Ridge Racer is great!
Design:
Pros:
- The world tour mode is very simple and easy to go through, perfect for a on the go handheld experience.
- Racing is fun and the drift + nitrous mechanics are pulled off seamlessly.
- The game is very rewarding which makes you want to come back for more.
- The game is not as intimidating as the others in the franchise.
Cons:
- Unlicensed cars and music is a bummer, to a bigger extent than Burnout.
- No online mode.
- Not a game for everyone.
- Uneven AI
Score: 8.5/10
The Ridge Racer series has always been about loose physics and drifting. It features a very unrealistic sort of gameplay and feels like your car is on rails and all you have to do is gas, left go on gas, turn and drift, regain control. The series has built it's name on this and the mechanics in this PSP version are less intimidating then the previous installments or the HD versions on the PS3/X360. The game features a World Tour mode, Single Race mode and multiplayer. The multiplayer is only local which means you cannot play people online which is quite a big bummer but seeing as it was a launch title it's easily forgiven. The games main attraction is the world tour mode where you go through several tours from Basic to Pro to Expert, etc. The tour is long but it is constantly rewarding with new cars, special features and movies. The WT is also very easy to navigate through in order to enter races and the load times are almost non-existent (even though you see the loading screen). The biggest bummer in the WT mode is the AI, sometimes they are a cake walk and sometimes they are harder than expected which is rather annoying and irritating. Although, Ridge Racer isn't a game for everyone, it is targeted to a more casual audience who don't want to spend their time customizing and tricking out their cars like in Midnight Club LA or a racing simulation like Gran Turismo. With the loose physics and unlicensed cars and music give the game a very unrealistic feel so anyone looking for a realistic game, this is not for you. The game is however pretty easy to get into compared to the others in the series and giving it some time will make you want to keep playing.
Gameplay:
Pros:
- Cars control smoothly and feel just right on the PSP.
- Getting used the game mechanics as in drifting and nitrous is easier than the other games in the series.
Cons:
- Feels like you stuck on rails which takes away from the games liberty.
- No real sense of speed.
- The games mechanics don't improve as you keep going through the game, which feels like your playing the same thing since the very beginning of the game.
Score: 7/10
The Ridge Racer series is all about drifting and it's pretty much been very intimidating in the past games and the next gen games but here the learning curve is non-existent. You simply very have to hit the breaks , all you do is keep holding the X button and when you see a tight corner, let go of the X button to drift and use the D-pad or Analog stick to control. You use the R button for nitrous which you gain from your drifts. This gives the game a little strategy and it always feels good to drift by your opponents until you hit a wall. The problem here is these are invisible walls for the most part, which takes away a little of the games liberty. It feels like your on rails which also kind of makes it less fun because the pathways and driving is always in a linear fashion, which means you will be doing the same thing you did at course one in Basic Tour in the Expect Tour. The game is rewarding but you don't really get to improve you skills in-game because you basically do the same thing over and over again. The game also takes away more realism with no actually sense of speed. When your going at 210 and don't feel the speed.. There's a problem. Without these nitpicking's, Ridge Racer sticks very close to the franchises roots but with other racing games showing off more and more, it's starting to feel very dated.
Presentation:
Pros:
- Best looking handheld game PERIOD.
- The unlicensed music is actually not that bad and gives the game a very cool feel.
- Looks exactly how a classic Ridge Racer game should look like.
Cons:
- Why can't other developers pull off amazing looking games like this on the PSP?!
Score: 10/10
Ridge Racer on PSP absolutely looks magnificent. It is simply put the best looking game I've ever played on a handheld. It surpasses Tekken, Daxter and even God of War in it's visuals and those games even came after it. The textures are super smooth, no frame rate hiccups at all, colorful details. Although, the game uses a lot of blur so that the textures looks very good from far but in close-ups, they look very blurry but that's not a problem seeing as you never really stop in the game, you always keep going so the graphics look stunning. The music no matter how unlicensed and unknown they are, they fit the game perfectly. Giving it an unrealistic and futuristic and expensive feel. Makes me wonder why doesn't NFS go back to it's roots with their presentation like in High Stakes.
Trash or Not?
In the end, Ridge Racer is a love/hate game. You will love it's presentation but if you don't like it's gameplay, it's a bummer because simply put, this is the best racing game that suits the PSP to date.. Well until Gran Turismo comes out that is. If you've always been skeptical about Ridge Racer's driving mechanics, you should at least give it a try but to anyone who has never liked the series, this game won't change your mind. It's easy to get into and hard to get out but it's only if you will let it to do so.