Driving Forwards Is For Squares: Drift Stage Alpha Demo

In the futurecity I'll one day build around pedestrians, cyclists, and trains, cars will be confined to enclosed roads high up in the sky, forever screeching around corners for our entertainment. It'll look a lot like Drift Stage, really. We've cooed over its pretty style of recreating a 16-bit 2D racer style in fine 3D, and now we can play it. A one-track "early alpha" demo is out now, and I have enjoyed driving sideways in it.

The demo's set in Sunset City, this here lurid skycity:

It's a simple time trial, with three ghosts of different skill to race against, as well as your own personal best. I liked it! Getting the hang of drifting was tricky but satisfying. Drifting just feels cool. I'm not one for racing games usually so I'm not sure how much I can judge it, but something about the movement coming out of the drift feels a little clean; I'd like my drifting to be dirtier. The full game will feature more settings and tracks and cars and all that.

And! The demo also has a photo mode, where you can pause the game at any point and fly around the world to take snaps of your car frozen mid-drift. So you can show everyone how cool you look.

Developers Super Systems plan to launch a Kickstarter funding Drift Stage later this week.