Manic Mechanics [Review]
Overcooked, Moving Out, Speed Crew, and now to add Manic Mechanics are all a part of an ever-growing list of frantic and stressful couch/online co-op games. Overcooked is the start of this new genre that has been wildly successful. I adore Overcooked-like games, so I’m happy for a new one to be added to the list. Our new member, Manic Mechanics, is developed and published by 4J Studios. Like Speed Crew, Manic Mechanics has the model of Overcooked, but with the main focus being cars. It also took inspiration from Overcooked's hub world/level select, where you drive around in a car to the next level. But they do a bit more with it. For starters, every player gets a car.
In the Hub World, there are a few missions that you can do that reward players with more medals. The same medals you can get as rewards for beating high scores and fixing enough cars. Players can go off of Evel Knievel jumps and more to score some medals in the Hub World. With the plethora of Overcooked-like games to come out in recent years, unfortunately, Manic Mechanics isn't the first one about fixing cars to come out. Speed Crew came out in June 2023, and Manic Mechanics came out in July 2023. So, people ask themselves, Which game is better?
What differentiates this game from Speed Crew? Speed Crew, you are fixing the parts of the car while they are still attached to the car. People are still racing around the map and they stop at your station to get the car fixed, kind of like in NASCAR. In Manic Mechanics there is a conveyor belt with lines of parts on it. You have to take them off the belt and carry them to their respective stations to fix or paint them before putting them on the car. I think this game is a better co-op title as well. I’ve played many Overcooked-like games although somehow I have never found one as horrifyingly stressful or chaotic as that one. This game seems to be a good contender once you get a full team of four. Like Overcooked, everyone should have specific jobs: one person paints, one pumps tires, one fixes engines, and the last cleans the floors and puts parts on the cars.
Why would you need to have someone to clean up the ground? Well, that’s because this game has hazards. There are a lot of hazards. And it won’t be very obvious how difficult these are until the first “boss” fight. Now it’s not a boss fight, just the last level of the first area, but it shows how difficult this game can become. The level is out to get you. Magnets would come down to pick up the cars you are working on and get rid of them entirely. Paint will fall on the ground, causing you to slip and fall if you don’t clean it up or watch your step. And your workstations will swap spots randomly. Up until this point, I didn’t see how the game could become all that difficult. But that single level changed my mind and made me rethink my strategy for future walkthroughs.
Manic Mechanics is a great addition to the couch co-op games that are used to torture your friend group. It’s easy to understand and great for adding players who don't typically play video games but want to have a fun experience with friends. Considering how excited I am to play this game with more people, I would give it a 9/10. Manic Mechanics is currently available for PlayStation 4 and 5, Xbox One and Series, Switch, and Steam.
