Review | Screamer

Screamer is the latest arcade racer from Milestone, and as someone who has spent years chasing that perfect blend of speed, style and spectacle, this one grabbed my attention straight away. It’s a spiritual successor to the 1995 game of the same name, rebooted with a bold new vision that trades pixelated circuits for anime-drenched chaos. Forza Horizon has set the standard for modern arcade racing, and ever since the Burnout series disappeared from the road, I have been waiting for something with that same calibre of energy and attitude. As someone who grew up chasing takedowns in Burnout and drifting through Horizon’s festivals, Screamer feels like a racer built for me. 

It draws on more than three decades of experience and aims for something bold, wrapping its racing in a dystopian, anime inspired world where story and speed collide. You are thrown into an illegal street racing tournament run by the enigmatic Mr. A, with five rival teams battling across a universe drenched in neon, grit and JRPG style drama. Think neon lit cities, oversized personalities and cinematic cutscenes that feel ripped from a late night anime marathon.

Themes of revenge, loyalty, love and greed unfold through fully animated cutscenes, supported by an international voice cast that includes Troy Baker and Aleks Le. It is a surprisingly character driven approach for an arcade racer and it gives every event a sense of purpose that goes beyond simply reaching the finish line. Screamer is clearly trying to bring something fresh to the genre and that ambition is what makes it so exciting to dive into.

With the world of Screamer opening up in front of us, it is time to dig into the review.

Things I liked!

• Visuals | The first thing that grabbed me when I loaded up Screamer was the look. Even before I hit the track, I was pulled into its world through a series of stylish cutscenes that introduce the backstory and the rival teams. The character designs are bold and expressive, with just the right mix of anime flair and arcade punch. It is clear a lot of care went into making each team feel distinct, not just in personality but in visual identity.
  
  Then came my first race. As the countdown ticked down and my car’s rear wheels spun, I was hit by a burst of colour and motion. The environments are bright, vibrant and packed with detail, with neon signs, sweeping skylines and dynamic lighting that give each track a sense of place. From cityscapes to industrial zones and desert highways, each location feels alive and visually distinct. Even the tyre smoke effect stood out. It is not a thick cloud, but a cool, stylised burst that picks up colours from your car and the surrounding environment.
  
  Explosions, sparks and other visual effects add flair without clutter, making every collision and power move feel dramatic and satisfying. It is not just flashy, it is readable too. Corners are well marked, effects are punchy without being distracting, and the whole thing feels tuned for speed and clarity. Screamer does not just look good, it looks fast.

• Racing Experience | Despite some difficulty and control issues that I explain in more detail later, I’ve genuinely enjoyed my time with Screamer. The gameplay is incredibly fast, delivering the kind of pure arcade energy that many racing fans have been missing. While the handling never feels completely comfortable, there is a brilliant moment when everything finally clicks. Finishing an event you’ve been stuck on feels hugely satisfying and gives the game a strong sense of momentum.
  
  There is also a large variety of cars to choose from. Some are heavier and can take more damage, while others are lighter and far more fragile, which adds a nice layer of strategy to each race. The track selection keeps things fresh too, with 32 circuits set across everything from derelict desert zones to sprawling space stations. Once you settle into the rhythm, Screamer becomes a blast to pick up and play.
  
  
• Sound | The voice acting in Screamer is genuinely impressive, with a wide cast of performers across multiple languages. Most of it plays out between races in cutscenes and storyboard moments, adding a surprising amount of personality to the game’s world. Occasionally, a character will shout something during a race, either to encourage you or throw in a cheeky taunt, which helps keep the energy up.
  
  The music is more hit and miss. It leans heavily into fast-paced electronic tracks, a style I usually enjoy, but here it sometimes feels too fast and overpowering. Once I turned the music volume down in-game, the sound effects became much easier to hear. The roar of engines, the impact of boosts, and the strike ability all sound great when they are not buried under the soundtrack.
  
  
• Performance | During my time with Screamer I never encountered any bugs, glitches or crashes. The performance was smooth and consistent throughout, with no frame rate issues at any point. Loading times were quick and never interrupted the flow of play, which helped keep the action moving from one event to the next.
  
  
• Single‑Player Modes | There are plenty of offline modes in Screamer, which was great to see. The Tournament is the main story mode and gives you a full campaign to work through. Alongside that, Arcade Mode offers a wide range of options. You can jump into standard races, team races, score challenges, overdrive challenges, checkpoints, and time attack. Each mode focuses on a different style of play, so there is always something new to try.
  
  It is great to see so many modes available, and they do a good job of keeping you busy. Whether you want something structured or something quick and simple, the offline content gives you lots of ways to enjoy the game at your own pace.
  
  
• Multiplayer Modes | Screamer offers a few multiplayer options, and I was pleasantly surprised to see support for up to four-player split-screen. It’s a great addition for couch play and adds real value for local multiplayer fans.
  
  Online multiplayer supports up to 16 players and includes full cross-play, meaning Xbox Series X/S, PlayStation 5, and PC players can race together. You can invite friends to private matches or jump into Screamer Mixtape, where you compete in race and team race events. There’s also a large “Coming Soon” message across the top half of the screen, which hopefully means more content or modes are on the way.
  
  I tested online multiplayer a few times, but both lobbies were half-filled with bots. I’m hoping that once more players complete The Tournament, the story mode, the online scene will pick up. As expected, performance online isn’t quite as smooth as offline single-player, but it’s still playable.
  
