Super Woden GP 2 Review – Switch

It is easy to set Super Woden GP 2 aside as another Neo Drift Out clone and use this review merely to assess if it has any merit on that assumption alone. But apart from its similar racing style, Super Woden GP 2’s core concept taps into a completely different source: Gran Turismo. Particularly the first installment of the PlayStation classic.

Let’s start with the most obvious and objectively noticeable influence, Neo Drift Out. Like many other indie retro-like games, Super Woden GP 2 tries to ride the nostalgia train by presenting itself in a similar isometric style and physics as SNK’s arcade race classics Neo Drift Out and OverTop (which are essentially the same game). Although it steers away from using obvious pixel art, it has a very peculiar lo-fi feel to it that leans towards pixel art but isn’t, really. The way the track glides across the screen, game information overlays are presented and warnings for upcoming corners pop into the screen; For arcade race fans (and SNK fans in particular) this should feel very familiar.

As said, the progression system in Super Woden GP 2 taps from a completely difference source, the afore mentioned Gran Turismo. The game is overloaded on content, with dozens of tracks and 180 cars. All this content is presented very similar to Sony’s PS1 classic Gran Turismo. Even the ‘overworld’ map must feel very familiar to gamers that sunk hundreds of hours in GT1. You have a garage to manage and upgrade your cars, and dealerships to buy cars from. Dealerships are split by worldly regions from which they originate. Just like in GT1. Thank the gaming lords that the driver licenses are nowhere to be found, though.

Super Woden GP 2 has championship, rally, time trial, and ‘Weekend’ modes. Although most speak for themselves, ‘Weekend’ mode offers individual races that you can only participate in if you have the specific car. Most races in Super Woden GP 2 are bound to at least one restriction. Most of the time it’s the horsepower of your car. As you progress and build your car collection, you can revisit championships and rallies and replay them with different cars that meet the race’s restrictions.

Super Woden GP 2‘s actual driving sticks to the same template as Neo Drift Out as well. The physics are heavily accentuated by drifting. Slamming the ‘binarilary’ operated brakes (if only the Switch had analogue triggers) your car immediately breaks out into a nice drift with a lot of smoke on the side. The game ensures the track moves smoothly with your car, zooming in and out to give you the opportunity to see corners in time, just to make it a bit less sweaty. It’s hard to pinpoint whether the car models are 3D modeled or use pre-rendered sprites. Regardless, it is well done, and the many cars available are very recognizable and highly detailed. The trackside details are simple albeit authentically set-dressed for both a 90s arcade game as well as a 90s racing event, so it visually hits all the right cords for me.

At any given race, 12 cars can be on the track at the same time, and you can expect some pushing and shoving. At regular difficulty, the game offers a fair bit of challenge, but since Super Woden GP 2 follows Gran Turismo’s progression mechanics quite closely, getting your car just within the limits of the race restrictions is fundamental to getting your car across the finish line first.

The problem Super Woden GP 2 consequently is the linearity of its seemingly open progression structure. You see, you need stars to open up races, which you earn by winning races. The number of stars needed to unlock new races is so carefully measured that you have to follow the path of competing in available events and completely maximize your results to even unlock anything. When you make a mistake by investing in the wrong car, you have to grind the already completed championships and weekend events to build a cash stash vast enough to become competitive (again).

It takes away some of the joy of toying around with all sorts of cars and upgrades and gives you the necessity to take the one and only correct way to provide what the progression scheme demands of you. To an extent, it really takes its toll on my enjoyment of the game. The game offers more than enough content, with dozens of events and cars that should provide you with the freedom to toy around, but Super Woden GP 2 just wants you to do what it wants you to do, unfortunately.