Reckless Racing 2 Review

A far cry from racing sims, Reckless Racing 2 injects giant thrills into miniature racing. Standing on the shoulders of the original, it attempts to bring the fun of classic racing games to the small screen. When we reviewed Reckless Racing in 2010, it couldn’t quite get into top gear. Can Reckless Racing 2 get a better drive?

Career mode offers new cars and upgrades to fill your garage as you earn prize money, and you'll need them too, as each race has its own entry requirements you'll have to match in order to get a race.

The driving technique is what really sets this game apart, though, as you finely balance the benefits of a quickly taken full grip corner with a rash sideways drift. Controls are fully customisable, though for us the default left/right buttons worked much better than the tricky onscreen steering wheel.

Tracks are rendered beautifully, with roadside cones and fences sent flying as you let the back end kick out (perhaps a little too much) on the corners. The cars' handling is varied too, changing dramatically as you make the transition from sand to tarmac, for example.

The dynamic difficulty setting gives just the right amount of fight in the on-track opponents. If you're constantly surprised by corners, driver assists such as racing line, pace notes and mini-map help you see what's coming.

Arcade mode's 40 races put you in a variety of different cars and tracks, while online multiplayer is also on hand.

In each race you start at the back, jostling for position and vying for the inside line to scrape the paint off the opponents' doors and hopefully steal a place or two as well.

The tracks aren't long, and each race is no more than a minute or two at most. Reckless Racing 2 offers quick-fire, high octane thrills that keep you coming back for just one more race.