This week I take a look at the latest top-down racing game to hit Steam in the way of Circuit Superstars from Original Fire Games and Square Enix. Set in the vein of the classic top-down racing games such as Micro Machines, Circuit Superstars verges more on to a serious racer's line than a fun afternoon party game. I got to race the Panther and the 60s Grand Prix car in this playthrough and was surprised at the difference between just those to cars, let alone the other four models of cars.
There are no power-ups in Circuit superstars. However, there is damage and fuel consumption and tyre wear. This doesn't add too much to the shorter races, but I raced a 20 lap race in this playthrough, forcing a pit stop for every one. Damage played a huge part in the race then as every little mistake felt more serious. Even though I did make many crashes during the race, none were terrible enough to cause car handling problems. However, with five laps to go, I rear-ended another car a couple of times which caused a lot of damage and made my steering feel a little off, and smoke started coming from the engine.
Circuit Superstars is a great take on the Micro Machines, top-down racer with beautiful graphics and a special something under the hood in the way of a more serious racer. Driving lines matter, and rubber forms on those driving lines as the race progresses. There is a lot to look forward to in Circuit Superstars with the bones of an enjoyable game, especially when you are through online and four-player local game-play. Still, then when you consider it has only just hit early access, it feels like the future is very bright for it, as long as it gains a big enough audience.
Grab Circuit Superstars on Steam in early access right now.