I’m always on the lookout for a superb cycling game. We’ve had some okay attempts over the years, but most of them are to do with mountain biking or stunt biking. What I’m really after is a game that channels Skate or Tony Hawk and does what those games did for skateboarding. Wheel World doesn’t quite manage to reach these lofty heights, but it’s still a vibey experience and a neat little adventure in its own right.
The premise is straightforward, if a little quirky: you wake up and immediately meet a bike spirit (called Skully, he’s a massive floating skull) who tells you that he needs to hunt down some legendary bike parts to be able to tackle the Sewer Of Spirits. I won’t spoil what that is exactly, as it’s pretty much the entire finale of the game. It’s your job as the rider of the bike (you’re called Kat), adorned with Skully’s head on the handlebars, to win the legendary bike parts off of a group of famous cyclists across a few different unique areas.
Breaking Down The Gameplay
When it comes to the setting, you’ve got your standard farmland with rolling hills and hay bales, and the busy city full of cars you’ll need to dodge, or the more luxurious neighborhood on the edge of the island. It’s all set across a larger archipelago of islands ripe with different terrain and locales. There’s also a fast travel system using the port-a-loos around the map, which is handy, if a little strange.
All in all, the landscapes aren’t massively inspiring and there isn’t much going on here except for a few hidden chests and the races you need to complete. The game looks very pretty, but it also sent my GPU to the stratosphere - 90% usage on a RTX 4090 for a game of this ilk isn’t healthy. This is probably a pre-release issue or an issue with DirectX, but something to be wary of if you end up playing on PC.
There are a number of races - most against rival bicycle gangs - in each area. These start off relatively simple but grow progressively harder as you move from area to area. At the beginning you won’t need to worry much about what sort of upgrades your bike has, but as you approach the more difficult levels you’ll need to begin customizing your bike for the experience. That might mean changing out the handlebars to provide more grip on a course with rough terrain, or changing out the frame and wheels for more power if one of your opponents is particularly fast on the straights.
Beating races will earn you Reputation, which can be used to purchase better bike parts but also acts as the game’s key progression system. You’ll need a certain amount of Rep before you can progress and collect the legendary parts for Skully by taking on one of the famous cyclists. This might mean you need to complete the same race more than once, and there is wicked satisfaction that comes from finally beating your previous best time on a course and earning that extra little bit of rep. It reminds me a little of the time trials in Gran Turismo - do the race, fail, but then go and tweak a bit of your car (bike) to try again. It doesn’t have the depth, but the idea is there.
That being said, even with all the upgrades and growing challenges - and the finale of the vague narrative that drives you and your bicycle forward - the mechanics become fairly repetitive over the course of the game. There isn’t really enough nuance here to praise the systems deeply, as the game is, of course, quite short. I wasn’t expecting everything and I did indeed not get everything. But that’s okay. It’s still fun for its short lifespan.
By far, one of the best aspects of Wheel World is how the bicycle handles. I love drifting it around corners or using the Drafting mechanic to blast past other opponents (if you come up behind another cyclist, you can use their clean air to get a speed boost). The controls are very simple, but there’s a real weight to the bicycle, and most importantly, you can feel how the upgrades you make to the bike change how it handles.
Just Pure Vibes
After the first couple of hours with Wheel World - the game is probably less than 10 hours in total for 100 percent completion - I just sort of settled in for the ride. The music, an original soundtrack compiled by record label Italians Do It Better, is a proper bop and fits the world’s aesthetic perfectly. I love how the soundtrack changes based on the activity you’re doing, and how the race music and transition between course and open world is so seamless.
The separate districts feel distinct and while they’re not interesting to explore per se, they do provide a pleasant backdrop as you go from race to race. In the end, I was just hunting for more ridiculous bike upgrades, including a frame that replaced my sleek bike with a massive hotdog. Wheel World isn’t everything I’ve ever wanted in a cycling game, but I appreciate all its polish - the sort of chill game you stick on for a couple of hours in the evening, do some races, and call it a day.
Wheel World
WHERE TO PLAY
Welcome to Wheel World, where the fate of the universe rests on your handlebars.You are Kat, a young cyclist with one mission: save Wheel World from total collapse. Explore a stunning open world filled with impressive vistas, hidden secrets, and races that will test your skills. Customize your bike with an endless array of parts, from sleek speedsters to off-road beasts—there’s no limit to how you can ride.Wheel World is packed with things to do:Race and Dominate: Take on elite cycling teams and quirky rivals in high-stakes races where every second counts.Upgrade Your Ride: Scour the world for rare parts to build the ultimate bike, perfectly tailored to your style.Carry Out Your Destiny: Recover your stolen Legendary parts to ultimately perform The Great Shift ritual and save the world. No big deal.All of this is backed by an original soundtrack from Italians Do It Better, pumping energy into every race and moments of breathtaking semi-open world exploration.It’s time to pedal your way to glory, save the spirits of Wheel World, and keep the universe on track. Hop on, ride fast, and don’t look back.
