Hands on with Reckless Racing for the iPhone and iPad

The first thing that strikes home about Reckless Racing, the new top-down off-road racer from EA Mobile, is the sheer loveliness of the graphics, even on just the standard 3GS screen.

From sparkling streams littered with pebbles and small rocks, to large wooden churches looming up into the camera at the side of the worn dirt roads, there’s always something in each of the 11 tracks (five unique and mirrored, one ‘world’ for a Crazy Taxi-like delivery game) that forces you sit back and admire the amount of work the art team have put in.

Not that you’ll have much time admire the graphics. Reckless Racing comes firmly from the Micro Machines/Ivan Ironman camp of 2D racers, with the emphasis on battling it out against five aggressive competitors and coping with the handling quirks of the six different vehicles.

These vehicles, in keeping with the American South theme of the game, vary from small trucks to almighty 16 wheelers, each curving out from a corner in a satisfyingly realistic fashion, kicking up dirt and dust as they barrel out of control.

Along with ‘Bronze, Silver, Gold’ races for each track that alter the competition’s ability, EA has included two differing ‘difficulty’ levels that both adjust the competitor’s skill as well as alter the complexity of the handling model.

The first level is your fairly typical arcade racer model – one that veterans of the genre should slip into like a old pair of slippers.

The second, however, is fair more kinetic, demanding, and fun to master, requiring frequent taps of the brake and a decent understanding of momentum and weight before you can stop yourself hurtling off into a beautiful ravine.

Helpfully, the controls on offer pretty much cover every preference I can think of, including the normal arrows on the side of the screen, to tilting, ‘tank’ (auto accelerate), and two types of virtual steering wheel. It helps that they’re all tight and responsive, too.

Along with the iPhone version, Reckless Racing is also due out on the iPad simultaneously at launch.

The iPad version packs in an extra two tracks plus the ability to both customise the cars and move the various controller icons around so that you can find the best position for your hands. Oh, and it’s even more glorious to look at.

Both versions come with online and local multiplayer for up to six players over 3G and wi-fi, which I can see being a massive hit given the chaotic nature of the track design and close bumper-to-bump-her-down-a-ravine racing style.

Reckless Racing is definitely shaping up to be one to watch, and we’re eagerly awaiting a more extensive play when it launches on the iPhone (with Retina display support) and iPad this ‘summer’.