Like many people of a similar age, I was used to making my own entertainment when I was a kid. Of course, back then, all this was fields, the world was black and white and every car had a man with a red flag in front of it, but I digress.
One of the ways we used to entertain ourselves was by playing with toy cars, and alongside Hot Wheels, the Matchbox range was a real crowd pleaser. Well, it’s now time for the youth of today to relive the fun we used to have playing in the dirt in a virtual way with the launch of Matchbox Driving Adventures on the Xbox.
Thanks to Outright Games and Casual Brothers, what we have is a racing game for the younger player – so probably just right for me in my dotage! So, let’s dive into the world of Matchbox toy cars and see what the video game has to offer, shall we?
There is never really any story to a racing game, and so it proves here. While there is an adventure mode to have a look at (and this will be where you spend the majority of your time, unless you really like racing), this is more of a collection of missions than a proper narrative. However, if this approach is good enough for Forza Motorsport, I’m sure it is good enough here.
Graphically, Matchbox Driving Adventures looks exactly as you would expect a game aimed at the younger end of the market to look – big, bold colours, lots of flashy effects and the Matchbox car you happen to be driving at the time front and centre on the screen.
However, this is one of my gripes and you can have any camera view you like, as long as it is from above and behind the car you are driving. You can vary the distance you view the car from, but that’s about it – and as I prefer the front bumper view when driving, this made me sad. Still, I know a lot of players find it easier if they can see their car as they are driving. One last gripe about the camera before I move on and when you win a race, the camera follows your car around a bit, but when it goes through a narrow bit of the track, the camera is thrust into the vehicle and the engine noise becomes deafening – this is a little off putting to say the least.
Thankfully, the rest of the time the sound is fine, with every mission introduced with a voice over. The issue is that this same voice keeps popping up in the events you take part in, telling you to “Get the car in the air to earn boost!”, and so on. This gets very old, very quickly. Other than this, the engine sounds are passable, the music is inoffensive enough, and all in all it should appeal to the target audience.
Now, on to the actual racing action, and we will make a start on the racing side of the game, as this is pretty simple and straightforward. You can choose to race on a total of 14 different tracks, each with four variations, so there is a decent amount of content to have a crack at. The various biomes that you encounter all have their own unique look and feel, and even hazards; from crocodiles lunging out of a swamp, through to octopi at the beach, you do need to be careful when driving about.
You can also choose to race solo, or against up to three friends in local multiplayer, and the good news is that split screen racing is back! The multiplayer works well, as does the single player, and when you have beat the single races, there are also some championships to dive into and try to conquer. With some of the many achievements tied to this mode, it is worth a dabble.
The big mode focus is Adventure Mode, as the chief of the Matchbox Adventure Squad has heard we are the best driver around, and to prove it has come up with a series of challenges. There are a few different ones to choose from, from straightforward races through to missions like collecting a load of seashells before a sandstorm arrives, or crashing into a miscreant in order to stop them. The modes are quite different, based in different parts of the map. To get to a new zone for the first time, you have to drive there down a road filled with other road users. And don’t think you can take a shortcut either – after all if Forza Horizon 5 has taught us anything, it is that driving on the road is where the real fun is to be had! (/sarcasm)
As you would expect, there are a surprising range of Matchbox favourite cars to unlock and drive, ranging from fire engines and mail vans through to SUVs and sports cars; each car available in a variety of cool colours. However, each mission seems to have a car tied to it, so you really only get to drive your chosen vehicle in the road sections, which kind of defeats the point. Still, there are a plethora of missions to go at, and each one is quite different from the previous one, which means you shouldn’t run out of things to do. And with medals awarded for each, trying to get a perfect score is quite a challenge.
Sadly, the controls of the cars are a little wayward – when the narrator tells you to “Drift to earn boost!”, this is surprisingly difficult, as you’ll normally drift into a fence and be stopped dead. In the middle of a close run race, this is not ideal! The brakes don’t seem to do much either, whilst the boost that you earn makes the car nigh on uncontrollable. Need more? Well, when you go into reverse the camera swings round to show you the front of the car, but the controls don’t reverse, which makes for no end of confusion. As a driving game, Matchbox Driving Adventures is a bit ropey. Unless I’m looking at it from the wrong angle and younger gamers find it easier to drive this way…
As a proposition for adults then, Matchbox Driving Adventures crashes out fairly early. The kids it is aimed at may well find it a lot more appealing though – it is certainly colourful, bright and speedy enough to hold the attention.
Matchbox Driving Adventures: A Childhood Dream Comes True – https://www.thexboxhub.com/matchbox-driving-adventures-a-childhood-dream-comes-true/
Buy Matchbox Driving Adventures on Xbox – https://www.xbox.com/en-gb/games/store/matchbox-driving-adventures/9n5w6vtn0njv
