Gear.Club Unlimited 3 Review

A trip to Japan that stalls at the starting line.

After touring the scenic routes of France and Italy, Gear.Club Unlimited 3 shifts its gaze toward the neon-soaked streets and winding mountain passes of Japan. On paper, it’s the ultimate evolution of the series: a deep dive into JDM culture, a revamped Highway Rush mode, and a garage full of dream machines. But while the engine sounds roar with potential, the experience under the hood is plagued by technical stalls and inconsistent handling that keep this racer from reaching the podium.

The Land of the Rising Sun

The centerpiece of Gear.Club Unlimited 3 is its new Story Mode, which drops you directly into the heart of Japanese car culture. The progression feels familiar but rewarding—you’re building a club from the ground up, challenging rivals, and slowly expanding your influence. It’s a great hook, and the shift to a new continent provides a refreshing aesthetic change from the European vistas of previous entries.

The star of the show, however, is the new Highway Rush mode. Unlike the structured track races, this mode tasks you with weaving through civilian traffic at breakneck speeds. It feels wonderfully arcadey, reminiscent of classics like Burnout or Wangan Midnight. Narrowly missing a commuter car while traveling at 200 mph provides a genuine adrenaline spike that the standard tracks sometimes lack.

A Tale of Two Modes

On the technical side, Gear.Club Unlimited 3 offers a choice that has become standard in modern gaming: Performance (60fps) or Graphics (30fps).

In a racing game, frame rate is king, and the 60fps Performance mode is undoubtedly the way to play. It’s snappier, more responsive, and keeps the sense of speed intact. Unfortunately, the Graphics mode is, to put it bluntly, a mess. Despite targeting 30fps, it suffers from constant stutters and lag that make it feel almost unusable in a genre that requires precision. Even more baffling is that the visual payoff for choosing "Graphics" is negligible; you get slightly better tire smoke, but the trade-off in playability is far too high. Both modes will show ghosting or pixelated textures if smoke is shown around the car.

Technical Speed Bumps

Despite the shiny car models, which look and sound fantastic, the world surrounding them feels unfinished.

• The Weather Illusion: One of the most disappointing "features" is the weather system. Instead of dynamic rain or snow affecting the track, "Weather" is simply a label for the time of day. In Japan, you might select "Fog" or "Twilight," while Europe offers "Misty Morning" or "After Sunset." It’s a cosmetic filter rather than a gameplay mechanic.
• Visual Pop-ins: Even in the supposedly superior Graphics mode, the world struggles to keep up with you. Buildings and textures pop into existence while you’re mid-turn, shattering the immersion of the Japanese countryside.
• Handling Woes: For a game focused on precision, the car handling feels frustratingly unpredictable. One moment you're carving a perfect line; the next, the physics engine seems to lose its grip on reality, making it difficult to build the muscle memory required for higher-tier races.

The Verdict

Gear.Club Unlimited 3 is a game of "what ifs." What if the ambitious Story Mode was backed by a stable engine? What if the "weather" actually affected the asphalt?

The Highway Rush mode is a blast, and the 40-car roster (featuring the likes of Pagani, Nissan, and Bugatti) is meticulously detailed. However, the frequent game crashes, the complete absence of online play, and a "Graphics" mode that feels like it’s running through mud make this a hard sell for anyone but the most dedicated series fans. Japan deserved a smoother ride than this.

Review on Nintendo Switch 2
Code Provided by Publisher