The biggest problem with Hotwire is that while the new cars are mostly nice to control on a keyboard (a light tap on the brakes really zips you around corners), they sometimes want to go faster than the server, stuttering and rubberbanding against each other as the physics sorts itself out. When you’re bouncing around in a car with music going, leaning out the window spraying bullets, it’s hard not to have fun. There are three basic activities in Hotwire-finding RPGs and blowing up cars, providing air support, and driving or riding in cars-along with little shootouts when you cross paths with the enemy on the way to do those things.

This makes sense, because driving cars in circles is how you uphold the law, and also break it. It’s still about capturing and controlling points, but those points are now cars which must be driven around the map. My favorite mode is Hotwire, which epitomizes Hardline’s speed. But if all that doesn’t aggravate you so much that you step away, this stupid game is a lot of fun.

Battlefield hardline size