gamesbriefs
10:48in productionCh. 1 · Arcade First/ 10:48 · ceiling 15 min
Racing & sports · Game design

TrackMania Turbo (2016 video game)

Nadeo · 2016

TrackMania Turbo isn’t about winning races—it’s about sharing one car, splitting one screen, and building a track in ten seconds.

TrackMania Turbo is a 2016 arcade racing game by Nadeo. It delivers stunt-focused, high-speed racing across four themed locations—Canyon Grand Drift, Valley Down and Dirty, Rollercoaster Lagoon and International Stadium—with over 200 tracks. It includes a single-player campaign, cooperative Double Driver mode, local split-screen for up to four players on PlayStation 4, Xbox One and PC, and a track editor with random generation.

Racing & sportsGame designCarsVideo gamesAbstractionCars across the network →
Chapters & takeaways4
  1. 0:58
    Arcade First

    It is built to feel like an arcade cabinet: fast, loud, repeatable, and physically immediate.

  2. 2:45
    Four Screens, Four Locations

    Four distinct environments anchor over 200 tracks—and split-screen for four players makes it a living-room racing game, not a solo pursuit.

  3. 5:44
    Co-op Control, Instant Tracks

    Double Driver demands constant negotiation between two players. Random track generation removes friction from creation.

  4. 7:26
    Same Editor, New Dice

    The track editor returns unchanged in function—but its random generation is the only new design layer.

Worth your time?

Yes. Play the whole thing.

4/ 5
What works
  • split-screen four-player mode
  • Double Driver co-op
  • random track generation
  • four-location visual and mechanical variety
What does not
  • online multiplayer
  • narrative campaign
  • vehicle customisation
  • physics-based tuning
Play it if
  • players who value tactile speed
  • players who want shared screen presence
  • players who want low-friction creation
Skip it if
  • players who require online lobbies
  • players who need ranked matchmaking
  • players who expect simulation fidelity
The written brief1 min read

What the game is

TrackMania Turbo is an arcade racing game by Nadeo, released in 2016. It distils the series’ stunt-racing DNA into four themed locations—Canyon Grand Drift, Valley Down and Dirty, Rollercoaster Lagoon and International Stadium—and wraps it in local multiplayer, co-op control, and procedural track creation.

How it actually plays

Players race at very high pace across more than 200 tracks. Stunts are central to movement. The track editor returns, now with random generation. Two players share control of one car in Double Driver. Four players race locally in split-screen on PlayStation 4, Xbox One and PC.

What works

The split-screen four-player mode works as a rare console and PC implementation in 2016. Double Driver forces real-time coordination without abstraction. Random track generation delivers instant replayability. The four-location structure gives clear visual and mechanical variety without bloating the loop.

What does not

The game does not support online multiplayer beyond what the material states. It does not offer a narrative campaign. It does not include vehicle customisation, damage modelling, or physics-based tuning. It does not extend the series’ core loop with new structural mechanics—it refines and packages it for accessibility.

Who it is for, and who it is not

It is for players who value tactile speed, shared screen presence, and low-friction creation. It is not for players who require online lobbies, ranked matchmaking, career modes, or simulation fidelity.

Is it worth your time

Yes—if you want fast, shared, stunt-driven racing that prioritises immediate physical feedback over simulation or narrative. No—if you need deep progression, realism, or online-only multiplayer.

Same strand · Racing & sports4 of 74
11:06
1080° SnowboardingNintendo · 19981080° Snowboarding is a Nintendo 64 snowboarding game released in 1998. Players control one of five snowboarders in third-person across eight levels. Core gameplay splits between racing (Race, Time Attack, 2 Players, Match Race) and trick-based scoring (Trick Attack, Contest). Tricks — 24 standard and 5 secret — fall into grab or spin categories and require circular stick motions plus R, Z, and B inputs. Scoring rewards complexity, combos, and timing. Characters and boards have distinct stats affecting technique, speed, weight, balance, and edge control. The game emphasises realistic physics and responsive controls.
10:30
Carmageddon II: Carpocalypse NowStainless Games · 1998Carmageddon II: Carpocalypse Now is a 1998 Windows vehicular combat sequel developed by Stainless Games. It uses hardware acceleration to power a world-first fully featured physics engine, enabling detailed vehicle deformation — including fenders, spoilers, and catastrophic splitting — and replaces the original’s ‘stealworthy cars’ mechanic with universal purchase of wrecked vehicles.
10:22
Colin McRae Rally (1998 video game)Codemasters · 1998Colin McRae Rally (1998) is a Codemasters rally simulation built around the 1998 World Rally Championship. It structures progression across three difficulty tiers — Novice (F2 front-wheel-drive), Intermediate (WRC four-wheel-drive), and Expert (Group B classics) — each with distinct cars and increasing challenge. Colin McRae and Nicky Grist provide authentic voice work, with McRae serving as the tutorial instructor. The game supports LAN multiplayer for up to eight players and two-player split-screen. A cheat-enabled Easter egg parodies the Barney and Betty Hill alien abduction incident. It was distributed in North America by Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment.
9:46
Dance Dance Revolution (1998 video game)Konami · 1998Dance Dance Revolution (1998) is a Konami arcade rhythm game that turns footwork into score. Players match scrolling arrows with steps on a dance pad. Timing judgments affect a life meter — the Dance Gauge — whose depletion ends the song. Combo tracking, step counts, and letter grades follow each performance. It runs under Konami’s Bemani brand. It has no narrative, no progression beyond song selection, and no solo longevity without hardware or social context.
Up next in Games

Ultima Online

Origin Systems · 1997 · 9:16

Origin Systems' 1997 fantasy MMORPG, its first persistent online world and partly a social and economic experiment.

Play nextBack to Racing & sports
9:16