With an army of spinoffs and even a potential TV series with Henry Cavill on the way, the Warhammer 40,000 universe can be a bit intimidating. Thankfully, publisher Plaion and developer Caged Element Inc. have announced a free-to-play “high-Orktane” combat racer called Speed Freeks that should serve as a low-stakes entry point for those who have been hesitant. It’s not quite like anything we’ve seen from the world of Warhammer so far, as it pits players against each other in explosive 16-player battle races that feature a cartoonish art style and noisy heavy metal guitars. It’s more Twisted Metal than tabletop, and you can see it in the Speed Freeks gameplay trailer from today’s Skulls Showcase below.
Plaion and Caged Element say that players can expect various vehicle classes with seven unique vehicles to choose from as they learn and master Speed Freeks’ different fiery modes. Some of these modes include the point-capture-based Chase Mode and an escort mode called Convoy Mode. While we’re still waiting for other Warhammer 40,000 projects like Space Marine 2, Boltgun, and Rogue Trader, you can actually hop into a Speed Freeks alpha test right now. The test period is only available on Steam and allows players to try out Chase Mode ahead of an official launch that will happen at an unspecified point in the future.
Speed Freeks is only confirmed to come to PC via Steam right now, but you can stay tuned for any future updates.