Vangers

Vangers is an odd and surreal driving game about vehicular combat, racing, and exploring a deeply alien world. Famous (or infamous) for its obtuseness, the game features its own bizarre lingo, which the player must learn.

In Vangers, the player drives vehicles, known as Mechos, about and through the realms, fulfilling quests essentially in the name of curiosity; the more successful you are the more you discover about the world in which you live. Specifically, you play a Lostie struggling within the World Chain to gain Dominance and knowledge under the concerned cynical eyes of your paternal wardens, the Eleepods. And so out you go racing in a Mecho, a Vanger warrior shuttling precious Phlegma, Nymbos, and Cirt from one forsaken corner of the realm to the next while gunning down the competition.

Played from an overhead perspective, the game features destructible environments and physics simulation; the player's Mechos can flip, get knocked upside down, and drive underwater and through underground tunnels. The game also features competitive multiplayer for up to 32 players, both free-for-all and team-based.

Vangers shares the universe and storyline of K-D Lab's later Perimeter and Maelstrom game series, which function as its prequels.

Originally released in 1998, the game has since been updated for modern systems and re-released on Steam and GOG, and updates have continued into April 2021. The game now is moddable, and, though LAN and Internet multiplayer support was originally disabled on the re-release, it has since been restored.