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Not every game is born after months of planning and market analysis, and Driving Is Hard is a great example. The idea for the project came about during a casual chat at the office coffee machine, when the developers started thinking about combining racing with the particularly tough Foddian game formula. At first players were even meant to control the car using only a mouse, but it quickly became clear that the idea didn't work in practice. What started as a crazy prototype ended up as a game where, instead of a car, you use a bathtub on wheels, with a bald protagonist called Jeff at the wheel.
From a joke at the coffee machine to a challenging racing game with a bathtub on wheels
The story of Driving Is Hard began even before Elegant Horse Studios operated as a fully fledged studio. The founders were working full time at other companies and developing their own projects in their spare time. During one of the coffee-machine breaks the subject of Foddian games came up, meaning titles deliberately designed so that their high difficulty level frustrates players. Then one of the creators came up with the idea of making a similar game, but rather than climbing or traditional movement across a map it would focus on racing. The first prototype was created remarkably quickly. After getting home the creator started working on the code and after one intense weekend the first version of Driving Is Hard was ready. Initially control was handled solely with the mouse, but testing quickly showed that such a system was simply awkward. The developers therefore abandoned that solution and opted for more classic, arcade-style controls. After that change testers' reactions were decidedly better, and the original joke began to turn into a proper project. That's when the idea for a distinctive look for the game also came about. At first they considered several types of vehicles, including an RC car, a stylised racing car and a buggy. Ultimately the developers decided an ordinary buggy wouldn't make the game stand out enough. They were inspired by a story from one of the creators about a bathtub that disappeared from his family home after a renovation. So instead of a classic vehicle they made a bathtub fitted with wheels, and inside sat a half-naked, bald protagonist. That's how Jeff was born, and he has to tackle extremely steep terrain and deal with the game's merciless physics.
Seven worlds, three difficulty levels and a constant fight with physics here every mistake can mean losing your progress
Driving Is Hard is built on a very simple premise, but its execution is deliberately demanding. The player controls Jeff in a bathtub on wheels through seven different worlds, each offering its own obstacles, mechanics and challenging sections of track. Mastering the vehicle’s physics is crucial, because even a small mistake can end in a fall and force you to redo parts of a course. The developers have also prepared three difficulty levels. “Driving Is Easy” offers a more relaxed experience and checkpoints, “Driving Is Hard” is the core challenge, and “Driving Is Insane” is aimed at players who want to test their patience to the absolute limit. Beyond just completing tracks, the game also contains Jeff’s story, in which he faces his father’s expectations, family problems and his own doubts. During play you can also unlock new bathtub looks and hunt for 21 hidden soaps. That way the unusual idea is not limited to jokes and tough physics, but also gains its own character and narrative. Driving Is Hard is already available on Xbox and supports Xbox Play Anywhere. For about $10 players can see how far they can get in a bathtub before the steep track and unforgiving handling send Jeff back to the bottom.
Driving Is Hard shows that even a simple, absurd idea can turn into a fully fledged game. The title offers challenging bathtub-on-wheels driving, seven worlds, three difficulty levels and the story of Jeff. The developers emphasised tough physics and the satisfaction of overcoming each obstacle. The game is already available on Xbox and could be an interesting pick for fans of demanding skill-based games.
source: Xbox
