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Here we go, a modern game that pushes my little laptop to its limits! A worthy opponent!

Distance

Linux

Link to image

Distance* is a high-speed car platforming game, spiritual successor to Nitronic Rush, inspired by Trackmania. You play as an autonomous sci-fi vehicle, dodging obstacles, jumping, flying, riding on walls and ceilings, being cut in half by lasers, etc. It also has a very creepy atmosphere, some hints at a story, a great soundtrack, and very fancy visuals - there's a lot going on.

The screenshots shown above are from the Steam page, in my own playthrough I had to disable shadows and reduce the render distance*, which really helped me get a playable framerate. But with how dark the game is, you really don't notice the lack of shadows.

The game offers three campaigns, multiple challenge game modes, and some online features. The main campaign is only 1-2 hours long, but it's incredibly good. If you thought that racing games can't have a good story, or that racing games can't be creepy, think again.

The gameplay is very good for what it is: a skill-based game that relies heavily on physics. Those types of games can be really frustrating, yet I really enjoyed Distance. Some segments pissed me off, but in the end completing a level is always satisfying, and overall the main campaign was definitely worth the money spent.

The 2nd and 3rd mini-campaigns offer extra content, but it's not as high-quality as the main story.

I've never played Trackmania and I'm not super-good at these types of arcade racers, so I didn't dive too deep into competitive multiplayer. It's there for you if you're that type of person, but as for me, I'm satisfied with the quick singleplayer campaign. *8/10*

My only complaint is that some levels could've been polished just a bit more, to make them less frustrating.