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Beach Buggy Racing 2: Island Adventure

Beach Buggy Racing 2: Island Adventure

Vector Unit · released Mar 10, 2021

Racing

BBR2: Island Adventure is a mayhem-filled kart-racer with an emphasis on split screen fun and game rule customization. Customize and save your own zany race rules for epic contests with up to 8 local players.

Steam page ↗OpenCritic ↗
84
VGC Score
■Stablemedium confidence
77%
At launch
91%
Steam all-time
73%
Press
91%
Recent sentiment

Screenshots & trailers

Review sentiment over time

Weekly positive-review rate (green) and review volume (bars). Dashed lines mark significant patches; the amber line is the start of the current scoring window. Hover the dots to see what drove a dip or a jump.

How this score was computed

The VGC Score is a weighted blend on a press-comparable 0-100 quality scale. Steam approval rates are first calibrated (95% positive on Steam ≈ 89.5 quality, since Steam approval skews high). Press and tracked creator reviews each count ~2x a player review and share one cap against player evidence (creator buy/skip calls pool into an approval rate, calibrated like Steam approval); all-time sentiment is capped and halved (it's context, not verdict); reviews of the current build carry the most weight when a fresh patch anchors the window; and a 'typical game' prior keeps small samples from pegging the scale. Because press reviews and Metacritic user aggregates describe the launch build, their weight decays as the game ages (3-year half-life after a 1-year grace). That's how a game that launched rough can outgrow its old reception once updates win players over. Reviews under 2h playtime (the refund window), non-Steam activations, and free copies are downweighted.

ComponentPositiveQuality (0-100)Weight (pseudo-reviews)
Press reviews (OpenCritic)–738
All-time Steam reviews91%86407
Metacritic user ratings––0
Post-patch Steam reviews (trust-weighted)91%865
Calibration prior (typical game)–7250

Scoring window: last 30 days (no significant patch detected) · 12 reviews sampled · 14 total reviews in window · weighted 10.6 up / 1 down · computed 8h ago · full methodology →

Press & Creators reviews (11)

Individual verdicts from outlets we track: scored reviews first, most trusted outlets first among them. The small badge is each outlet's trust score: how well its scoring history aligns with players.

  • 60
    Pure NintendoPure Nintendo
    trust 80Mar 23, 2021

    “Beach Buggy Racing 2: Island Adventure delivers more than its predecessor, but there's also more competition on the Switch in 2021 than in 2017. I can't say I find the additions significantly more enjoyable, and there's still plenty that could be improved. Despite offering a lesser version of karting staples seen elsewhere, this should still be enjoyable to fans of the first.”

    read full review ↗
  • 80
    Nintendo LifeNintendo Life
    trust 76Mar 20, 2021

    “Beach Buggy Racing 2 builds on the already decent first game to provide a genuinely entertaining karting title. It may come just short of competing with the Marios, Sonics and Crash Bandicoots of this world, but it's nevertheless a solid racer that runs smoothly, provides satisfying controls and has an enormous amount of things to do before you can consider it 100% complete. If you're looking for another karting game you should really give this one some consideration, despite the lack of recognisable branding.”

    read full review ↗
  • 65
    VGChartzVGChartz
    trust 71Mar 19, 2021

    “The moment-to-moment gameplay is a bit too chaotic and Adventure mode suffers from some repetition, but in general this is an island getaway worth taking, particularly if you're a fan of kart racers.”

    read full review ↗
  • 75
    Nindie SpotlightNindie Spotlight
    trust 70Mar 17, 2021

    “When you load up a kart racing game on any system, let alone the Switch, the biggest challenge is to try to enjoy the game on its own merits and not merely compare it to Mario Kart...”

    read full review ↗
  • 75
    ZTGDZTGD
    trust 68Apr 6, 2021

    “All in all, Beach Buggy Racing 2 is a fab entry in the kart racing genre; keeping things familiar enough but adding plenty of unique power-ups to stand out. It certainly is punching above its weight (and price). But I really think that the game is doing a disservice by not having an online multiplayer mode.”

    read full review ↗
  • 80
    ThisGenGamingThisGenGaming
    trust 64Apr 2, 2021

    “While it isn’t perfect Beach Buggy Racing 2: Island Adventure is a fun, smooth kart racer that is jam packed with content. The asking price is more than fair as the Adventure mode alone will provide many hours of enjoyment while things like the custom rules will provide many more.”

