This new Hot Wheels game reminds me of my childhood

Maybe I'm still high off that Barbie buzz and thinking about toy-based properties, but I just saw the trailer for the latest Hot Wheels video game, and...I'm kinda excited? Check it out for yourself above.

The game is Hot Wheels Unleashed 2: Turbocharged, and it's the latest from developer Milestone, an Italian studio known primarily for making solid if forgettable racing games like the Ride series. Milestone first took on the Hot Wheels franchise in 2021 with Hot Wheels Unleashed, a game that got okay reviews—the Metacritic score averages around 75 across all the different platforms it was released on—but has a Very Positive user review impression on Steam.

So why does Hot Wheels Unleashed 2 interest me? Well, besides the nostalgia of having grown up with dozens of these toy cars, I think the big reason is that it reminds me so much of a beautiful, modern reimagining of Micro Machines for the NES. I spent tons of time huddled in front of a TV with my siblings playing that game and marveling at how it let you race toy cars through real life locations like a backyard and a game room with a pool table.

Both Hot Wheels Unleashed and the Turbocharged sequel seem to capture that same feeling, and the new game adds in a lot more customization of the toy cars. Will it actually be good? Who knows! I'm looking forward to finding out though.

Hot Wheels Unleashed 2: Turbocharged is launching on October 16, 2023 for Nintendo Switch, PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X and S. We'll have a more in-depth look at the game on TapTap around launch time, so stay tuned to see if it lives up to its potential.