Hill Rider: how to stop flipping, save fuel and reach the flag

Climb with a light foot

The jeep in Hill Rider is simulated rather than glued to the road. The motor pushes the body the opposite way to the wheels: floor the gas and the nose lifts, brake hard and it dips. On a flat road that is a nice bit of weight. On a steep hill it is the reason for the most common loss in the game, flipping over backwards.

The fix is to ease off the gas as the slope gets steeper. You do not have to let go completely. Pulse the pedal, and if the nose starts to climb too high, tap the brake for a moment to bring it down. The jeep keeps its speed over the top of the hill and lands in a better position than one that was flat out all the way.

On a keyboard, tap the right arrow or D rather than holding it. On a phone, lift your thumb off the gas pedal on the bottom right now and then. Both give you the same rhythm: push, ease, push.

Use the pedals in the air

Once the wheels leave the ground, the pedals change meaning. Gas rotates the jeep backwards and the brake rotates it forwards. That is your whole steering wheel for a jump, and it is the difference between a smooth landing and a bumped head.

Look at the ground you are about to meet. If the nose points up and the slope below goes down, hold the brake to bring the nose down so the wheels touch first. If you are tipping forward over a flat landing, tap the gas to lift it back. The goal is to land on both wheels, parallel to the slope.

Landing on the roof ends the run, because the driver bumps his head. That makes a downhill landing riskier than it looks, and it is worth slowing your tilt down early instead of correcting at the last moment. The springs help too: the wheels sit on coil springs that squash on every landing, so a clean landing costs you almost no speed.

Fuel and coins are one plan

Fuel drains as you drive, and it drains faster on the gas. If the tank runs dry the jeep rolls to a stop wherever it is, so treat the red cans along the road as part of the route, not a bonus. When a can sits just off the line you wanted, take it: a slightly slower run that finishes is worth more than a fast run that stops.

Coins sit in arcs over the hills, a blue gem is worth five coins, and every full flip in the air pays 25 more. A long jump pays too. Coins decide your stars: collect half the coins of a level for two stars and four fifths for three.

That gives flips a job. A flip is a risk, because you must come out of it with the wheels facing down, so do it on a long, open jump with a flat landing. A short bump with a steep drop behind it is the wrong place to try one.

What to buy in the garage

Between runs you spend coins on four things: Engine for power and top speed, Suspension for springier landings and more control in the air, Tyres for grip on steep climbs and snow, and the Fuel tank to go further.

Suspension is the best first upgrade. Softer landings and more tilt control help on every level, and they cut down on the roof landings that end runs. Engine comes second, because a stronger motor gives you the power to keep moving on the hills that follow.

After that, buy for the problem you actually have. If you slip on steep hills and in the snow, put coins into Tyres. If you run out of fuel before the flag on a long level, upgrade the Fuel tank, because the cans are spaced out and the tracks get longer.

Nitro and the second chance

The flame button fires the nitro, which pushes the jeep forward hard for a couple of seconds, on the ground or in the air. You start with three, so each one counts. Save it for the steepest hill of the level, where the engine alone struggles, or for a gap that you cannot clear at normal speed. On a keyboard it is the Space bar.

If you run out of fuel or land flat on your roof, a short video puts you back on the road with a full tank, once per run. Use it when you are far along the track, not in the first stretch, where a restart costs you very little.

Four worlds, four problems

The road runs through green meadows, desert dunes, snowy mountains and the Moon, and the hills get taller and steeper level by level, with fewer fuel cans on longer tracks.

In the meadow, practise the light foot and the air tilt. In the desert and the mountains, steep climbs and slippery snow are where Tyres pay off. On the Moon, gravity is low, so every bump is a jump and the pedals matter more in the air than on the ground. Expect longer flights, and tilt gently.

If you enjoy the landing and flip side of this game, Sled Dash plays with a similar idea on snow: backflip off a ramp and land straight to get a burst of speed.

Sled DashOne-button penguin sled race with backflipsPlay now

Frequently asked questions

Guides & tips

• Hill Climb Racing alternatives: free physics driving games to play in your browser

Play it here

• Hill Rider — Gas, brake, keep your head up
• Sled Dash — One-button penguin sled race with backflips