Game review: Hot Wheels Infinite Rush (Xbox Series X)

 don't know what the first-ever open-world racing game was, but I do remember the earliest one I played was Test Drive Unlimited back in 2006. Thanks to the then-powerful Xbox 360, the game let players explore the beautiful island of Hawaii.

While the Test Drive series hasn't had a great entry in years, the franchise that has popularised the genre ever since is the Forza Horizon series. Forza Horizon started in 2012 and is still going strong in 2026 thanks to the release of Forza Horizon 6.

Well, a new challenger has arrived because Milestone has released Hot Wheels Infinite Rush this year. This game adds a little Hot Wheels flavour to a genre that has mostly stuck with realism and real-life cars instead.

Instead of one big island to explore, Hot Wheels Infinite Rush allows you to drive on four separate islands. You start off being put inside an island called Wheelswood, and this city is occupied by a huge ape!

When you finish races and complete more events, you eventually unlock three more islands to explore. The three other islands are called Tentacle Bay, Gearville, and Drifty Temples. Some other gigantic animals you encounter on these islands include an octopus, a scorpion, and even a huge dragon.

All the animals are based on the toys Hot Wheels have released over the years. They act as obstacle courses as you assemble tracks using orange and red coloured ramps.

The brightly coloured ramps are featured in Hot Wheels Infinite Rush as well, and they offer more unique racing conditions that you don't normally see in more realistic games such as Forza Horizon or Gran Turismo.

Aside from ramps that give you car air time, they also have loop-the-loops that resemble the tracks seen in roller coasters. If you like the unrealism of games like the Burnout series, you will instantly fall in love with the chaotic level design offered here in Hot Wheels Infinite Rush.

Speaking of unrealism, one of the best parts of Hot Wheels Infinite Rush is unlocking all of the wacky car designs based on the toys that the company has released over the years. There are loads of fake muscle cars, rocket cars, Formula 1 cars, and tons more that you can drive in this game. My favourite car design in the game has to be the Lucky Cat vehicle, though!

Despite featuring tons of fake cars, you can unlock some real-life vehicles in this game, too. You will earn Rush Coins while winning races and performing stunts, and you can easily buy more cars at an island's dealership. Overall, the game has around 150 cars you can unlock, with more to come as paid DLC.

In terms of gameplay, the physics in Hot Wheels Infinite Rush are purposely unrealistic because the game tries to push you to use drift and boost constantly. The boost meter fills up pretty quickly, so you can boost past the opponents a lot of the time in this game.

You can also drift steep corners by pressing down on the left trigger. Some cars are better at drifting than others, while some are better equipped for boosting. It's up to you what type of car you like to drive, although some races force you to race as a specific type of vehicle.

As for the tracks, there are boost pads everywhere and loop-the-loops, as I previously mentioned. You can even press the X and B buttons on an Xbox controller to nudge opponents who might be overtaking you.

What I like most about Hot Wheels Infinite Rush is the wide variety of challenges that are on offer here. This game includes standard races, time trials, drift challenges, stunt challenges, photo challenges, and tons more.

Aside from the lengthy single-player campaign, there are lots of other game modes in this game, too. There are online multiplayer races as well as a quick race mode that offers split-screen gameplay.

Another big part of the game is the Creativity Corner. You can edit your car's livery as well as any stickers you want to use. Not to mention, you can also build your own track. The Track Builder is awesome because it's easy to learn, and you can add as many tight turns, obstacles, and loop-the-loops as you want!

Graphically, Hot Wheels Infinite Rush is built using Unreal Engine 5, but the game has a cartoon look to mimic the style of its toy range. On Xbox Series X, the game runs at 4K and 60fps, but PS5 Pro members can run the game at 120fps. Sadly, on Switch 2, the game only runs at 30fps.

Overall, I was pleasantly surprised by what Hot Wheels Infinite Rush has to offer. The single-player campaign has tons of events that offer hours of enjoyable gameplay. Not to mention, the Track Builder is sure to be a fan favourite, as you can make races as chaotic as ever. If you love racing games, be sure to check this one out.