22 February 2024
Ever wanted to drive your own car and be in a real life video game? Then Combat Karts is for you, created by TeamSport. Combat Karts is where racing meets gaming, as you take on a series of nail-biting laps against other players, using boosts, bonuses and skill to speed or down the opposition to secure victory! Requiring more than just speed and skills, strategy comes into play with Combat Karts.
TeamSport have been around since 1992 and opened their first track in Guildford. Since then, they have dedicated to create the best karting experience and provide new standards in the industry. From starting to a single flat level track and a single location, they have now over 35 locations in the UK, 5 in Germany and all have multi-level tracks to experience. As the UK’s No 1 indoor karting company, they look to expand and continue their success in the UK & Europe.
With the plans to expand, this takes away from the original petrol karts they originally and once used. Whilst some courses still have these old style karts, most are now updating to electric tracks, with the UK now having 16 locations updated to this version. Additionally, they have now introduced Combat Karts in more recent years as a new way to attract customers who may want something a little difference to just the speed & thrill karting offers.
Whilst you have the exciting karting sessions which we look forward to experiencing in the future, our review focuses on the brand new Combat Karts specifically. Combat Karts can be found live in 4 venues currently in the UK, with it slowly be added to other locations in the future such as Liverpool which is now coming soon. You can choose currently from Reading, Newcastle, Preston or Mitcham. Each course offers something different to the next, with it having different layouts at each location, different people it can take to the track and where you can collect bonuses. It’s all very technical.
Before attending one of these locations, it is of course best to book online and you can do so by calling up or via the website. You can select time, date and how many people, with each session being up to 9 players which can take to the track. Groups larger than 9 will need to split, but booking enough in advance you can book close the next time slot so you can race in back to back slots.
The pricing does change depending on off peak and peak slots, with combo offers also being available. Just a standard single booking which includes a 12 minute session and a 2nd 12 minute grid race, with equipment and safety briefing, you would be looking at £37.30 per person. Book late in the evening for the extra session for free on selected dates and always keep your eyes out for any discount codes for TeamSport.
When you arrive at the location, you check in with the front desk by providing your booking name or reference. You are then given everything you need to get ready for your session. So for us, we were given these orange racing jumpsuits with the Combat Karts logo on. You will also need a balaclava, which if you have your own then you can bring it otherwise, you can purchase one of the many designs they have here at the front desk. From here, you head into the male/female changing rooms to put these on before heading up the stairs into the bar and waiting area.
You will be called to your slot by one of the hosts by the colour wristbands you were given at the front desk. Once so, you head into the briefing room to watch a video on what you are about to experience, with simple rules, how the kart works and other key information you do need to know. Thankfully, the video is pretty short & punchy, so everything should be easy to remember. The host goes over the key points after to make sure you do remember the basics.
From here, you can then pick out a helmet, selecting the basic generic ones or one of the funky designs to make you look like a character on the course. This was a nice touch and can make your friends stick out on the track even more. As our session was about to start, we made our way to the track to get ready for our first session which was the practice session to learn the track, kart and game!
The actual experience when on the track was so much better than expected. We thought the karts would be slow due to the game element and it would be more focused on this however, we were very wrong. The karts were slower but still packed a punch and were fast enough for us to race around the multi level track. The gaming element to the racing was super clever yet very simple. The course had two sections which had a projection on the course where you could drive over it to gain an item. These items varied from speed bonuses, banana drops to missiles to slow down the opposition. These were random and you were guaranteed one per lap, but the optional two further areas to collect them from if you took the risk to get them. You knew what these were and your position from a screen on your steering wheel and you could activate the bonus by pressing a button on your wheel also. This made everything super interesting as if you got slowed going uphill, you would lose so much speed and easily be overtaken. Timing was everything so skill really played a big part in the race, compared to be going at driving the karts.
On top of this cool extras, they also had mood lighting in the racing track area, with sound effects going on around you making everything super realistic like you was in your own video game. Unfortunately, most of the track is on the second floor for Combat Karts which we were unable to get photos or videos from during our visit.
With you having two sessions to race in, the first one is just a teaser of the main race. After the practice session, you get a small break in the bar area to relax and catch your breathe back. After a 15-20 minute break, you get called back to the track for a grid start race depending on how the practice session started, for a 20 lap race to see who is the top racers of your session. This was a super intense 15 minutes for everybody, with multiple people changing positions, with us going from 1st and 2nd, to 3rd and 4th, then it all changing on the final few laps!
Ultimately, it was better than expected and was actually so much fun we now want to experience all of the tracks. For those who are after something a little different than your typical karting race, Combat Karts is for you as you still get the karting aspect, but with the fun addition and overlay of a video game.
Whilst waiting before your slow and after to relax, they have plenty going on in the bar with some mini arcade games, mini bowling which was a small upcharge, food & drinks and also a victory podium to take some pictures on.
Thank you to the team at TeamSport for working with us during our visit in January. They provided us two free tickets to experience Combat Karts on a Sunday in January.
If you fancy taking on Combat Karts, then head to one of the four open locations and if you are not local to one currently, then keep an eye out as they constantly expand this innovative new experience.
@thrillnation This is a game changer for go karting! #combatkarts #racinggame #gokarts #thrilling #fun #reading #teamsport ♬ Powerful songs like action movie music - Tansa
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