We were lucky enough to get our hands on one of Secret Mode’s upcoming games earlier this week, and what a treat it was. Make Way, scheduled to release later this year is a local multiplayer racing game, but it’s not like any racing game you’ve played before. Fast-paced, riotous and as chaotic as a pile-up on the M1, we’ve had a great deal of fun trying out Make Way, and we can’t wait to be let loose to play more.
Developed by Ice Beam and published by Secret Mode, Make Way isn’t just about racing around tracks; it’s also about building them. But not carefully and meticulously: each player picks one piece (or obstacle) and quickly places it down before the race begins. And so begins multiple rounds of racing and building, with players placing more track parts and making the course more chaotic as you go along.
The fun is in the chaos. Racing a short, straight track is fine, but once you’ve added traffic-filled roundabouts, obstacles, ice-laden road sections and giant fans to blow your cars off the track, you’re going to be in for a rough ride. Add to that the fact that each racer can collect karting-style pick-ups along the way, like goo guns to fire at other players, and you’ve got the perfect recipe for absolute carnage.
If you fall off the track – which we promise you will – you’ll simply get placed back on at the next checkpoint. There are bonus points to be had for making it from one checkpoint to the next without falling off, and more bonus points for being the first player to cross a checkpoint. It sort-of is a race, then, but being in the lead doesn’t always matter. This is the sort of game that can be completely turned around at the last minute.
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As you play more Make Way, you’ll unlock more track pieces and obstacles, and so the more you play, the more chaotic things will get. We tried a game with everything unlocked and can confirm it’s absolute mania. Sure, you and your fellow players could agree to stick to building a nice, simple track – but where’s the fun in that? Make Way’s at its best when you all choose to be utterly evil to each other, placing impossible corners loaded with hazards. You’re probably going to fail yourself, but it’s still hilarious seeing your friends’ cars go flying off the track.
What we really like about Make Way is that no two games are ever going to be the same. Whereas in typical kart racing games you’ll always get that one player who knows each track like the back of their hand, that’s not going to happen here. Every course will be completely different and you’ve only got the length of one match to learn it. Everyone’s on an even footing, then, with an unlimited supply of unique tracks to keep you entertained.
While we played Make Way locally, you can play online, too, so you’re not limited to having friends or family at hand. Up to four players can join in one game, or if you want to play by yourself you can team up with bots instead. Clearly it’s not the intended way to play, but it’s nice that it’s an option.
There’s no release date just yet for Make Way, but it’s expected to launch later this year. It’ll be available on PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, Switch and PC. If fast-paced party games are your thing, make sure you’ve got this one in your sights.