    read full review ↗
  • 85
    The Game CraterThe Game Crater
    trust 62Mar 13, 2021

    “Beach Buggy Racing 2: Island Adventure is an incredibly fun and addictive kart racer that I'm happy to admit is better than Mario Kart.”

    read full review ↗
  • 70
    GameSpewGameSpew
    trust 61Mar 17, 2021

    “Beach Buggy Racing 2: Island Adventure can be a relentless beast, like any karting game, you can expect to be constantly inundated with attack after attack, and it can get tiring. But racing around its colourful, upbeat tracks remains fun, and the sheer amount of content here makes it excellent value for money. Whether you want to race solo or against friends, there’s plenty here to keep you entertained.”

    read full review ↗
  • 75
    WayTooManyGamesWayTooManyGames
    trust 60Mar 13, 2021

    “All in all, despite still not being a fantastic achievement when it comes to its presentation, Beach Buggy Racing 2: Island Adventure is easily one of the more full-bodied kart racing options available on the Switch. Sure, competing against Mario Kart is basically a death sentence, but considering its great controls and nonsensical amount of content are being sold for a surprisingly reasonable price tag, I’d say this one is easily worth picking up.”

    read full review ↗
  • 86
    Gamer's PalaceGamer's Palace
    trust 55Mar 14, 2021

    “Beach Buggy Racing 2 has a lot to offer - with great tracks and much to unlock. It can also be quite a challenge - and is easily my favourite funracer at this point.”

    read full review ↗
  • 78
    Video ChumsVideo Chums
    trust 45Mar 21, 2021

    “Beach Buggy Racing 2: Island Adventure is one of the best indie kart racers that I've ever played. If you enjoy lighthearted racing games, too, then you'll get a kick out of what it offers, especially if you plan on playing with friends.”

    read full review ↗

Patch history

  1. Update notes for 2025.03.03
    Mar 4, 2025
  2. Update notes for 2024.12.12
    Jan 15, 2025
  3. Update Notes For 2023.09.14
    Sep 14, 2023
  4. Update 2023.09.12
    Sep 13, 2023
  5. Double DLC release and a patch update
    Aug 24, 2023
  6. Surprise update!
    Aug 10, 2023significant · resets scoring window
  7. Chrome paints and more!
    Aug 11, 2021
  8. Notes for version 08.09.2021
    Aug 10, 2021
  9. Quickie update to fix that controller bug
    Apr 22, 2021
  10. Update: Bug fixin' and Paint swappin'
    Apr 1, 2021
  11. Thank you, Early Access players!
    Feb 5, 2021
  12. Version 2021.01.15
    Jan 17, 2021
  13. Version 2020.12.16
    Dec 17, 2020
  14. Version EA-5.2
    Nov 14, 2020
  15. Version EA-5.1
    Oct 30, 2020
  16. Verison EA-5.0
    Oct 24, 2020
  17. Version EA-4.5
    Oct 16, 2020
  18. Version EA-4.4
    Oct 3, 2020
  19. Version EA-4.3
    Sep 26, 2020
  20. Version EA-4.2
    Sep 12, 2020
  21. Version EA-4.1
    Aug 29, 2020
  22. Version EA-4.0
    Aug 15, 2020
  23. Crickets
    Aug 7, 2020
  24. Version EA-3.7
    Jul 24, 2020
  25. Version EA-3.6
    Jul 18, 2020
  26. Version EA-3.5
    Jul 10, 2020
  27. Version EA-3.4
    Jul 3, 2020
  28. Version EA-3.3
    Jun 29, 2020
  29. Version EA-3.2
    Jun 20, 2020
  30. Version EA-3.1
    Jun 12, 2020significant · resets scoring window
  31. Version EA-3.0
    May 29, 2020
  32. Version EA-2.2
    May 16, 2020
  33. Version EA-2.1
    May 9, 2020significant · resets scoring window
  34. Major Update EA-2.0
    May 1, 2020significant · resets scoring window
  35. New Version EA-1.7
    Apr 18, 2020significant · resets scoring window
  36. New Version EA-1.6
    Apr 11, 2020significant · resets scoring window
  37. Version EA-1.5
    Apr 4, 2020significant · resets scoring window
  38. Version EA-1.4
    Mar 27, 2020
  39. [UPDATE] Version EA-1.3
    Mar 20, 2020