  
• Accessibility | Screamer offers one of the most impressive sets of accessibility options I’ve seen in a racing game for some time. You can adjust difficulty settings with five choices available in Arcade Mode and three in The Tournament. Driving aids include Arcade Throttle, which keeps the throttle at maximum, Neutral Throttle/Brake to help with cornering, and Neutral Steer/Drift for smoother handling. You can also change the offline game speed, which affects reaction time. The scale ranges from 50 to 100, and for me, 80 felt like the sweet spot.
  
  There’s an option for one-handed controls, letting you play with just one hand, and full button remapping is available too. HUD settings are flexible, allowing you to enable or disable elements as needed. You can toggle motion blur, which is a welcome addition, and the game saves automatically without interruptions. Language options are varied, and there are thoughtful extras like a colourblind filter, subtitle size adjustment, and a tinnitus reduction filter.
  
  It’s clear a lot of care went into making Screamer accessible to a wide range of players, and the result is one of the most inclusive racing experiences I’ve played in a long time.

Mixed & disliked!

• Controls | Screamer’s twin-stick setup takes some getting used to. Steering is handled with the left stick, while the right stick controls drifting, a layout that feels unconventional at first but starts to click after a few hours. Once you’ve adjusted, drifting becomes second nature, and the precision improves with every race. It’s a system that rewards muscle memory and finesse, though it might throw off players used to more traditional setups.
  
  As you race, you earn two key resources: Sync and Entropy. Sync fills your boost bar, while Entropy powers your offensive abilities. The standout mechanic here is Active Shift. Screamer’s semi-automatic transmission lets you shift up a gear with a tap of the LB button, granting a short burst of speed and building Sync. You’ll need to nail this consistently to have any chance on the track. There’s no option to disable Active Shift, so players must learn to master it. Holding LB when your boost is charged activates a quick time event. Release it while the marker is inside the triangle and you unleash a long boost. Release it outside the triangle and you get a standard boost. Unfortunately, the shift indicator is placed at the top of the screen, far from your line of sight during high-speed cornering. A lower HUD placement, perhaps beneath the car, would have made it more intuitive and less distracting.
  
  The biggest hiccup, though, is button layout. Accelerate is mapped to RT, but Strike, an offensive move that gives your car a burst of speed and lets you slam into other racers to completely destroy them, is on RB. You need to hold RB down while Strike charges, which takes a few seconds. Tapping RB also activates a shield that helps defend you from incoming attacks. Trying to hit both RT and RB at once feels awkward, forcing you to shift your grip mid-race. And considering how often you’ll be tapping LB for Active Shift, it’s hard not to worry about long-term controller strain. I can’t think of another game where I’ve had to press LB quite this often, and on past Xbox controllers, that’s usually the first button to go. The control scheme works once you’ve adapted, but it may put some players off, especially those who prefer a more traditional setup.

• Challenge Curve | Screamer’s story mode, The Tournament, starts tough. On Normal difficulty, I struggled to keep up. Even when I pulled ahead, AI racers would catch up with relentless consistency. Dropping to Story Focus helped slightly, but I was still finishing mid-grid. checkpoints mode gave me space to experiment and build confidence, especially with Active Shift and the LB button. Screamer throws a lot at you early, and it’s easy to miss key mechanics. On-screen prompts show which buttons to press, but a short video tutorial might have worked better. New systems are introduced gradually across the 70 episodes, which helps, but early mechanics could have been explained more clearly and spaced out better.
  
  Difficulty spikes are frequent. Some events pair you with an AI teammates and the team with the most points wins. Your partner’s performance can be inconsistent, and even on the easiest setting, I often needed multiple attempts to progress. Other events add objectives, like landing Strikes on specific racers and finishing in the top three. Rivals often shoot far ahead early, and catching them means quickly building your Sync and Entropy bars. Strike attacks are powerful, but other racers can use them against you too, usually without warning. One moment you’re racing cleanly, the next your car explodes, which can feel frustrating.
  
  The AI controlled cars are aggressive. Falling to the back early makes recovery difficult, and I often restarted events when that happened. Even when in first place, someone is usually right behind you. One mistake can be costly, especially since the other cars follow set tracks with precision. Some tracks are also quite narrow, which makes overtaking challenging at times. Screamer demands a lot, and while that can be thrilling, it risks pushing players away.
  
  
• Story | The anime-style story gives Screamer a bold identity, framing the racing around a futuristic underground tournament. Each team enters with its own motivations, whether it’s revenge, pride, or something more personal. You’ll meet characters like Hiroshi Jackson and Róisín Garrity from the Green Reapers, and Ritsuko from Strike Force Romanda, each adding personality and flair to the world. While I liked the concept, I often found the story slowed down the racing. After a race, I wanted to jump straight back into the action, but instead I was pulled into another story segment. That pacing won’t suit everyone, especially if you prefer uninterrupted gameplay.
  
  Still, the effort is clear. The cutscenes are visually impressive, and the voice acting adds weight to the narrative. For players who enjoy story-driven games or want something different from a typical racer, there’s a lot to appreciate.
  

How long did I play the review before publishing? 24 Hours
How long to beat the story? 10-15 Hours depending on skill.
How long to Complete the game 100%? 40+ hours depending on skill
How many Achievements did I earn before publishing? 19/50 OR 420/1000G
You’ll love this game if you like these | Inertial Drift, GRIP: Combat Racing and Forza Horizon 5

CONCLUSION

Score: 83/100

A slick, energetic racer that hits hard and keeps you coming back for more.

Screamer is a bold and stylish arcade racer that delivers fast action, great presentation and a surprising amount of depth. The mix of single player modes, online options and generous accessibility features makes it easy to enjoy, and the anime inspired world gives it a personality that stands out. There are some rough edges, especially with the controls and difficulty spikes, but the overall experience is exciting, energetic and packed with content. If you are looking for a fresh arcade racer with plenty to offer, Screamer is well worth your time.