What the Car? is the latest game from Triband, the studio behind What the Golf? and What the Bat?.
It takes the concept of a racing game and turns it on its head. In What the Car?, you play as a car with legs. Yes, you read that right.
Your car sprouts legs and runs, jumps, and climbs through a series of absurd challenges. Tim Garbos, the game’s creative director, says, “Not a single person in the team owns a car, or even likes cars. That might seem wrong when we’re making a car game, but it has enabled us to naively misunderstand all sorts of things about cars.”
The game features hundreds of levels, each with a different challenge.
You might find yourself paragliding, playing soccer, or even turning into an accordion to stretch across gaps. What the Car? draws inspiration from games like Super Mario 64, with its ever-changing format and wacky worlds.
The studio also cites their focus on comedy as a key element.
Legged cars in comedy racing game
“As a studio, we focus on comedy games and when you build a joke, you start by setting up expectations, usually by providing some mundane background – and then you subvert them by doing something different,” Garbos explains.
The game was originally released on Apple Arcade last year, where it won a Dice award for best mobile game. The PC version has been expanded and will receive monthly updates. It also includes a level creator, allowing players to build and share their own bizarre levels.
Triband has a knack for creating beautifully dumb games. Garbos says, “A complete disregard for any realism, car fans, and actual vehicles, but also a strong focus on making a great experience as a whole. Sometimes, we just need the car to have bigger legs, be able to fly, or swim – and then we make that happen.”
Comedy in video games is often underrepresented compared to other media, but Triband is serious about making players laugh.
“When you want to make someone laugh, you have to start with yourself. If you can find it funny or ridiculous then you’re on the right track,” says Garbos. What the Car?
is out now on Steam and Apple Arcade. As for what’s next for Triband, Garbos teases, “We’re just getting started. We are considering making a parody game of most mundane well-known things… including newspapers.”
Noah Nguyen is a multi-talented developer who brings a unique perspective to his craft. Initially a creative writing professor, he turned to Dev work for the ability to work remotely. He now lives in Seattle, spending time hiking and drinking craft beer with his fiancee.
