Ars Technica (Sam Machkovech, 18 Apr 2022). thumbs-up for fun and for Playdate uniqueness: "Whitewater Wipeout relies on the crank in a way that would be difficult to replicate with a joystick."
https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2022/04/all-24-of-playdates-included-games-reviewed/Games / Season One / Whitewater Wipeout
OverviewSeason One
Whitewater Wipeout
Sports / ActionCrank: yes (precision)Season One (included)
1 · official Catalog screenshot
2 · official Catalog screenshot
3 · official Catalog screenshot1 · official Catalog screenshot2 · official Catalog screenshot3 · official Catalog screenshotOverview. Not yet reviewed. No score. Checked 12 Oct 2026. Built from official and press sources.
What it is
Whitewater Wipeout is a top-down surfing game inspired, its store page says, by "the classic California Games". You steer a surfer along a breaking wave with the crank, build speed, launch off the lip and spin the crank to land 360s, double 360s and bigger tricks, all while dodging a shark and staying ahead of the curling crest. Every run ends when the wave catches you, usually within about 90 seconds according to Ars Technica. The goal is a spot on the global leaderboard. The store page warns that it "requires extensive use of the crank, for precise movement".
It's by Chuhai Labs, the studio co-founded by Giles Goddard, and it was the first game every new Playdate owner unlocked in Season One (Week 1, alongside Casual Birder). As a Season One game it came free with the console. A soundtrack and merchandise are linked from the store page.
Who made it
What others are saying
Gabriel Toschi (blog, undated). it's "cool to show how the Playdate is a perfect vessel for this type of game", but "the controls are really strange and hard to even understand."
https://www.gabtoschi.com/blog/playdate-full-review/Playdate: The Unofficial Website (Nick Simberg). on learning it with no manual: "It took me ten tries to not immediately crash my surfboard."
https://www.playdateunofficial.com/the-games/whitewater-wipeoutCallout (?): No review yet. We haven't reviewed Whitewater Wipeout yet. This page is an overview built from official and press sources.
Sources
Checked 12 Oct 2026.
- Official Catalog page (description, credits, size, dates, content/AI/accessibility notes). https://play.date/games/whitewater-wipeout/
- Season One page. https://play.date/games/season-one/
- Ars Technica, Sam Machkovech, "All 24 of Playdate's included games, reviewed", 18 Apr 2022. https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2022/04/all-24-of-playdates-included-games-reviewed/
- Gabriel Toschi, "The Playdate is unlike anything you've ever seen (+all Season One games)" (undated). https://www.gabtoschi.com/blog/playdate-full-review/
- Playdate: The Unofficial Website. https://www.playdateunofficial.com/the-games/whitewater-wipeout
- Playdate Podcast transcript: research/gamepages/sources/whitewater-wipeout/podcast.txt.
OverviewNo score
Overview
Not yet reviewed.
No score. This page is built from official and press sources.
On the card
Ride a breaking wave and spin the crank for 360s, 720s and beyond before the crest swallows you. Season One's opening score chaser.
From the sources
