The quiet comeback of the arcade racer

For a while it felt like every racing game wanted to be a simulator. Tyre wear, fuel maps, the works. Fine on a console, exhausting on a phone during a coffee break.

Games like Neon Drift Rush went the other way, and they're better for it. Long, screaming drifts, short tracks, a soundtrack that makes you want another lap. That's the arcade spirit.

The controls here matter as much as the physics. Tilt steering has to be forgiving, and a dedicated drift input beats trying to feather a brake with your thumb.

My tip: unlock a few cars before deciding you dislike the handling. They differ more than you'd expect, and the right one changes everything.