours to complete. If you are a completionist wanting to 100% the game, the playtime can extend to 5+ hours. There is quite a bit of replayability in What The Car? as there are 33 achievements to earn on Steam, which encourages players to be involved with all aspects of the game. This includes trying player-made levels, creating your level, and completing the daily challenges.
Final Thoughts
What The Car? is exactly what you expect from the description with even greater unexpected turns. It’s a silly adventure game where you play as a little car in a world run by adorable bears with jobs. Every level is a new journey and a new challenge. The game is short and sweet but delivers on what it sets out to achieve. There’s enough content in the game that offers a lot of replayability, especially when it comes to trying out player-made levels or finding all the hidden secrets. Players who were fans of Triband‘s previous titles or fans of this genre will enjoy this new addition, especially at its affordable price tag.
What The Car? gets a Gold Thumb Culture Award
If you’d like to try something more challenging, why don’t you check out Ruddy’s review of the rogue-lite, Elsie.
Disclaimer: A code was received in order to write this review.
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