Summary

After observing that Hill Climb Racing spent several weeks in the top ten apps in the Google Play Store I decided to see for myself what all the fuss was about. If you’ve also been curious about this game: read on!

Test device: LG Optimus Speed
Android version: 4.1.2

Hill Climb Racing has been occupying the top ten app chart for a while now. This 2D game is all about getting vehicles (the quality of which increases as you play) as far as you possibly can on various maps, collecting coins along the way (by ways of performing stunts or completing levels).

The first vehicle at you’re given to train with is a small Jeep, so go ahead and terrorise the neighbourhood! Driving the Jeep is simple enough: the gas pedal is on the right and the brakes are on the left (sounds familiar, right? just like in a real car). Physics are a little tricky as this little Jeep accelerates rather slowly, doesn’t do well with bumps in the road (and there are plenty of these, seeing as the setting is the countryside) and it seems to be equipped with summer tires, meaning it doesn’t take much to start rolling backwards down a hill, even when you’re pushing down on the gas pedal full force. You’re also likely to stay stuck as soon as the tank is empty and get stuck in a rut, erm, hole within the blink of an eye.

You will be sorely tempted to purchase a new vehicle/an upgrade using the money from the coins you’ve collected.
Here’s an overview of the available vehicles:

• Jeep: Your first vehicle is small, slow and not very reliable. Try to move onwards and upwards as quick as you can!
• Motorcross Bike: The only two-wheeler this app has to offer. Great for stunts (especially after the upgrade).
• Monster truck: My personal favourite.Well tuned and a smooth ride, no matter what the ground might be like.
• Race car: The app’s racing car, great for cross tracks.

Upgrades:

• Engine: An upgrade for vehicle engines; makes them more powerful which in turn makes the vehicle faster
• Suspension: The vehicle will be able to handle pot holes at a higher speed.
• Tires: Better tires.
• 4WD: Better 4 wheel drive, more power and better handling.
• (Race Car) Downforce
• (Bike) Air-Control: Better handling when the bike is airborne and for when it lands.

Maps:

• Countryside: The first map, and let me tell you that it’s a bumpy ride!
• Desert: Hot and dusty!
• Arctic: Careful, it’s slippery? Don’t forget your winter tires
• Highway: A typical North American highway with just a few slopes, a nice ride
• Cave: The first map in which you won’t be able to see the sky; don’t forget to duck!
• Moon: Lowe gravity and nice long jumps, but be sure to keep an eye on the gas metre.
• Mars: An uneven countryside, more gravity than on the moon
• Alien Planet: Green, quivering mass, so be sure to use good tires

Users can decide in which order they wish to purchase the updates; the coins can, of course, be used to purchase updates.
Maps are split up into levels, the transition between the different levels is nice and smooth. Successfully completed levels are rewarded with a coin bonus.

Bottom line:

It’s not without reason that Hill Climb Racing has been crowning the charts (or almost) for some time. The maps, various vehicles and upgrades help keep things interesting. The maps are awesome because even when you’ve unlocked parts of them you can still keep pushing forward, which proves to be a fun challenge for a good long time.

New updates and features are added regularly; the Bike, for instance, was a recent addition,

A drawback: The game’s physics make sense for the most part, but not always. For instance, when the gas tank is empty a vehicle will stop immediately and the round will end, even though the vehicle should keep rolling for a few metres at least.

Despite this drawback we love the game’s diversity and overall flavour–all of which is available for free!

Hill Climb Racing is easy to navigate thanks to self-explanatory icons within the menus.

Controls work via the two pedals and are equally nice and easy to get the hang of.

Hill Climb Racing is nice and smooth, even on devices that run on a weaker graphics chip/processor than the Optimus Speed.

 Hill Climb Racing is free from the Google Play Store; ad banners are displayed within the menu (not throughout the game itself).