If there’s any game that I spent hours upon hours playing and having fun, both solo and with my friends or girlfriends, that would be Trackmania. From the Trackmania Sunrise to Nations Forever to Canyon and beyond, the whole franchise has been nothing more than a fun experience with beautiful and unique gameplay.
In a nutshell, Trackmania is a wild, fast, and crazy racing game that manages to give players a very competitive gameplay while letting creators get productive by designing their own maps and cars and providing those skins to the community – but more on that in a bit.
It’s all about making the fastest runs with the same speed that other players have, no matter the skin. This makes the game absolutely great as it gives all players the same chance at winning. And although Trackmania has failed to evolve in recent years, it’s still one of the best racing options out there.
Who’s Behind This Madness?
Trackmania was birthed by the French game development studio Nadeo, which sounds kind of fancy, but don’t let that fool you. They’ve clearly had a blast making a game where cars zoom upside down through loop-de-loops, bounce off walls, and catapult themselves across impossible jumps.
These folks have been in the Trackmania game since 2003 (although they founded the company back in 2000 by Florent Castelnérac and Pierre-Emmanuel Houillon) and show no signs of getting bored. And neither have we.
The Trackmania Timeline
Trackmania isn’t just one game, oh no. It’s a whole franchise. Older players will already remember the good old titles, experiencing the game’s evolution from the very beginning. Although not much has changed, the improvement in gameplay, graphics, and features has been significant.
Moreover, here’s a little rundown of the titles that have graced our screens so far:
- TrackMania (2003): The OG. The one that started it all, with quirky tracks and the same chaotic energy we love today.
- TrackMania Sunrise (2005): A sunnier and even faster version. More tracks, more insanity.
- TrackMania Nations (2006): Released for the Electronic Sports World Cup, this game was entirely free and gave us a taste of serious competitive racing.
- TrackMania United (2006): A greatest hits collection, bringing together everything we loved about earlier versions.
- TrackMania Nations Forever (2008): One of the most iconic titles, keeping the game alive and racing long into the night.
- TrackMania² Canyon (2011): Time to go off-road, well, sort of. More detailed environments and physics that kept us spinning.
- TrackMania² Stadium (2013): A faithful continuation of the “Nations” vibe but with a facelift for modern times.
- TrackMania² Valley (2013): The scenic version, with a countryside aesthetic that made you almost forget about the utter chaos of the tracks.
- TrackMania Turbo (2016): This title wanted to go bigger and bolder with more loop-de-loops, neon signs, and a console version!
- Trackmania (2020): A reboot of Nations with modern graphics, tight controls, and a whole new level of creative potential for players.
That last title, the 2020 Trackmania, is where most of the community hangs out nowadays. Older releases, such as Trackmania Canyon, still have a dedicated community of online players who compete with each other every day.
Trackmania Stadium also has many active players, while you can even join the Nations Forever for some nostalgic moments (which has also been available on the Snap Store for Linux for the last few years now).
The Community of Trackmania
Let’s be real: Trackmania’s community is everything. What makes this game such a joy is the shared madness of the players. They’re not just racing, no, they’re creating. Want to drive a rocket-powered banana? You can, thanks to custom car skins. Want to race through a Minecraft-themed map? Someone’s already made it. And here’s an Assassin’s Creed skin if you’re into that.
If there’s anything that makes this game so different, that will be its players. Those are the people who create the funniest or fastest videos on the internet, and those who create the most beautiful and unique custom skins and maps.
There’s something thrilling about joining an online server and finding yourself neck-deep in tracks that look like they were designed by a hyperactive toddler with a god complex – yet somehow, it works. The Trackmania community has also grown into a robust competitive scene. It’s not all bananas and rainbows, there are players out there who take their lap times very seriously, turning every hairpin bend into a potential high-stakes drama.
If you’re a Formula 1 fan like myself, you won’t see any differences with Trackmania when it comes to timing, as you’ll be seconds in front or back of a car – depending on your overall skills as a driver with that specific gameplay. It’s not easy, I won’t lie, and getting the first place is almost impossible if you haven’t been very familiar with the gameplay and how the cars take every turn faster.
Custom Skins, Maps, and Tracks: Creativity Gone Wild
Trackmania is a game where you can truly let your creativity run wild. Skins, maps, and even custom tracks are the name of the game. Not only does the game let you use these customizations, but it also lets you create them. And no, you don’t have to be an expert to begin designing your own stuff.
Downloading Skins & Maps
If you’ve got a vision for your racing car that involves neon lights, flames, or something more abstract like a cat riding a dolphin (because why not?), you can easily download custom skins.
- ManiaPark is the go-to site for skins, offering a huge variety of user-created designs. Want your car to look like a sports car from the future? Check. How about driving a tank? Sure, why not? ManiaPark has you covered.
- For custom maps, TrackmaniaExchange is the Holy Grail. This is where the true magic happens. Players upload maps that range from well-designed competitive tracks to complete chaos (think loops within loops within…more loops).
