Confession time: I stole the headline for this post from a Steam review for Turbo Golf Racing (Steam, Gamepass) because there isn’t a better way to describe this game. I’d not have even thought about it – down here in the South, we refer to ‘margarine’ and don’t need to allude to its ‘not butterness’.
If you are still lost, ‘I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter!’ is a famous US margarine brand. And Turbo Golf Racing is so damn close to Rocket League that you can almost accuse it of plagiarism.
Almost. But this game does enough interesting stuff that it instead helps turn Rocket League into a genre. Turbo Golf Racing does essentially the same thing: you control an RC car, and you focus your attention on a ball. But while Rocket League players fight over the same ball in a football match, in Turbo Golf Racing, you each have your own ball that you must try – vaguely golf style – to get it into the hole on the other side before everyone else.
That involves racing across insane tracks that are part Trackmania and part adventure golf, with a side of kart/arcade racer shenanigans such as firing rockets at your opponents and using map elements to your advantage. You can’t collide with other players or interfere with their balls. All your skill goes into how accurately and hard you can hit your oversized ball, tipping forwards, backwards, and approaching at different angles to change the ball’s trajectory.
In this respect, it’s very much like Rocket League – and RL players will find a lot of other similarities. But Turbo Golf Racing is also different in key areas. The balls behave a little differently and are more prone to lose momentum. If you miss your ball, it makes more sense to reset your position than to make a U-turn (you can often spot the RL players who haven’t figured this out yet). Turbo Golf Racing also offers buffs (called power cores) that alter your gameplay and your chances to win, so every game isn’t quite equally matched. That being said, buffs aren’t enough to win. It takes luck, speed and accuracy.
Turbo Golf Racing is very generous with its XP and in-game currency, and has a store full of rotating items that add cosmetic bling to your car and avatar. At this stage, there is no pay-to-win, plus you can’t buy buffs. You can only unlock them while playing.
The game is in Early Access on Steam and Game Preview on Gamepass – and the latter’s inclusion is a big reason why I’m writing this post. Each game supports up to 8 players, and you can create team lobbies for six players. Usually, I’d have to wait for weeks or months as players I know decide to buy the game or not. But since it’s on Gamepass, anyone with an active subscription can start playing.
I’m not saying Turbo Golf Racing will be the next Rocket League. It might burn out, and the game lacks a few features that would please RL fans, such as car-showcasing lobbies for teams and winners, and additional game modes. Crossplay also seems to be very limited. And while the game feels balanced at the moment (because everyone’s new), it remains to be seen how the matching making will handle different skill levels and buffs.
But so far, it’s pretty exceptional and crazy fun. A game consists of three matches, each lasting only a few minutes. It’s a fast and addictive experience, and quite a few people lost their weekend playing match after match.
So, break out your controller, invite a few friends, and give Turbo Golf Racing a try. It might not be Rocket League, but it could be the next best thing and is certainly a welcome addition to the RL gameplay style. I wouldn’t be surprised if Microsoft writes a fat cheque and locks this in as a Gamepass exclusive, similar to how Epic has taken over Rocket League.
