HOT WHEELS Infinite Rush Review

HOT WHEELS Infinite Rush takes toy racing into an open world.

Hot Wheels' association with Milestone has been a significant part of that reputation, and Milestone has become one of the most reliable names in modern racing games. When the studio landed the license in 2021, Hot Wheels Unleashed proved a toy-based racer can be more than just nostalgia.

Its arcade handling, ridiculous speed, toy-like physics, and magnificent orange tracks created a racing experience true to the brand, while still offering plenty for experienced racers to learn. The sequel built on those foundations, and Milestone is taking a far bigger step with HOT WHEELS Infinite Rush. Instead of maintaining the action on specialized courses and recognizable real-world play areas, Infinite Rush takes the series to four open-world islands.

Open-world racers like Forza Horizon inspire the idea, but the main difference is that this universe is still rooted in the dream of being a miniature Hot Wheels car.

Milestone’s goal isn’t realism. It’s the feeling you get when you pick up a diecast vehicle, put it on an imaginary metropolis, and decide where you want to drive next. This is what makes Infinite Rush such a fun evolution, even if its open-world structure exposes faults the more focused Unleashed model didn’t. HOT WHEELS Infinite Rush isn’t a narrative-driven game, and that’s a good thing.

No elaborate plot pulls your focus away from the core fantasy. Instead, progression comes from exploring the islands, finding activities, challenging rivals, acquiring vehicles, and ultimately beating the Rush Master linked to each location. The four islands form the basis of progression, and you unlock experience as you work through events and boss fights.

It gives the game a little bit of purpose, without assuming that a toy car racer needs a big story. As you face challenges and grow your collection, you are effectively developing your Rush Squad. The roving Daredevil enemies are especially fun, since beating them can reward you with their cars, giving you another reason to explore.

It’s a nice little loop: you see something fascinating out on the road, you go check it out, you complete the task, and maybe leave with another car for your garage. The biggest change to Infinite Rush is apparent from the first time you hit the road. The game takes the fast-paced arcade base of Hot Wheels Unleashed and puts it in a world you can explore freely.

Instead of choosing a race and going straight to a circuit, you can spend time driving through cities, hills, roads, jumps, and giant Hot Wheels-themed scenery. Collectibles, events, rivals, stunt activities, drift challenges, and tons of distractions begging for your attention. That freedom is one of the game's greatest assets. You can designate an event as a waypoint, then ignore it if a Hot Wheels emblem catches your eye, a bunch of gears materializes nearby, or a Daredevil challenge seems more enticing.

And big environmental displays generate fascination, too. You can pause to see what is happening, like a giant gorilla breaking through a structure, a big creature destroying a lighthouse, or another insane Hot Wheels set piece. It depicts the childish fantasy of an open toy-world, surprisingly well. The driving itself stays deliberately arcadey.

These cars aren’t intended to act like realistic representations of their real-world counterparts.

They look like diecast toys come to life. They are quick, light, bouncy, and sometimes erratic. Like a genuine Hot Wheels car that may fly off a makeshift track if you misjudge its launch, a car might flip over if it hits a wall or lands improperly from a jump. This toy-like physics system gives the race personality. Driving is based on boosting, drifting, wide curves, jumps, sideswipes, and speed management. 

Drifter vehicles are particularly rewarding, as you can manage a slide and then combine it with a boost to make a curve feel great. Speeders have a different cadence, with their boosting behavior urging you to manage a longer burst, rather than continuously popping tiny boosts. And rounding out the four classes are Versatile and Titan trucks. This isn't just cosmetic, as different events favor different types, pushing you to keep a versatile four-car Rush Squad.

The opportunity to switch between your chosen cars while you explore is another nice touch. Instead of returning to a menu every time you need a different vehicle for an event, you can switch on the fly. This fits the open-world idea, since the world is always urging you to adapt. A straight high-speed event might favor a Speeder, whereas a complex course could make a Drifter much more enticing.

It’s also about how seamlessly exploration and competition merge in the experience. Unusually, you are forced into one thing for a long time. Finish a race, and you can go straight back to free driving, hunt for gears, look for another event, or test a different car. It makes the world feel less like a menu of different ethnicities and more like one big playground.

 This method is especially handy for shorter sessions, as even a short trip can lead to a collectible, a new challenge, or a useful discovery. The four-class system adds more meaning to the collection than just amassing a lot of good-looking models. A car that looks awesome might not be the right car for the given event; therefore, part of the evolution is testing.

One reason the Rush Squad system works is that it encourages you to build preferences while keeping alternatives ready. This makes collecting feel productive without turning the garage into an overly complex management simulator.

