When I first saw Wheel World, I certainly was interested. A game of racing on a bike, showing gangs of cycle racers who the new king of the island is. And something about finding the legendary parts to help save the universe. Developer Messhof have certainly found the right gear for this adventure, with it captured brilliantly in its vibrant cel-shaded visuals. Along with some great music.

Wheel World starts with the introduction to Kat. Who has been asleep. Awoken by something happening at the nearby temple, they go investigate. I’m given control here, allowing me to walk to that temple. Such control isn’t only used for this starting section, as once I have the bike, it can be dismounted whenever I feel like to freewheel it around this world. Talking to anyone also requires a dismount, which isn’t as annoying as it sounds.

Once at the temple, I find a bike daemon named Skully who has the task of performing the Great Shift ritual that moves spirits from Wheel World to the moon. After performing the last ritual, they took a bit of a powernap that ended up being a deep sleep. As now they’re late performing the next ritual. The bike they’re possessing is no longer equipped with the needed legendary parts to travel between the two locations. So I’m along for the ride to help recover them.

Riding the bike uses standard racing controls, meaning triggers for accelerating and braking, with a face button for the boost. The rest of the tutorial island introduces the races, finding and equipping parts, and the bell towers. Those bell towers are used to improve the maximum boost that can be used, along with revealing important spots for each section. Important spots can be races, drones, or fast travel points. Until near one, all of those important spots will be shown as question marks.

After a long ride over a bridge, I’m at the main island of Tramonto, where the real game begins. Four important bike gang leaders hold the legendary parts. To get to race them, I need to increase my reputation. Plenty of other bike gangs to challenge for that reputation, with races through the woods, in the city, and across farms and vineyards. It’s a very nicely designed world, with race routes making the most of that world.

The woods is a favourite of mine, with one route using the switchback roads and another on a motocross-like track. Then there’s the marathon races, with the route taking the racers all across a section of this world. Such as starting near the city and heading to a town across the farms for a pint. Whether circuit or marathon racing, there’s shortcuts to learn and obstacles to be aware of. Such as vehicles driving on the roads that can easily put a stop to any speed if they appear at the wrong time.

Every race aside from those of the important leaders comes with four objectives to earn reputation. There’s one for getting a top three finish and one for coming first, which are simple enough to aim for. Then there’s beating a time set by a legendary rider, which provides some challenge. And lastly finding the KAT tokens and winning the race. Those tokens are mostly easy to spot, though some have certainly eluded me.

The customisation of the bike has a profound affect on its stats of power, aero, handling, and grip. Some of the first parts I got were those that increased aero at the cost of handling and grip. I missed corners quite a bit as I took them at a speed greater than the bike could handle. Once I started getting the legendary parts, I used them as soon as. They had a good feel to them, along with having the perk of always charging up the boost. Which I found a nice perk to have.

One particular thing I have to mention is the soundtrack, composed by those of the record label Italians Do It Better. No matter the race, there’s an energetic beat following it. With quite a few being vocal themes that have a nice charm to them. They certainly make the races feel more epic. Even when just cruising freely, there’s tones of lower paced energy found in the music that plays.

Wheel World knows what it wants to be, and that is a bike racer that anyone can enjoy. I’d say it certainly achieves that, with a core loop that keeps the focus on the races. Great, easily learnt controls and customisation for everyone to find their riding style makes Wheel World an easily recommended one by me. It is an easy one to love.

Images Taken From:
Wheel World | Xbox Series S
Wheel World | Xbox Cloud Gaming