Slot Racers
Hold to go fast, ease off in the bends or fly off. 5 laps.
Slot Racers is a two-player slot-car racing game in which you hold your half of the screen to speed up and let go to brake. Take a bend too fast and your car flies off, and the first to finish the laps wins.
Your whole half of the screen is one button: hold to speed up, let go to slow down. Take a bend too fast and your car flies off the track, so the race is won by knowing when to lift.
Also known as Slot car racing, 2 player racing game, Scalextric-style racing.
- How you hold it
- Face-off
- Match
- 5 laps
- Length
- About 1 to 2 minutes
- Play
- Friend or bot
How to play Slot Racers: quick rules
About 1 to 2 minutes at 5 laps. Full rules, options and bot levels are further down.
- 1Hold your half to speed up and let go to brake.
- 2Watch the bar: too fast in a bend and you fly off.
- 3A crashed car sits out 2 seconds; first to the laps wins.
Slot Racers rules
Setup and start
- Both cars line up side by side on the start line, each in its own lane. The lanes are identical in length and limits, and they swap sides on a rematch.
- One 3-2-1 countdown starts the race. A finger held down through the countdown does nothing until you lift and press again, so there are no jump starts.
- On the Random track setting, the game never picks the same track as your previous race in the session.
Speed and bends
- Hold to speed up and let go to brake. A car never stops completely: let go and it slows to a crawl.
- Every bend has a speed limit. Stay over it inside a bend for more than a split second and your car flies off.
- There is no time to shed top speed once you are in the bend, so the skill is lifting before it. Anywhere under the limit is always safe.
- Come in too hot and your speed bar changes to its warning colour, the bend glows and "Ease off!" appears in your half.
Fly-offs
- A car that flies off sits out for 2 seconds while "Off the track!" and a countdown show, then comes back at the start of that bend at a crawl, in its own lane.
- It keeps every lap and checkpoint it has already done. Until it leaves that bend it can't go faster than the bend's limit, so holding on can't crash it again straight away.
- Cars never collide. Each runs in its own slot and they pass through each other, with no blocking, pushing or slipstream.
Laps and the finish
- Each player's HUD shows their own lap. A lap counts only after passing the checkpoints around the track and crossing the line going forward, so no lap can be skipped.
- When the leading car starts its last lap, "Final lap!" shows for both players, and each HUD names the leader: "Red leads", "Blue leads" or "Neck and neck".
- The first car to complete its laps wins: 3, 5 or 7. The result gives the winning margin, such as "By 0.4 s".
- If it is too close to call, finish times are measured to the millisecond and "Photo finish!" shows. An exact tie goes to the car with fewer fly-offs, then to a coin toss.
- If nobody has finished after two and a half minutes of racing, "Time!" shows and the car furthest round wins. There are no draws.
Tracks
- Oval
- Two long sweeping bends. The easiest track, and the place to learn when to lift.
- Figure 8
- Longer straights and two bends, with the lanes crossing on a bridge.
- Hairpin
- Two tight hairpins and a sweeper. The hardest track, with heavy braking.
Tips to win at Slot Racers
- 1Lift before the bend, not in it. Once you're in a bend there's no time to shed speed, so brake on the straight.
- 2Keep the bend limit marker on while you learn each track: it shows exactly how fast the next bend can be taken.
- 3Hold, don't tap. Tapping rapidly is slower than holding, so press firmly on straights.
- 4A fly-off costs 2 seconds plus a slow restart, which is more than you gain by pushing a bend. Safe and steady usually wins.
- 5Learn the Hairpin track: its tight bends need heavy braking, and that's where the easier bots lose time.
Controls
Phone flat between you. Each player owns a half, and the far half faces the far player.
- Touch and hold anywhere in your half to accelerate. Lift every finger and the car brakes.
- Any number of fingers can rest in your half; the car speeds up while at least one is down.
- A touch belongs to the half it started in. Sliding into the other half never drives the other car.
- Tapping rapidly is slower than holding, so mashing the screen gives no advantage.
Options
Every option is free. Defaults are marked.
| Option | Choices | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Laps to win | 35 (default)7 | The number of laps the winning car must complete. |
| Track | Random (default)OvalFigure 8Hairpin | Fixes the track, or lets the game pick a different one each race. |
| Bend limit marker | On (default)Off | Shows the next bend's limit on your speed bar; turning it off makes the race harder. |
Play Slot Racers against the bot
The bot drives Blue with the same top speed, acceleration, braking and bend limits as you. It knows the track and its own speed, never reads your throttle and gets no speed boost when it falls behind.
Easy
Eases off far too early, never reaches full speed on the straights and now and then misjudges a bend and flies off.
Normal
Brakes in good time and keeps a safe margin under each bend's limit, with an occasional fly-off.
Hard
Runs flat out on the straights and hugs each bend's limit. It rarely flies off, but it can, like any car.
Online, tournaments and hints
- Online
- One phone onlySlot Racers turns on split-second lifts and photo finishes. Internet delay would decide the moment, so it stays on one phone.
- Tournament
- Can be drawn in a tournamentIn a tournament it is always 5 laps on a Random track with the bend limit marker on, whatever your saved options.
- Hints
- No hints here: it's all about your own reactions.
Coming soon
- More tracks. More tracks beyond Oval, Figure 8 and Hairpin.
How it feels
- An engine note that climbs with your speed, with a soft buzz that rises with it.
- Tyre squeal when you lift at speed, and a ticking warning when you come into a bend too hot.
- A crash and clatter with sparks on a fly-off, a bell for every lap and a horn for the final lap.
- A chequered fanfare and the winner's colour across the screen at the finish.
Accessibility
- Colour is never the only cue: Red's car has a stripe and Blue's a dot, the danger state adds an exclamation mark and a pulse, and "Ease off!" and fly-offs are spelled out in text.
- The whole half is one button, so one thumb is enough and nothing needs precision.
- With reduce motion on, there are no speed lines, sparks or slow-motion.
- Keep the bend limit marker on for a gentler race; it shows exactly how fast each bend can be taken.
Slot Racers questions
Hold anywhere in your half to speed up and let go to brake. Take a bend over its speed limit and your car flies off, and the first car to finish the laps wins.
No. Each car runs in its own slot and they pass through each other, with no blocking, pushing or slipstream.
No. An exact tie goes to the car with fewer fly-offs, then a coin toss, and after two and a half minutes the car furthest round wins.
Oval, Figure 8 and Hairpin. The Random setting picks a different one from your last race.
Yes. Slot Racers in Duo Clash is built for two players on the same phone. Phone flat between you. Each player owns a half, and the far half faces the far player.
Yes. The bot drives Blue with the same top speed, acceleration, braking and bend limits as you. Choose Easy, Normal or Hard.
Play Slot Racers on one phone
Free on Android. Sit face to face, or take on the bot on Easy, Normal or Hard.
