Have You Played... Beetle Crazy Cup?
Camper-van
Have You Played? is an endless stream of game retrospectives. One a day, every day, perhaps for all time.
I was pretty new to games reviewing when cheery RPS Magazine tribute magazine PC Gamer handed me Beetle Crazy Cup to review in 2000. I'd been at it for less than a year, and had pretty much exclusively reviewed rubbish. I think they assumed Infogrames' VW Beetle racing game was going to be 'bish too, hence its coming my way. Turns out it was brill. I wasn't really sure what to do.
I remember contacting the mag and nervously saying, "Er, um, I'm not sure this should just be a third-of-a-page column. It think it's... I think it's good?" They ended up agreeing to give it two pages, which was daunting stuff to me back then. Big league. (Here's the unedited text I wrote.)
It was very silly. Seemingly set in the '60s, but then filled with classic and modern VW cars, and even monster trucks. And, well, I won't do it justice - have a look at how bonkers it was via this video by a Mr Vas709:
I'd love the see a racing game come out as daft and fun as Beetle Crazy Cup. Or a reboot! Someone get on that.