The Best Vehicular Combat Games: 6 Must-Play Titles

Driving games can seem a little dry and technical, especially if you’re only familiar with simulators aimed at enthusiasts. Thankfully there are titles that emphasize weapon-fueled chaotic fun over realistic physics. Here are the best vehicular combat games that blow away the competition.

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Mario Kart 8 Deluxe

The Mario Kart series has always offered players brief bursts of racing havoc, and its latest iteration is no different. Gorgeous visuals go hand in hand with hilarious, sometimes frustrating power-ups that let you thwart your opponents’ attempts to take the lead.

From homing missile-style red shells to slippery bananas and lightning bolts, there’s more weaponry on offer in Mario Kart 8 Deluxe than you might expect from a game that’s suitable for players of all ages. With the Battle Mode included, there’s even a dedicated way to enjoy some family-friendly carnage outside of the standard races.

Dead Roadkill Highway

The name of this game leaves players in no doubt about its content; this is a single-player infinite runner-style racer that tasks you with taking on hordes of zombies while also avoiding obstacles that are scattered in the road ahead.

Thankfully the task is made easier as you can use guns to blast away at the undead and stay alive for longer. You can play this free title at https://smartdrivinggames.com/ along with loads of other enjoyable racing games.

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FlatOut 4: Total Insanity

After a few miss-hits, the FlatOut series is back on track with its latest entry, which combines crash-focused combat with stunt jumps and an impressive damage engine that a lot of players will appreciate.

Careful use of turbo boosts will give players the opportunity to smash their opponents to smithereens, whether on race tracks or in bespoke arenas. Meanwhile, the stunt segments are a fun diversion for those who want to mix skill with randomness for some often hilarious results.

Carmageddon: Reincarnation

This revival of the 1997 classic vehicular combat racer Carmageddon was released in 2015 and managed to do a decent job of bringing back a lot of the classic elements that made the series popular in the first place. So if you don’t feel like dealing with the compatibility issues associated with running a 20-year-old game, give this version a try.

The bloody, adult gameplay is intact, along with the crazy cars and crunching crashes. It’s not as focused as some of the other games on this list, but it’s well worth checking out if you’re at all interested in the continuing history of this genre.

Death Rally

Switching the perspective to an overhead view, Death Rally is a bombastic vehicle battler that originally appeared back in the mid-1990s and has since been revived as a mobile game for iOS.

After more than 20 million downloads worldwide, and positive reviews from critics, it’s obvious that this has become a hit since its launch in 2012. It also benefits from extra challenges, including a boss battle mode where you get to take on super-tough enemies and see if you can claim victory by whatever means necessary.

Mad Max

This is a little different from the more straightforward racers that fill the rest of the list, as it’s technically a deep open-world action-adventure game, rather than solely being focused on driving. But since the movie series on which it’s based is packed with automotive action set pieces, it’s no surprise that you’ll spend most of your playtime behind the wheel of a tricked-out muscle car.

Blazing across a post-apocalyptic landscape while playing as the titular hero is immense fun in its own right, while the great mix of story missions, car customizations, and random encounters helps to keep things interesting.

Developed by the same people behind the successful Just Cause franchise, Mad Max took critics by surprise and earned praise for its variety and replayability. So for those who want a driving game that stands out from the crowd, focuses on vehicular combat and isn’t Grand Theft Auto V, this could be a good alternative to consider, especially as it is often available at a discount price for PC and home consoles alike.

Image Source: Pixabay