Warhammer 40K: Speed Freeks Review

You might know me as Output Lag’s resident cozy gamer, but in the immortal words of Shrek (sort of), writers are like onions; we have layers. While it’s true that I do love the cozier side of gaming, I also happen to have a lesser-known love for Warhammer 40k, which is about as far from cozy as it gets, and I particularly love Orks. 

Needless to say that when I first heard about Speed Freeks, my little nerdy mind was ready to dive in and experience the utter chaos that only Orks can bring to the tabletop, and see whether that epic kind of madness would translate into a racing game. Thankfully, it translates rather well. 

Orks: Chaos incarnate

Warhammer 40K: Speed Freeks review

8.5Great

PlatformPC (Steam)

Release DateMay 22, 2025

DeveloperCaged Element Inc.

PublisherWired Productions

I’ve played against Ork armies on the tabletop, and I’ve played on the tabletop with Orks myself, so I know exactly the chaos these lunatics can offer if you do it right, but I did have some reservations heading into Speed Freeks. Would it feel like a basic racing game with added Ork moments or an Ork-stravaganza with added racing sections? Neither seemed like the right balance, but I kept an open mind. 

So when I entered my first race (with bots because no actual person needs to deal with my inability to drive in a straight line), I was pleasantly surprised to find that the blend of Ork and racing was done almost too perfectly. I expected chaos, but this?

This is absolute carnage. I mean that in the most reverential way that it could possibly be said. If you know your Orks, which you probably do if you’re here, then you’ll understand what I mean. They are chaotic, brutal, accidentally hilarious in their lack of brain power, and totally brilliant. 

Diving into my first Deff Rally, I found myself completely out of my depth and confused beyond belief. I had no idea where I was going, I got horribly distracted trying to take out the other Boomdakkas and Rukkatrukks, and pretty much drove around in circles for most of the race because I had no mini-map to help with my sense of direction. When I did eventually figure out what I was supposed to be doing, I tended to avoid doing it because taking them out was more fun. 

I didn’t win a single capture point, although I did win one of the mini checkpoint races, I killed the most enemies of the match, and gathered up the most scrap, so that all has to mean something, right?

All of this to say that yes, it’s all a little overwhelming, but it’s all so true to the lore and known behaviour of the Orks that it ends up being fun in all the right ways. Sure, I turned into a bit of an Ork myself, screaming “WAAAAGH” while I drifted around corners, but that’s the point, I think. 

The move from free-to-play was the right one

I have to be honest, if I’d written a review of the free-to-play version of Speed Freeks, it would be very different from this one. Locking cosmetics and items behind a battle pass is never preferable to being able to unlock them through gameplay, and while buying Teef is very fitting for Orks, it’s still more enjoyable to earn them through completing challenges in a game that isn’t going to cost you more than it already did. 

There are still pseudo-battle pass paths, with two to choose from: “ERE WE GO!” or “KRUMP ‘EM”. You earn scrap in every match, and this then counts towards earning rewards from your chosen path. Through these paths, you can unlock custom paint jobs, new Orks, and buffs to your Scrap collection. Having those additional things to work towards is always a welcome feature.

Making the transition to an outright purchase has also allowed for solo matches, with bots or without, and that’s something that’s going to entice a lot of players. While playing against other people is fun at times, it’s nice to just dive in and not have to deal with potentially pesky matchmaking wait times. 

The new addition of Free-Roam is also an excellent way to learn the lay of the land for each course, which gives you an edge when you eventually decide you’re ready for the Deff Rally or Kill Ronvoy race modes. It all just works together. 

Kustomization is key

Having had my own Ork army in the past, I’ve been through my fair share of physical vehicles, painstakingly painted in my custom pastel colorscheme. I knew that there would be some custom painting ability in Speed Freeks, but being able to paint every individual section of my Boomdakka Snazzwagon in the same Citadel colors as my original physical army? The nerd inside me was squealing. 

Admittedly, I got a little distracted by the ‘Kustomization’ menu. And by ‘a little distracted’, I mean I spent an hour in there before I even looked at the race options. Some of you may be thinking that’s a little extravagant, but I’ve always been a painter over a player, and my Shokkjump Dragsta is now a magnificent pastel beauty ready to destroy my opponents, and my Looted Tank is gorgeous. 

Settings are extensive

If you want to change anything, and I do mean pretty much anything, there’s probably an option for it within the settings menu. You can change your FOV, change keybinds, fade or remove the HUD, choose whether you appear on the leaderboards, tweak the graphics, and perhaps most usefully of all, you can turn down or disable motion blur. 

Perhaps my favorite setting of all, though, is “Use Orky Player Names”, found within the game settings. Turning this setting on will remove your actual username from leaderboards and while in matches, replacing it with an “Orky” name. For example, I became Blacktoof, then Ripgutz, then Farksnot. I’m not sure why this amuses me so much, but perhaps I’m just easily amused. 

Keyboard or controller, it hardly matters

While I’m a keyboard and mouse player to a fault, using a controller only when I have no other option, it’s only fair to make sure that playing Speed Freeks with a controller is still an enjoyable experience, right? Well, thankfully, my assistant (my four-year-old) is here to provide her very trustworthy point of view when it comes to playing on a controller. I mean, if she can navigate the world with her tiny hands, then we grown-ups will be fine. 

And, as it turns out, she was better at playing with the controller than I was. I got stuck in every corner of the course, even ones that I don’t think I was technically supposed to be able to get stuck in. I spent half of my time going backwards, and I kept shooting when I was supposed to be boosting. My four-year-old was zipping around the course like a pro without any issues. 

I was ashamed and impressed in equal measure. 

Not for the faint of heart

Listen, if you’re easily overwhelmed or distracted when a lot of things are happening around you, then this probably isn’t the game for you. There is a lot on screen at any given point, the speed at which you end up traveling is immense, and the world is a constant blur around you. Figuring out where you’re supposed to go can be a challenge, and trying to get there without exploding is even harder. 

But, with all that said, if you’re part of the middle of the Ork fans and racing game fans Venn diagram, then you’re going to enjoy this. The combination of the two aspects is really well balanced, and the ability to customize your vehicles to your tastes is definitely a nice feature, especially if you’re a mini painter in real life and know your Citadel paint names.