Warhammer 40,000: Speed Freeks

WAAAGH arrives on the couch

There are several universal truths in the Warhammer 40k universe. The Empire of Man is in constant crisis, the Tyranids are hungry, and Orks, oh Orks will always find a way to assemble something motorized from two pieces of cans and, let's say, a used hair dryer. Warhammer 40,000: Speed Freeks is exactly that piece of the universe turned into a game. After a year spent exclusively on PC, the title from the development team Caged Element officially arrives on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S. I reviewed the PS5 version, through several dozen matches online and against bots, with a proportional amount of laughing and hating the lag that got me killed.

Gameplay: more brawling, less driving

Although it technically says "racing," Speed Freeks leans much more towards brawling than disciplined line driving. The three offered modes cover the spectrum of chaos well. Deff Rally is an 8-on-8 team game mode where players try to reach the goal through checkpoints, although most matches end up with half the team "just for a second" veering off to take out that guy in the helicopter. Kill Konvoy turns two teams into bodyguards for their own Stompa (a giant metal Ork in a dress that looks like it wandered in from another genre) while simultaneously trying to dismantle the opponent's. Kustom Rally serves community maps from the built-in level editor, ranging from "engineering masterpieces" to "dude, what is this."

Vehicles are divided into several classes, from scrawny buggies to heavy tanks to helicopters. Each vehicle has its own upgrade tree, its own weapon charms, and its own explosion style. The learning curve isn't steep, but each class has enough specificity to make it worthwhile to invest time before jumping to the next one.

How this plays on console

The main question for everyone who has been watching the PC version from the sidelines: does it hold up on PS5? Well, here it is... The FPS remains calm as a Tibetan monk even when there are a dozen vehicles, three helicopters, four explosions, and one Ork screaming something that is probably not a compliment on the screen at the same time. The animations are fluid and really fun to watch, especially in kaboom-kaboom situations. Vehicles behave weightily convincingly, meaning there’s no bouncing around the terrain like in Rocket League. Okay, there are some similarities.

A positive discovery is that the gamepad here is even a better choice than a mouse and keyboard. The game's pace, wide vehicles, and constant booster do not require sniper precision, and the feeling of momentum on the analog sticks fits excellently with the arcade tone of the title. Players who spent last year as PC veterans will need some practice for aiming with the sticks, but that lasts as long as a mediocre pizza, and after that, the gamepad is legitimately the best way to go.

Network, lobby, and life on servers

The network during testing was surprisingly disciplined, with no major lag spikes and relatively quick matchmaking. The game supports cross-platform crossplay, which is almost existential for a title whose PC population sometimes fits into one larger elevator. Console players now enter the same pool as the PC audience, which should keep the lobby healthy, or at least lively, in the medium term.

When there aren't enough people, the game fills the slots with bots. The bots do their job and aren't stupid, but they are no substitute for a real person who curses at you through the microphone. Especially in Deff Rally, team coordination is the difference between shared joy and a silent drive on an empty road.

Content, customization, and community

Speed Freeks has abandoned microtransactions over the past year, and now everything is unlocked through gameplay, which should be praised today as if someone invented bread. Parts, equipment, tires, coatings, and cosmetics for the pit boss character can be changed at will, and the vehicles really look like "enlarged" Games Workshop miniatures. For fans of the tabletop version, this is probably the strongest single card of the title.

Community maps are a story in themselves. Mek Workshop tool is a serious level editor with over 400 assets and is already well-stocked with creations of all quality levels. You have "map-genius" creations that are more fun than the official ones, and you have "map-flat-tiles-with-one-jump-for-XP-farming" that will make you hit back immediately. Console players get the same workshop pool as PC, which means more content from day one than most launch titles have in the first three months.

What's missing

Now more seriously, if only for a moment. The game's content is relatively thin. Three modes, a limited number of official maps, a visual impression that doesn't push boundaries (the comparison with Space Marine 2 here is merciless, as if you entered the Met Gala in a Bad Blue Boys shirt) and a repetitive match structure. What is fun to tears in the first two hours starts to smell of monotony around the third hour of the same weekend. Honestly: I had the urge to play longer, but after about three hours of continuous Ork bashing, I got fed up. The game isn't to blame. Speed Freeks is designed for sessions of 30 to 60 minutes with beer and friends, not for university marathons.

A classic deathmatch or arena mode without objectives is somewhat lacking, to dilute the main loop a bit. We hope that Caged Element will expand the list of modes in future updates, now that consoles are opening up a new audience and, likely, a new generation of unpredictable commentators in voice chat.

Conclusion

Speed Freeks on PS5 is an example of how a niche multiplayer title can be neatly transitioned to console without breaking a few teeth. Technically everything works, the gamepad surprises positively, the network holds up, and the core loop is as fun as it was a year ago. The main brake is still the thin content and the monotony that creeps in faster than you'd like. For fans of Warhammer, Orks, and classic vehicular combat, it's an easy recommendation. For everyone else, the fairest advice is to treat it as an afternoon firework, not as the main title of the season. WAAAGH, short and clear.

A copy of the PlayStation 5 version for review purposes was provided by the publisher Wired Productions