Wipeout HD to slide into UK shops

Two and a half years after it was first announced, Wipeout HD is finally making its way to bricks-and-mortar stores--in the UK, at least--after over a year of online exclusivity. It is scheduled to arrive on October 16 complete with the recently released Wipeout Fury expansion pack, branded as Wipeout HD Fury.

The package will cost gamers a penny more than buying both games online, as it will retail for £19.99, compared to a combined £19.98 for Wipeout HD and Fury on the PlayStation Network. Wipeout HD, a collection of tracks from PSP Wipeout games upscaled for HD viewing, first made its way onto PSN in September of 2008. This followed delays some blamed on a potential seizure risk to photosensitive epileptics. Wipeout Fury added eight more tracks from PSP iterations on which to race, more game modes, and more music.

The October retail release is to ensure that the game is "as widely available as possible," according to Sony Computer Entertainment Europe and is not a reflection of sales performance on the PSN where Sony claims Wipeout HD is still "one of our top-selling titles." The move makes Wipeout HD the second Sony racer to be available to gamers both on and offline, with Gran Turismo 5: Prologue making its way into shops and also being available in its entirety over PSN. Electronic Arts also offers the PlayStation 3 version of its racing game Burnout Paradise as both a boxed product and digital download.

When asked, SCEE would not confirm whether or not the Wipeout HD Fury disc was going to be released outside of the UK. SCEA had not responded for comments about a potential US release at press time.