I’ve been really into the Warhammer games for the past few years Darkness, Space sea 2and Fake Trader like the Ogre Mawtribe in the sideboard. Warhammer crowd? We are having a party. It’s gotten so wild that we’re drawing numbers to equalize Star Wars fans double.
With all those bumps coming down, you’d think I’d be riding high, but the first time I caught the wind Warhammer 40,000: Freelancers of Speedmy hype train hit the brakes. Every time a franchise tries to turn itself into a kart racer, I get flashbacks to those awkward crossovers that no one wants.
Turns out I was very wrong. Speed Freaks isn’t some cute kart racer; It’s like Twisted Metal was kidnapped by a gang of orcs on a sugar rush.
CHANGED
Title: Warhammer 40,000: Freelancers of Speed
Genres: Combat Racer, PvP, PvE
Edition: May 22, 2026
Developer: Lattice Element
Available: Xbox Series X, Windows PC, PlayStation 5
Price: $19.99
Xbox Anywhere Play: ❌
Xbox Game Pass: ✔️
Within minutes of firing up the game, I was in pure, unfiltered chaos. Orcs lit up the battlefield with mini-guns, rockets, charged electro shots, and predator-like guided missiles. it was me such an incredible mistake about it being a kart racer; the smoke rose.
Look, I went into this game’s preview as a card-carrying Warhammer addict, but I barely skimmed the surface. So you can imagine my jaw hitting the floor when I landed in an open world. Not a linear race track.
Here’s the thing: you control a variety of Ork vehicles, from the usual four-wheeled Mad Max-looking psycho-wagons to tanks and even helicopters. Each is equipped with some sort of primary and secondary weapon, some sort of power-up or other abilities that buff friends, deal damage to enemies or make you stay alive a little longer.
I started with the base car, a beautifully stylish Boomdakka Snazzwagon. This little convertible enemy jumps twice. Primary fire of Dacca minigun and secondary fire with actual fire through “nose glass”. Can I just say that I absolutely love the Orc language in Warhammer?
You’re locked into most of the other vehicles, but don’t worry, they all unlock quickly. Before I could really figure out what made a car worthy, I had another car on my list of eligible cars that I was teasing to test drive. And I tested it.
With these vehicles, players can choose between two standard game modes. One focuses on pushing a large Stomp across the world map, where each team tries to finish their Stomp first. Teams can attempt to collect respawning bombs on the map that can be “hand-delivered” to the enemy’s Stomp team to slow their progress. Killing also slows down, but in smaller increments than bomb delivery.
I need a moment to pause before moving on to the second main game mode. In an era where gamers pay $60 to $80 for new games The folks at Take-Two $100 had their way, Caged Element and Wired Productions do the impossible here.
For the same price as a double-meal combo at McDonald’s (actually, it’s less), you can get Warhammer 40,000: Speed Freeks for $19.99. Not only is that a crazy price in itself, but they didn’t raise it to $25 like many wanted. Heck, it seems the standard price for smaller titles these days is now $30-$40, but Wired Productions (the publisher) is leaving us pennies for the price of two large lattes.
The second is the “Deff Rally” game mode, which pits two teams against each other in a more competitive setting. Beacons will spawn on a map where each team can race and claim first. From there, about 30 seconds later, the race will begin with a dozen or so checkpoints for players to reach.
The first player across the line scores a good amount of points for their team, with the first five players all receiving points with values relative to their position. Again, killing enemy players also shows your team’s score.
Both modes run in 8v8 chaos, which may sound small next to online behemoths like Battlefield 6, but trust me, 16 is the magic number when it comes to vehicular carnage. Any more, I’d probably stick myself in a tank and pray.
Each mode is distinct enough that I had a lot of fun switching between the two before seeing a full-blown community map creator that players could call upon. I encountered giant, physically bent metal monsters, lore-accurate landscapes, and a recreation of Dust 2, the greatest Counter-Strike map ever created.
You can jump into all of these wild creations in public lobbies, most of which are straight rally races from start to finish. Yes, there’s probably a little kart racing DNA lurking in there. But even when you finally play beyond the main maps, there are still four free battle passes waiting to be conquered.
Yes, the game also comes with its own variation of free Battle Passes called Waaagh Path! Each has 70 to 100 levels to complete, offering a variety of cosmetics for your cars. Players complete both public and private matches, earning levels for their chosen Path of Waaagh.
Needless to say, I can’t believe the amount of games packed into Warhammer 40,000: Speed Freaks for $20. I think I’ve found my Saturday night buddy game for the next month.
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