Absolute Drift: Zen Edition Reviews

Absolute Drift: Zen Edition is ranked in the 48th percentile of games scored on OpenCritic.
AR12Gaming
Top Critic
9 / 10
Sep 11, 2015

Overall, Absolute Drift is a great game. Offering a wealth of content to enjoy at a low price of $12 without any grinding or in-app purchases, Absolute Drift is a game you can play and have great fun. Sure, it doesn’t have the simulation physics you would expect in a AAA, but the point here is that it doesn’t need them. The physics can be adjusted to by everyone but will take time master and that’s what’s so great about this game.

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9 / 10
Dec 3, 2020

A minimal-looking aesthetic that fits the Switch perfectly, Absolute Drift is a delight to get absorbed into. You won’t master it straight away, but when you get the hang of it you’ll be hooning about in no time.

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Digitally Downloaded
Harvard L.
Top Critic
Sep 6, 2016

Bet you never thought you’d feel this peaceful on a racetrack, huh?

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GameSpew
Top Critic
8 / 10
Aug 31, 2016

Often contrasting a white background with bright block objects, there could not have been a better mix for a game all about avoiding things

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Aug 18, 2017

If you want to get your drift on, this is the game to do it with.

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8 / 10.0
Dec 2, 2020

Absolute Drift: Zen Edition is not the most welcoming game at first, since its drifting mechanics require some practice, but once you get a hold of them, you’ll be greeted to a very unique mix between a car simulator, a collectathon, and an old-school extreme sports arcade title.

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Dec 7, 2020

Absolute Drift is relaxing yet challenging.

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7 / 10.0
Dec 28, 2020

Absolute Drift: Zen Edition is a peaceful driving game crafted to focus on control, precision and challenging yourself.

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7 / 10.0
Dec 2, 2020

Absolute Drift: Zen Edition is a cozy, tranquil game with a single mission: to provide the perfect experience to facilitate the player's growth in skill. It succeeds flawlessly in this mission but could still use a bit more content for those who don't want to dedicate themselves to becoming drift masters on the same few tracks.

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Aug 23, 2016

A lack of an in-depth tutorial for newcomers to the genre undermines what's otherwise an excellent racing game.

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3.5 / 5.0
Dec 4, 2020

It’s like this — Absolute Drift: Zen Edition is undeniably a good game, but I can’t say it’s for everyone. It’s a bit like baseball vs. golf — one is all about hitting that ball as hard as you can and running like the devil’s after you, whereas the other is all about keeping track of things like terrain, wind speed, and 42 different clubs while you plan your varying strategies. Sure Absolute Drift: Zen Edition is a driving game, but it’s the golf of driving games; if you’re more of a batting cages kinda player like I am, this one might be more of a swing and a miss, no matter how pretty it is (and it is pretty). However, if you’re more of a golfer, this is absolutely a hole in one — it just depends on which stick you like to use to whack a few balls, really (that’s a sentence I wrote and I’m sticking to it).

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7 / 10.0
Dec 3, 2020

While we've slowly accumulated racing titles on the Switch over the years diversity has continued to be an area of struggle...

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6.1 / 10.0
Aug 30, 2016

Absolute Drift is a difficult game to recommend.

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6 / 10
Dec 2, 2020

Absolute Drift is the kind of game that can quite easily provide a good hour or so worth of entertainment on a rainy day. Our fear with this one, however, is that the learning curve is so brutally steep, it may put you off before you even properly get into it. If you do manage to power through, though, it’s a genuinely relaxing, satisfying experience. It’s just a shame the game is hampered by poor design choices and crippling technical issues.

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Cubed3
Athanasios
Top Critic
6 / 10
Dec 17, 2020

It's really sad that the learning curve is so massive that it acts like a wall that keeps most players from enjoying this. It's sad, because those who'll persevere, and manage to reach that 'Zen' level of razor-sharp precision, are the only ones who can really understand how exciting Absolute Drift can be. That being said, when a game is all about drifting, the fun factor won't last for long.

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5 / 10
Jan 4, 2017

Absolute Drift may see drifting as an elevated form of racing, but there is a reason the sport has only ever garnered a niche audience.

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