THQ Nordic has announced a sequel to its immensely popular 2018 smash-’em-up racing title Wreckfest, unsurprisingly set to be called Wreckfest 2.
The announcement was part of its 2024 THQ Nordic Digital Showcase which was otherwise underwhelming for racing game fans. Wreckreation when, exactly? However, we did get to see some of the game in action and what seems to be a major hint towards a promised “reimagined career mode”.
Although not enormously long, at just 90 seconds, the clip revolved around a character talking to, and tending to, his not-a-Mustang after a few bruising encounters on the demolition derby scene. That largely centered on his robust language and red mist driving:
This all makes it seem as if there’ll be a character aspect in the sequel. While not exactly missing from the first game, which simply had you driving various different challenges (usually last-man-standing) in different cars that you built and upgraded, a more story-led mode is an intriguing prospect.
Of course the main feature of Wreckfest, right back to its days in early access as Next Car Game, is the systematic dismantling of vehicles, and developer Bugbear promises a complete overhaul in this department.
The physics engine has been rebuilt to “take full advantage of modern hardware”, so if you’re hoping for a PlayStation 4 or Xbox One release you’re going to be out of luck. There’s a “more intricate” simulation for vehicle component damage, changes to the armor and damage system and “higher crash fidelity”.
You can, of course, customize your cars too. There were some pretty interesting options in the original title, and Bugbear says that Wreckfest 2 features a new and “incredibly powerful” customization tool. Players on Steam will also have mod support.
Online modes will have a new skill-based matchmaking system, and there’ll be a local split-screen mode — which we assume to be two-player — for some multiplayer carnage at home. New special challenges with “unconventional vehicles” (similar, we’d imagine, to the combine harvester and sofa vehicles in the first) and time-limited tournaments will also be available.
There’s still plenty we don’t yet know about Wreckfest 2, including a launch date, so watch this space for all the latest!
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