Once downloaded, applying skins is pretty straightforward. Drop the files into the right directory in your Trackmania folder, and voilà! You’re cruising around in your hot-pink monster truck.
Trackmania Nations Forever:
- Skins: Typically, skins are placed in the “Skins” folder within the game’s installation directory. This folder should be located somewhere like:
C:\Program Files (x86)\Ubisoft\Trackmania Nations Forever\Skins
Trackmania Turbo:
- Skins: Skins for cars and maps in Trackmania Turbo are usually found in the “Skins” folder within the game’s installation directory. You can find this folder by navigating to:
C:\Program Files (x86)\Ubisoft\Trackmania Turbo\Skins
Trackmania 2020:
- Skins: The location of the skins folder in Trackmania 2020 might be slightly different. Try looking in the following directories:
C:\Program Files (x86)\Ubisoft\Trackmania 2020\SkinsC:\Users\<YourUsername>\AppData\Roaming\Ubisoft\Trackmania 2020\Skins
Tips:
- If you’re unsure of the exact location, try searching for the “Skins” folder within the game’s installation directory or use the search function in your operating system.
- Some mods or custom content may require you to create specific folders within the Skins directory. Refer to the instructions provided with the mod or content for more details.
- Always make a backup of your original game files before installing any mods or custom content. This will help you restore your game to its original state if something goes wrong.
By following these guidelines, you should be able to locate the correct directory and enjoy your downloaded skins in Trackmania.
Creating Your Own Maps: Unleash Your Inner Architect
Want to be the mad scientist behind the tracks? Trackmania’s track editor is your playground. Here’s a quick guide on how to create your own map:
- Open the Track Editor from the main menu.
- Choose a tile set – this is where your map will be built. It could be desert, stadium, valley, or wherever your creative heart desires.
- Start placing blocks. This is where the fun begins. You can slap down straight roads, twisty loops, ramps, jumps, and if you’re feeling particularly adventurous, boost pads.
- Once you’ve laid out your map, hit Test to see how badly your car can fail at navigating it.
- Upload your masterpiece to TrackmaniaExchange so the world can enjoy (or suffer) in your creation.
The learning curve for the track editor is more of a learning loop, but with a little patience, you can design tracks that will have other players screaming in frustration (or joy).
A Few Things That Could Be Improved (Because Nothing’s Perfect)
Trackmania may be amazing, but hey, nothing’s perfect. Staring with their interface, which in my opinion, is not ideal for beginners. If you’re new to Trackmania, good luck finding your way around the track editor or understanding how the ranking system works without a PhD. A more intuitive interface would help new players get into the game without feeling like they’re hacking into the Matrix.
Right now, car customization is limited to skins. It’d be awesome to have more flexibility, like adding decals, tweaking body shapes, or maybe even altering the handling of your car. And don’t get me started on downloading and adding new skins, which could have been a whole lot easier if they’d built an official store with free and premium skins – hey, maybe the community can make a buck, huh?
And sure, Trackmania is all about multiplayer and creativity, but adding a story mode could give single players more motivation to keep racing and completing tracks. Maybe a tale about a rogue AI car or a world-saving race? Who knows? That’s absolutely one of my wishes before I die, to complete a full Trackmania storyline with ultra speed.
Trackmania has also failed to improve over the years. It all basically started for us with Trackmania Nation Forever, which made us fall in love with the game. Trackmania Canyon was beyond the best games we could have gotten during that time and one of the titles that I still play at least two times a week. It was different, unique, and provided a more modern experience than the previous titles, while the Trackmania Stadium was a neat extra addition to the franchise.
Then we got Trackmania Valley, which while it was beautiful when it comes to graphics and maps, it was, well, “meh”. Trackmania Turbo was the latest release that I didn’t end up purchasing, as I found it nothing more than a Canyon re-design with some extra features, different skins, and a new interface that was appropriate for the game’s theme.
Last but not least, we got Trackmania (2020), a reboot of Nations with modern graphics, tight controls, and more options for building maps and skins. The jetpack reactor boost was probably one of the few unique features that the newest release got, which I can say I am really fond of, but nothing “special” has been added, which makes me wonder if they lost their creativity in designing such unique racing games.
Final Thoughts: A Wild Ride Worth Taking
Trackmania is that rare game that gives you the freedom to be both a racer and a creator. Whether you’re setting world records on pre-built tracks, laughing at your car’s spectacular fails, or designing your own insane circuits, there’s something undeniably addictive about it.
Is it perfect? No. Is it insane? Absolutely. But that’s part of the charm. Trackmania doesn’t just let you race; it lets you make the race whatever you want it to be. And that’s why it’ll keep us coming back for more – and hoping for even more loops, jumps, and impossible tracks in the next game.
Have you ever played Trackmania in the past? And if so, which titles have you played and liked the most so far? Is there another racing game that you prefer playing? Let me know by dropping your reply in the comments section down below.
