There are some ideas that never lose their appeal, and tiny cars driving really fast around household items is one of them. We have the Micro Machines series to thank for the concept, but Table Top Racing carries it on with aplomb.
Shifting the view from top-down to behind the car, the game has the same rich vein of good natured humour as its inspiration, but adds a few modern twists to make sure iOS gamers don't get bored and wander off.
Toy horsepower
The game is all about competition. Whether it's against the clock, computer controlled opponents, or real-life friends and foes, crossing the finish line first is always the order of the day. To that end, the game offers simple controls that anyone can get the hang of.
IAPs explained
You earn coins by finishing races, and can spend them on upgrades and new cars. If that sounds too much like hard work, you can buy them with some real cash instead.
69p gets you 25,000 which is enough to just about fully spruce up one car, whereas the most expensive pack, which costs £6.99, will get you 500,000.
You rarely feel like you need to shell out, though, and the extra purchases are there to act as a boost to your coffers rather than a mandatory extra purchase.
Acceleration and braking are handled for you, so all you have to worry about is making sure the front of the car, ice cream van, or truck you're driving is pointing in the right direction. You can either do this with buttons at the left and right of the screen or by tilting your iOS device.
Your only other concern is the variety of boosts and weapons you pick up on the track. There are turbos, rockets, bombs, and EMP bursts, and you can carry one at a time to begin with. Tap on the icon and you'll unleash whatever weapon you've picked up from the track.
The races themselves are fast and furious, and you're usually packed together tightly enough that moving from first place to last in the space of a corner is commonplace. You rarely feel cheated, though - just determined to retake your position at the front of the pack.
Small wheels
Victory in races gives you coins to spend on upgrading your car, which is necessary if you want to compete in the later challenges. You don't get to choose your upgrades, though - they're doled out one at a time in the order the game sees fit.
Table Top Racing isn't perfect, and some might find that it lacks a little depth, but this is a polished and instantly playable arcade racer with enough tracks and challenges to keep anyone with even a passing interest in vrooming little cars around a table entertained for a while.
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