Fall Guys: How To Beat Every Race

Over the past few weeks, Fall Guys has taken the world by storm. Its vibrant, cartoonish take on gameshows like Takeshi's Castle, Total Wipeout, and even the obscure classic Hole in the Wall are the perfect ways in which to describe it.

Fall Guys is a perfect mix of heated competition and absolute mayhem, and it's quickly got seemingly the entire gaming community hooked (helped in part by being one of this month's free PS+ games, giving it a huge audience right from the start).

While Fall Guys is undeniably a great game to play for the sheer fun of it, there's also a greater prize to chase - the Crown awarded to the winner of each game. Most games are made up of four or five rounds of increasing difficulty, and the first challenge is almost always a race to the finish - so to have any hope of grabbing the Crown, you need to first master the initial races.

Luckily, there are a number of techniques, shortcuts and strategies that can help your little bean man get ahead of the rest and secure victory. While there's often an element of luck in the races - getting caught in a scrum at the wrong moment can be devastating - using these tips and tricks can help turn the odds in your favour.

The Whirlygig is one of the more common races you'll come across while playing, with a gauntlet of spinning beams and fans designed to knock you flying. In the first segment, however, you can use this to your advantage - if you let a beam hit you at its outer edge it can launch you forwards and let you skip a large chunk of the course.

Next, there's a small ledge to climb. You can either use the two raised blocks to jump straight onto it, or climb it directly by jumping and pressing the grab button to pull yourself up. If you try the latter, find a space away from other players - big crowds will knock you over before you get a chance to grab.

After a simple segment of avoiding overhead fans, you'll go over a ramp to the final section. Ignore the tempting ramp shortcut in the middle - the fan at the top is too fast to reliably avoid - and use the side platforms instead.

On the final platform, be patient - keep an eye out for the spinning beam while you wait for the big fan to leave a decent opening to dive through.