Let’s play Heat: Pedal to the Metal on the latest episode of Overboard

There are many board games with great themes, and many board games with great mechanics, but it’s rare for a game to marry the two together in perfect harmony. Heat: Pedal to the Metal is one of those games, and if you can manage to find it on store shelves, you won’t be disappointed. It uses deck building to create a racing experience that is so intense, we couldn’t stop playing after one race.

Play a game The Heat, players spend every turn making choices that feel impactful — and critically, fun. A deck full of speed cards determines how far you’ll go each round. You can also use “stress” cards to travel a random number of spaces — a risky maneuver that can pay off for daring racers. Then there are the titular “heat” cards, which represent how hard you’re pushing your engine. Managing this heat well allows you to blaze through corners and boost past opponents, but push things too far, and you’ll spin out!

While it’s possible to stake out an insurmountable lead, more often than not, the game’s elegant mechanics keep the race close. Players can “slipstream” past other players, giving an advantage to those who aren’t in first, while “adrenaline” gives last place an extra boost. These two factors work together to keep the first position in check and the race tight until the finish line. It’s not unusual for players to trade the lead around throughout a race, and on more than one occasion, we witnessed the last-place driver leap into first in a single well-played turn.

It’s a pleasurable game to play, but even more impressive is just how much stuff is packed in the box. Four racing tracks are included, as well as components to accommodate up to 6 players. You can also add advanced modules to the game to improve your abilities, such a weather conditions and media impressing features, sponsorships or AI modes.

In the video, you can see our gameplay, in which we’re joined by Byrd Pinkerton – an F1 fanatic and Vox Media podcast host on Unexplainable. If you enjoy this episode, be sure to check out the rest of our Let’s Play videos over on our YouTube channel.

Heat: Pedal the Metal

Prices are taken at the time of publication.

Heat: Pedal to Metal is an exciting racing game that challenges you to push your vehicle to its limits. You can have up to 6 players and there are four different race tracks.