HOT WHEELS Infinite Rush has no traditional puzzle or battle system; the closest thing is the various racing and stunt challenges you can find on the islands. The standard races best show what this game has to offer. You race against others, pick a suitable car, and deal with boosts, tight turns, obstacles, and the strange physics.

Other activities are less reliably successful.

Drift challenges are fun because they give direct feedback on the handling model, and timed events can create enjoyable pressure. Some stunt challenges feel a bit too simplistic, since slamming into objects under a time limit rarely offers much complexity. Tasks like hitting tires or maintaining combos can also feel less satisfying than chaining successful drifts. In some circumstances, these challenges can force you off your desired path.

Another mixed element is the difficulty curve. Medium can feel like a walkover, and Hard can still let you win fairly easily. Very Hard is a much more meaningful task, but it can be very taxing. A cut corner or a misjudged obstacle can end a race. That roughness may appeal to competitive racers, but it can also be unpleasant when the mechanics can already produce unexpected collisions.

HOT WHEELS Infinite Rush doesn’t have the standard character XP system, so there’s no typical level-grinding loop. Instead, you will proceed by completing events, collecting gears, earning credits, unlocking vehicles, defeating Daredevil rivals, and progressing through the island's key challenges. This works better for the game than a traditional RPG-style growth mechanism.

The point is that practically everything you do feeds back into the circle of gathering and inquiry. Finish a race, and you get currency; complete tasks and you unlock extra content; beat a competitor and you get another car for your collection. That means growth rarely feels divorced from the core fantasy. You're not grinding levels just to make numbers go up; you're completing activities because they help broaden what you can drive and find.

Visually, HOT WHEELS Infinite Rush knows exactly what it needs to be. The cars seem more like small diecast models than genuine vehicles, and that difference is crucial. The small scale, exaggerated environments, orange track pieces, large set pieces, and vivid scenery evoke a toy world that has suddenly become explorable.

The four islands also provide some welcome visual variety to the game.

Wheelswood is a welcoming metropolitan setting and a good start. Tentacle Bay is more about weird scenery than off-road. Gearville is less successful, with a muddier presentation and multilayered layout that can confuse players while navigating. That said, the industrial port section has character. The centerpiece is Drifty Temples, a Japanese-inspired course with meandering roads, drifting sections, and mountain beauty that feels like a reward for progressing through the game.

The sound design supports the toy-world character and doesn't try to make the cars feel like real racing hardware. For the most part, the presentation is lively and entertaining, reflecting the lively environs and extravagant driving. One of the most important aspects is that the sound contributes to the impression that you are driving through a Hot Wheels playset rather than a typical road racing scenario.

Infinite Rush strikes a balance between relaxed exploration and competitive racing. This balance lets players enjoy the game casually while still offering enough challenge to keep serious racers engaged for extended periods. HOT WHEELS Infinite Rush is not a direct continuation of Milestone's Hot Wheels concept; it is an extremely enjoyable addition to the series.

Entering a community that was open to the public was always going to be challenging. Unlike Unleashed, which placed greater emphasis on racing and gave the impression that everything was purpose-built, Infinite Rush must populate four islands with activities of varying quality. At times, navigation can be aggravating, and some tasks feel repetitive.

Going to events some distance away is harder than it should be because there is no reliable system for rapid transport.

In addition, the menu system feels slower and clunkier than it should, especially when you are customizing cars one at a time for the first time. This would make managing a large garage much simpler if you could make specific improvements across an entire collection more effectively. Photo mode is another missed opportunity, since the world constantly presents moments worth preserving.

Nevertheless, the open-world idea would feel even more complete if you could simply take pictures while you explore the environment. Regarding the Nintendo Switch 2, loading times could take up to one minute, which would disrupt the flow between free exploration and racing. This problem is specific to a certain platform.

It shouldn't be applied worldwide, at least not based on the evidence presented here, which doesn't suggest the behavior is consistent across all versions. The fundamental attraction is hard to argue against, even with these flaws. While you are driving toward a goal, you might get distracted by a collectible, engage in a battle with a competitor, find a new car, and then spend another hour simply appreciating the environment around you.

This spontaneity is what the open-world method delivers for its participants. In addition, the official design supports online multiplayer and split-screen gameplay for four players on supported systems. At the same time, the enhanced Track Builder gives you an extra reason to keep playing after you complete the main progression.

Hot Wheels lovers, diecast collectors, lifelong Hot Wheels fans, families, and anyone who enjoys arcade racing will find plenty to like here. Its collection loop and whimsical atmosphere make it easy to return to, but lackluster activities and navigational issues keep it from becoming the open-world racer it should be.

When you leave a session, you will often be thinking about the car you are going to unlock next. This strongly suggests Milestone has mastered the most important aspect of the Hot Wheels experience.