Scalextric Triple Rivals review

Here at Stuff we love nothing more than the smell of petrol stinging our nostrils, the roar of engines causing premature deafness, all those gorgeous grid girls that hang out with the drivers at each Grand Prix. Yes, we were born to race.

Realise your racing dreams

Unfortunately, we’ve spent far too long playing Project Gotham Racing 3 and eating Jaffa Cakes to fit into one of those tiny sets of overalls that F1 drivers wear.

Instead, we’ve taken our cake-based orangey snacks and set up one of the new Scalextric digital sets that leapfrogs such girth-based problems.

The tasty new addition to the digital set is the ability to switch lanes using a system like points on a train track. A new button on the controller is linked to two sensors – one on the racetrack and one on the underside of the car – which, when pressed, changes the points.

Mastering the technique will see you slipstreaming your opponent down the straight and flicking out wide to power past him on the outside of the long left-hander.

It works thanks to a new method of controlling the cars. Rather than linking each controller to a lane on the track, the new digital sets link each controller to a specific motor. That means multiple car carnage with up to four racers on the track at a time.

Not all new additions take our chequered flag though; the ‘brake’ button acts more like a ‘come to a complete stop’ button. Using the age-old method of releasing pressure on your trigger-mounted accelerator is a much more effective tactic.

The fundamentals remain the same as always – those little brushes on the underside of the car still pick up the power, and still get flattened and lose connectivity after a few too many laps. During the recent Stuff Grand Prix at Gadget Speedway we also saw some slowdown when too many cars were using the same small section of track, but a multiple pile-up saw an end to that. The track just isn’t long enough either; you’ll complete a lap in well under 10 seconds and once you get used to the corners, you can go round practically in autopilot.

The only problem is, as with all adrenalin sports, you’ll always be looking for bigger and better thrills. That’s why our next event is the Stuff Scalextric 24-Hour race. Gentlemen, start your engines.