Crash Course

Brand

Doritos

Year

2010

Objective

Engagement

Industry

Food & Drink

Mechanic

Arcade & Action

Platform

In-Game

Agency

WWanako Games

Added

October 2026

1. 1

   The player finds Doritos Crash Course as a free download during Microsoft's "Unlock Xbox" promotion, offered alongside a second game, Harms Way, from the Games & Demos Arcade slot on Xbox Live; no Gold subscription is required to get it.

2. 2

   The title screen frames the game as a TV obstacle-course show branded with Doritos logos, leading to menus for single-player, multiplayer, and leaderboards; the player's character is their own existing Xbox avatar, with no separate creation step.

3. 3

   The player picks a region to compete in — USA, Europe, or Japan, each with five tracks for fifteen total — with difficulty rising from easiest (USA) to hardest (Japan).

4. 4

   Each run is a timed, side-view dash through a single track: a stick moves the avatar left and right, a button jumps, and triggers add a speed boost.

5. 5

   Along the way the avatar dodges and leaps show-style hazards such as collapsing floors, swinging ropes and chains, flying water balloons, trampolines, conveyor belts, fans, and vanishing platforms; falling sends the avatar back to the last of several checkpoints rather than ending the attempt.

6. 6

   A run ends when the player reaches the finish before time runs out, after which the game shows the finishing time and lets the player restart the same track to shave off fractions of a second.

7. 7

   Players compare finishing times on leaderboards and can race head-to-head with up to four people at once, either over Xbox Live or in local split-screen.

8. 8

   Xbox achievements unlock as the player progresses, with the promotion encouraging players to earn them in both Crash Course and Harms Way.

9. 9

   Outside the game, the same player could vote on the Xbox dashboard for a favorite between the two promotional titles during the contest period, with the winner — Doritos Crash Course and its fan creator — announced live on Xbox Live.

10. 10

    Later purchasable and free add-ons extend the game: the paid "City Lights" pack adds fifteen tracks set in Las Vegas and London plus reworked Japan levels, and the free Crash Course 2 sequel adds four new themed worlds (Amazon, Antarctic, Egypt, Pirate Island) with collectible stars that unlock levels and bonuses.