Hot Wheels

• Title — Hot Wheels • Developer — A. Eddy Goldfarb & Associates • Publisher — Epyx • Platforms — Commodore 64 • Released — September/October 1984 • Genre — Racing • Modes — Single-player

Hot Wheels begins with the player choosing a vehicle. The player can choose from one of several Hot Wheels vehicles, or can choose to create a custom vehicle instead. Custom vehicles are created by the player in a factory, where the player chooses the design of the vehicle's front, middle, and rear sections, and car paint. Once a vehicle has been selected, the player can drive around a side-scrolling city filled with various minigames and activities: • A demolition derby, where the player goes up against three computer-controlled opponents; the derby ends when three of the four cars are totalled. • Going on an expressway shows the vehicle driving along the expressway non-interactively as the game's theme song plays until the player interrupts. • A gas station called "Bob's Gas" allows the player to control a mechanic who can refuel the vehicle and check its tires. • An oil change station where the player can control another mechanic to change oil in the car; first they must collect the spent oil from the car with an oil drain cart, and the refill it with new. • A car wash, where the vehicle is cleaned. • A parking lot, where the player can park the vehicle and switch to a different one. • A tuning shop called "Super Tuner" where the player can have the vehicle's engine checked; the player must tune the engine's four cylinders to the ideal frequencies and amplitudes (represented by a crude sine wave). • A fire station allows the player to switch control from their car to a firetruck, with the objective being to extinguish a fire; if the water runs out before the fire is extinguished, the house burns down. The player may also go back the initial showroom at any time to pick (or build) a different car.