Racing games have always been part of the gaming zeitgeist. From simulations that strive for realism like Gran Turismo and the Forza series, to more arcade-y affairs like the Need for Speed and the Burnout series, there has always been something for everyone. Whether that be slowly upgrading a car to compete in the highest forms of virtual motorsport, or to bombing down a city with full nitrous, dodging traffic and incoming vehicles, there is a game out there for you.
To this, New Star Games wants to add a new-ish genre of racing video game, the nostalgic arcade racer. New Star GP was released early this year, blending the aesthetics of Sega’s Virtua Racing (at least what we remember of that game) with the gameplay depth of modern arcade racing titles, and adding a pseudo-management layer on top. It’s an accomplishment on what an indie developer can do with the right inspirations, and the design aesthetic to back it up. We think it is a crime that not many are talking about this outside of niche indie gaming circles.
New Star GP is proof that nostalgia is a powerful emotion. It only takes a quick glance at something familiar to elicit an internal reaction that one would have a hard time putting into words. It is the unwritten definition of goosebumps, that occurrence where your mind does not understand but your soul does. Nostalgia is especially strong for those who found themselves gaming in the ‘90s to the early 2000s, when the established racing video game franchises started.
There is an aesthetic from that era that cannot be forgotten. Blocky, polygonal structures approximating racing cars speed down a road, all with a timer counting down as our pesos drained from our Timezone cards. Those blocky polygons somehow managed to evoke a lot of emotion, with our imagination filling in the blanks to see the games in our mind, rather than on the screen.
New Star GP captures these emotions in a bottle, and puts it on your computer or console in a perfect distillation of your childhood.
Gameplay
New Star GP is a game that is easy to explain and implement, but requires more than just technical skill; the developers baked in an impeccable ‘feel’ as to what sort of nostalgia they were trying to elicit. In short, it is an F1 arcade racer with retro graphics, but it is also much more than that.
The Career mode takes you through five different eras of cars, divided into decades. You start your career as an aspiring driver in ‘80s turbo cars reminiscent of the days of Senna and Prost, and make your way, decade-by-decade, to the 2020s, or the modern era of turbocharged hybrid F1 cars.
Yes, the cars are not licensed, but the car models are undeniably inspired by the F1 cars of various eras. Subtle nods at the names of drivers like ‘Nico Hornberg’ and ‘Lance Strong’ further showcase the love the designers have for the sport.
Each decade in Career mode is composed of events divided into tracks inspired by their real-life equivalents. For example, you have events in Belgium, and although this is a more imagined and truncated version of Spa-Francorchamps, you will definitely see the likes of Eau Rouge, Raidillon and other iconic corners reproduced, giving the feel that this is a cartoon version of the real track. The same goes for the Monaco GP, the British GP, and all the other creative interpretations of famous F1 race tracks.
The Career mode is more than just Grand Prix races, though. To add spice to the gameplay, there are a multitude of events at each track you race at. From elimination races where every 30 seconds the engine of the last car on the grid blows up, to time trials where you try to beat the clock, to the arcade classic checkpoint mode, and even to (blasphemous) races on reversed tracks all add to the variety of racing, which helps things from feeling old.
That is not to say that everything is just non-stop racing. There is also an aspect of team management thrown in between bouts on track. The money you earned for racing can be used to choose perks, to purchase upgrades for your car, and to hire or select various members of your team.
On track, you have to also decide on pit and tire strategy. With soft tires only lasting about two laps, it's good that most races only last six, but it opens up the races to a hint of mind games, especially when wet weather and inaccurate forecasts are taken into account.
Driving Model
While there is a hint of realism when it comes to driving, all this goes out the window when you hit the turbo boost and it sends you fishtailing and drifting through the chicane in Brazil. The driving model of this game is decidedly arcade-y, but in a great way.
Driving smoothly still rewards you with much faster lap times, but you are under no obligation to take the driving in this game so seriously. Cars feel a bit floaty, but once your grip and downforce upgrades take effect, you will spend less time braking, and more time lifting just that little bit to keep your momentum up for the next corner.
Thankfully, even if you total your car, or crash into a wall at speed (yes, there is damage in the game), there is a rewind function that lets you turn back time a few seconds to change your fate. This, coupled with the very forgiving handling model, means that it is the perfect pick up and play game for when you just need to scratch that racing itch in quick 10-minute bursts.
Production
Graphics are obviously retro-inspired, but the game runs at a buttery smooth 60fps on Steam Deck, so we are sure that most, if not all, modern machines would be able to run this game smoothly. Subtle touches like how tires break apart (in giant chunks of pixels) as they age help the player visually see the degradation without having to glance at the UI.
Sound design is a bit generic (different kinds of F1 car sounds), and nothing really stands out. However, the music is amazing, and when a high energy track comes on while you are fighting off P2 while your tires are struggling, it does get the blood pumping. For control, we would recommend playing on a gamepad or anything with analog controls for the steering and the throttle and brake. We found ourselves feathering the throttle while taking tough corners, and this definitely helped with our lap times.
Multiplayer is available via old-school four-player split screen, and while we weren’t able to test it, just thinking about it brings back memories from a bygone era.
Conclusion
New Star GP scratches that nostalgic arcade racing itch, while bringing a good host of quality features from the modern day: progression, perks, multiple tracks with different layouts, and great performance on various machines.
We started playing it as a gimmick, but 18 hours of total playtime later, the depth of its systems and the sheer fun of driving an arcade-style F1 car around familiar corners is a feeling we won’t soon forget.
Score: 9/10
Availability: Get it now on Steam, Playstation 4, Playstation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, or Nintendo Switch. Tested on Steam Deck.
