So last week we were invited along to the Anki offices to check out a couple of new vehicles to be used on the plastic battlefield. We were stoked as we’re mega fans of the modern Scalextric set. But rather than having a trigger throttle, the vehicles are controlled using smart devices like phones and tablets, and even have some on board weapons to take out your opponents. Think Mario Kart in real life.

The two vehicles that we were shown were in fact two awesome trucks, the X52 and Freewheel. Both are some size bigger than the regular cars that have already been released with the Anki Overdrive set, and both trucks come with some unique abilities.

The on-board weapons are spread between front, side and rear positions, with the tow cable manoeuvre being our favourite. This is where you can hook an opponents vehicle onto your own to make them spin out. There is a side weapon too which will send enemies flying from the track as well as a front boost type weapon to shoot the other cars forward, losing control.

The mobile phone, although not shown too much on our visit has changed. Feedback that Anki has received in the past is that their interface was hard to determine which car the user was actually controlling. Well now they’re laid out differently depending on the vehicle which is great.

There are also several new game modes including a King Of The Hill control type action. Battle to take control of the master truck on the track. Once in control of one of the new beasts, hold your position to win.

There is a trailer for the new vehicles and game modes in the banner on this page, or alternatively, check the video below for an exclusive presentation with the Anki team. To find out more information, head over to the Anki website.