Van Diesel

Wheelman will be nothing new to anybody who’s played any of the Burnout, Driver or Stuntman games because, to be honest, Wheelman is basically an amalgamation of the lot. We’re not pointing that out as a criticism, it’s just something that works as a hand reference point.

Wheelman basically gives players the same sort of over-the-top physics and indestructibility as the Stuntman and Burnout games, enhancing that deliberately insane arcade feel with the shooting elements from Driver.

What sets Wheelman a man apart though is that it takes all these elements and then pushes them to the point of illogic. Cars rock, ricochet and roll in that special way that can only be done with the clunky physics of the UT3 engine, while Vin Diesel uses all sorts of special moves that utterly defy common sense.

Car strafing is the first and earliest example of these moves in the game, with Wheelman trying to honestly convince you that Milo Burik can actually make a car sidestep one line as an offensive move. While this idea of mechanical melee is the earliest example though, it’s by no means the best.


Our favourite special move in fact is the ‘Cyclone Shot’, which is one of Milo’s most powerful techniques and which uses up most of his incredibly predictable focus gauge to unleash. When Cyclone Shot is enabled the camera suddenly swings inside the car to show an impossibly stiff Vin holding a pistol while the car, without slowing down, does an about turn and inexplicably starts driving backwards. The game slips into slow-mo and you can suddenly make cars blow up with just one or two bullets.

It’s this single move which seems to perfectly sum up both Wheelman as a game and Vin Diesel’s career as a whole in that, while it appears to make very little actual sense, it’s somehow still pretty cool. It may be almost insultingly stupid in some regards but, damn it all, it’s still a lot of fun in an utterly mindless kind of way.

What’s more, while Wheelman is basically a curious blend of those previously mentioned games, it isn’t an unrefined one. A lot of the kinks which plagued those obvious inspirations have been ironed out so that the game as a whole is easier to navigate. You can jump across straight to whichever of the automatically added events you want, for example. It’s as easy as getting Vin to jump from one car to another, kick out the driver and take control – which is done by just holding B.


Unfortunately though, while the game has been polished in these few regards, it’s still a bit dulled on the whole – a lot of which comes down to the lacklustre graphics and the city is as confusingly structured as it is samey and dull. There are very few locations that feel in any way unique or distinct, so you always feel like you’re racing through the same alleys.

The difficulty curve for the game is all bent out of shape too, which means that those moments of the game when you’re being swarmed by SWAT vans and undercover police feel about as exhilarating as eating a cold pot noodle. The cars are so resilient to damage and the gunfights so pop-gun dreary that you can effortlessly swat enemies away and break the line of sight without issue. Even if that’s not possible then you can literally jump to a new car without even slowing down, or spin on the spot and one-shot them all.

Wheelman is, to put it simply, bargain bin material through and through. The graphics are painfully plain and uninspiring and while the missions do run a wide range the game still becomes repetitive as watching Groundhog Day again. At the same time though it’s still a lot of fun in that utterly mindless way that all good bargain bin games are though, for a short time. Wheelman is perfect to rent for a short period, or to pick up when it goes on sale, but it’s just not impressive enough to shell out £30 - £40 for at this point.

Score Guide