Common Sense Media Review
By Paul Semel
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Bloody, gory racing game runs flat on all of its tires.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 18+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Play
Videos and Photos
Carmageddon: Max Damage
What's It About?
As an arcade racing game, CARMAGEDDON: MAX DAMAGE doesn't have a story. Instead, you're simply tasked with winning a series of races and other car-combat events. That said, the game does have a cast of colorful characters, and while they do have their own cars, each with their own attributes, as people they have no bearing on the action itself.
Is It Any Good?
While its gory, violent mechanics and ribald sensibilities make this arcade-style racing game bad for kids, it's actually the game's clunky controls and dull tracks that make it bad for everyone. Though you can win events by finishing in first place, you're also encouraged to destroy the competition (literally) and to run over any idiot bystanders who, for some reason, thought it would be cool to walk around in the middle of a race. But even if you're not offended by this obvious rip-off of the movie Death Race 2000, you'll still hate this for being so fundamentally flawed. While the tracks are so wide they undermine any challenge the game might've had, the game's sluggish and clunky controls ironically make it difficult to take the way-too-easy corners. Just making a simple turn is frustrating, and trying to do anything complex, such as making a jump or running over that guy who looked at you funny, is so difficult that you might as well not bother. You also have to contend with competitors who don't seem concerned with winning but are content just to make your life difficult, as well as ugly, dated visuals that make this look cheap. This, quite simply, is one terrible game.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about violence in games. Does it make you feel different that, in this game, you're killing other people as opposed to monsters? Should this game focus on killing people instead of racing?
Talk about road safety. What does the game teach us about driving safely? And walking safely?
Discuss curse words. Do you feel the curse words in this game are necessary, or does it really not matter given how the rest of the game is violent and bloody?
Game Details
- Platforms : PlayStation 4 , Xbox One
- Pricing structure : Paid
- Available online? : Available online
- Publisher : Stainless Games
- Release date : July 8, 2016
- Genre : Racing
- Topics : Transportation ( Cars & Trucks )
- ESRB rating :
- Last updated : September 30, 2025
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