Wild Ride is an expansion for the board game Downforce. You must have the base game to be able to play. We also have a review of Downforce without any expansions. The Wild Ride expansion adds a new, two-sided game board with totally a totally different play experience and elements on each side. Also included is one cardboard sheet with punch-outs to add to the board.
Aloha Sands
One side of the board is called Aloha Sands. Aloha Sands features ramps that cars can jump to zoom ahead of the pack. The expansion comes with actual little ramps you set on the board to simulate the jumps. Using the ramp has a few rules, but they are not cumbersome. A ramp can only be used if:
- The number played on the speed card must be equal to or higher than the number on the ramp. AND
- The car must have at least one movement left. AND
- The landing space for the ramp is empty.
When a car cannot use the ramp, you simply must go around.
Savanna Stretch
Savanna Stretch is a completely different play experience than Aloha Sands. This time, wild animals are on the track and the cars must navigate around them. The wild animals are represented by cardboard tokens. Each token has a distinct shape. The rules for Savanna Stretch are also quite simple to learn.
- Start with the animals in their spots closest to the starting line.
- Animals block the space when they are present.
- After the turn when the first car passes the line in front of the animal, move the animal to the next designated space on the track.
- Empty animal spaces may be entered by cars like normal spaces.
The Dad Review
I really enjoy the base game and rank it pretty high among our racing style games.
Aloha Sands
On the Aloha Sands side of the Wild Ride board, we are going off some ramps. While it doesn’t feel as good as my 10-year-old self launching off some sweet unsafe homemade dirt jumps as a kid, it is still fun and much safer.
You should always be able to finish this course if you hit the jumps. I had the power card Cunning, which let me move my own car. I believe Cunning is the best power to have on this course, because there is a slight ‘take that’ mechanism at play here. If someone plays a card with your color car, they can bypass the jump and make you go the long way. However, if you have Cunning, you can take the path of your choice. Not being able to move your own cars can cause some frustrating moments. I know it did for Maci, but she didn’t pull the anger card I seem to use a lot. She kept her cool and I was proud of her for that.
Savanna Stretch
On Savanna Stretch, we bring in some animals. Kinda like the cows in Mario Kart. While I would have liked a standee version for the animals I understand you gotta keep prices low, which I appreciate. It’s difficult to warrant buying a $50 expansion sometimes, I’d much rather pay $15-$20 for a bunch of fun like this, so I will deal with no standees. Plus Maci can now design 3D models of the animals for school and us, win, win. This is another solid course. The animals move when triggered, so it can create blocking issues. On the other hand, when the animals move out of the way, the space they leave is a great way to zoom ahead.
I prefer Aloha Sands to Savanna Stretch, but I will say this is a great expansion and I would play anytime someone wanted to with no objection. If you like the base game this is a solid investment and affordable.
For a family ranking, I give it a 9/10.
The Mom Review
I really enjoy the Wild Ride expansion for Downforce. It brought some fun new elements to the gameplay without the headache of way too many new rules to remember. Of the two sides, I highly prefer Aloha Sands (with the jumps). It made the game move along quickly. Additionally, every car crossed the finish line. Maci usually buys too many cars at auction and will end up with one or two stranded at the end of the race, but with the jumps in Aloha Sands, all of her cars made it.
On the flip side, Savanna Stretch side also has simple rules, but instead of speeding up the game, this side felt like it slowed the game down. I actually wish we had played the sides in reverse order. Savanna Stretch may not have been any slower than the base game, but after playing with the jumps on Aloha Sands, it felt extra long.
One thing to be aware of with Savanna Stretch is that the spaces for the animals are oddly shaped. We had a couple of moments of confusion in placing our cars in them because we weren’t used to the shape of the spaces. This wasn’t a big deal, but it is something to keep an eye on.
Overall, I give the Wild Ride Expansion a 9/10. It isn’t necessary, but I really enjoyed it, and it’s a great way to keep playing Downforce with a little variety.
The Kid Review
I like the Down Force Wild Ride Expansion. Both sides are great. I love the jumps on the first side – Aloha Sands. Double jumping or just jumping is really cool because it gets me really far. I like the other side (Savanna Stretch) because I like that when the animals get out of the way, it’s one space. It’s also challenging that you have to avoid the animals. I like the first side (Aloha Sands) better though.
In conclusion I will give this expansion 10/10.
Overall Impressions
As a family, we are fans of the Wild Ride Expansion for Downforce.
- Overall Rating: 9/10
- Setup: Easy
- Rules: Very Easy
- Does REQUIRE original Downforce game to play
Do you have the game Downforce? Will you be getting Wild Ride? Do you already have it? Leave us a comment, we’d love to hear your feedback!
