Wreckreation lets you create your own custom racing experience

Wreckreation is already shaping up to be an incredibly interesting, and altogether unique take on the arcade racing experience. This is due, in part, to its generous emphasis on customization at every level, particularly when it comes to creating wild and wacky races. At PAX East 2023, I had the opportunity to get some hands-on time with Wreckreation, and was delighted to see some of the many ways in which Wreckreation lets you build, revise, and adjust custom races on the fly.

As you drive around the large, 400 kilometer open world sandbox called MixWorld, you’re able to adjust things whenever you feel like it including the design of your car from its paint color to its wheels to its engine sounds, with all car customization options available to you from the jump. You can also adjust things within MixWorld itself like the weather. For example, if it’s sunny but you’d rather drive around in the rain, you can quickly implement that change.

You can also add structures to mix things up even further such as jumps, stunt ramps, loops, and moving obstacles. I wasn’t able to dig too deep into how off-the-wall you can get in placing these obstacles, but it was noted that you’ll be able to place them almost anywhere in MixWorld not just in race areas but also off-road areas, or in a verticality sense by building ramps up into the sky.

Prior to the start of a race, I had the opportunity to set up a few of these obstacles including multiple jump ramps and barriers to try and force NPCs to attempt a starting jump with me. The ramps weren’t positioned correctly the first time so the big starting jump wasn’t as cool as I’d envisioned. Fortunately, it was quick and easy to go back and adjust things as needed to make it work.

Something I found interesting as it was pointed out to me during a race was being able to open the customization settings while still driving and make adjustments right then and there without having to put too much of a pause on what I was doing. Something else I found interesting is the fact that you can note only create things on your own as the ‘GameDJ’ but also collaboratively with your friends online by granting them ‘Guest DJ’ powers.

I didn’t have the opportunity to do this at PAX East 2023 either, but can easily see myself taking advantage of that opportunity in the future to jointly concoct some of the strangest races imaginable. From the time I had with it, I walked away feeling like Wreckreation reflects the developers’ pedigree quite well, with developer Three Fields Entertainment being composed of several former members of Burnout studio, Criterion Games.

If you’re looking for an arcade racing game where you can build out your wildest races imaginable, or even just something that’s fun to race around in regardless of customization, Wreckreation is definitely one to watch. Currently, Wreckreation is expected to be released sometime later this year. To stay up-to-date on announcements be sure to add the game to your Steam wishlist and follow Three Fields Entertainment on social media.

Morgan Shaver

Senior Editor

Morgan is a writer from the frozen wastelands of Maine who enjoys metal music, kpop, horror, and indie games. They're also a Tetris fanatic who's fiercely competitive in games like Tetris 99... and all games in general. But mostly Tetris. You can follow Morgan on Twitter @Author_MShaver.