FutureGrind

FutureGrind is a 2D stylish stunt racer developed and published by Milkbag Games. The studio’s previous games have been Sidewords and Disco Zoo on mobile devices. The only other game they’ve made is a free to download PC title created for the 7 day first person shooter challenge called Photobomb. FutureGrind has been in the works since early 2015 and was finally released on January 22nd of 2019 for PS4, PC, and Nintendo Switch.

I’ve always been a fan of stunt focused racing games like OlliOlli and Trials so I was delighted when AnyDay Reviews gave me the chance to review this game for the site. Is this game a rad look into the future or does it feel like a faceplant on the concrete?

FutureGrind does indeed have a story under it’s belt. You are a stunt racer and as you get popular, you will be getting some sponsors. Do whatever it takes to make the sponsors happy but be warned, some sponsors may not be trustworthy. There’s a lot more to the story but I don’t wanna spoil it for anyone. Overall, the story does at least try to be something interesting with the whole sponsors idea. However, I ended up forgetting most of the story as I finished the game and it didn’t really leave an impact on me. Then again, a game doesn’t really need a good story to stand out. Sometimes it just needs good gameplay to stand out.

The controls in FutureGrind are as simple as, well the game itself! You can spin your bike by using the left analog stick so you can do flips, you can use the A button to perform jumps and you can use the X button to restart a level if you are about to die.

FutureGrind is a stunt racing game where you have 2 wheels on your bike with different colors on each wheel. You have to match the wheel’s colors with the color of the track and if they aren’t the same, you will explode. Your main goal is just to get to the finish line and finish the stage.

In each of the levels, there is plenty of room to do tricks and get points. Getting a combo is the best way to get points since it adds up a multiplier as the combo lasts longer but land on a white rail and the combo is done for.

After you complete a level, the amount of points you have will determine the trophy you get. You can get a bronze, sliver, gold, and platinum trophy depending on your performance. These don’t really count for anything besides bragging rights and 100% completion.

You will also end up unlocking 1 or 2 more levels after completing the main track where it’s the same track but it has a twist to it like you have to not touch a white rail or you have to hold a certain trick for a while. You usually have to complete these in order to unlock the next track.

After a couple of tracks, a strange static will appear on the menu. This will lead to a hacking level where you have to hack one of the sponsor’s system. Just get to the glitched part of the level and it’s finished. Doing these levels will unlock a few bonus levels and a true ending.

Through out the levels, you will unlock new bikes to use. You have the normal bike that just has a double jump, the same bike but with the ability to change the color of the wheels. The bike with only one color wheel and one wheel that will kill you no matter what. The bike with a big wheel and a small wheel, and the bike with a triple jump.

Finally, it’s time to discuss my thoughts on the gameplay. So, what did I think of the gameplay? Personally, I got the same feeling of satisfaction after playing this as I did with something like Trials. By that, I mean FutureGrind’s gameplay is extremely fun and refreshing. Plus, the idea of using different wheels for different tracks is very unique and I haven’t really seen that idea anywhere. Surprisingly, I don’t think I have any issues with the gameplay. It’s that well done.

Now it’s time to get to the performance and graphics of the whole game! First, the graphics! FutureGrind has a very stylish look to it and for the game’s story and feel, it works extremely well. Plus, for a game that’s set in the future, it actually does look like something you would see in the future. The graphics are really nice to look at and fit with the game.

Now, it’s time for the performance! The game runs a pretty stable 30 FPS in both docked mode and handheld mode and I don’t recall any major glitches or slowdowns happening during gameplay. The performance is pretty solid.

The final thing about this game is the soundtrack. The soundtrack is only 5 tracks long but these 5 tracks are really great and show off the game’s futuristic look and feel. However, the game does repeat these tracks through the levels and there are quite a few levels. This means that these tracks may become annoying to you as you keep playing but personally, these tracks never annoyed me in the slightest.

Overall, FutureGrind is a very fun and addictive stunt game that manages to form it’s own identity despite it’s very apparent parallels to Trials and OlliOlli. For it’s $19.99 price tag, you get a good amount of content for what your paying for. If you need your fix of stunt focused games like Tony Hawk and OlliOlli, I think this will most certainly be for you.

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Game provided by Milkbag Games