Pulse keeps faithful to the Wipeout franchise. It doesn't offer much new, yet doesn't break what doesn't need fixing.
Pulse keeps the tradition started with XL for the most part intact. That tradition is all in the track design. The tracks are quick and require an actual intimacy with each confining turn to master. They are fun and pretty to look at. Pulse's tracks can feel a bit too confining at times like they are one size too small. I tend to spend a lot of time scrubbing the walls compared to Pure, the previous in the series. Pulse also introduces magnetic strips that cling the ships tight to the track, allowing the track to turn upsidedown and sideways. Some of the times these mag strip turns can be confusing when the turns are so tight the track is not much visible past the nose of the ship. They work well in situations that keep your ship from flying off into the horizon for going over a small hill. And one creative use of the strip is having it placed only on one side of the track letting you have the choice of flying over a jump for an alternate route or sticking to the track. Hopefully in future downloads we get to see more creative uses of the mag strip.
The familiar ships of the series are there, and thanks to the trickier turns of the tracks in Pulse, I tend to chose a more varied selection of ships to compliment the track I'll be racing on. Pure had me racing mostly with Triakis, a fast but cumbersome ship. Now in Pulse I tend to have to pick the more maneuverable yet slower ships. In fact I've been using the ones I originally enjoyed in XL, mostly Qirex and Feisar, and not just for nostalgic reasons.
All the favorite weapons return. Seeking missiles, plasma beams, and the legendary quake are some of the compliments making a welcome return. There's leech, which I think may have originally been in the less popular Fusion, and allows you to steal energy from your foes. Some new weapons enter the mix like the repulsor, which sends a deadly omnidirectional blast away from your ship heavily damaging surrounding foes.
The campaign is set up less straightforward than previous in series. They have attempted to mix up the pacing by mixing up the race types. Progression follows unlocking parts of a hexagonal grid. Getting enough medals in one grip unlocks the next of sixteen progressively more intricate grids. This method feels a little experimental, is interesting, and fits the design of the game well, but I could take or leave it. A "Racebox" mode is included that lets you design your own grids. This is a good way to create a collection of your favorite races all in one spot.
Wipeout Pulse includes some nice technical features that make full use of the PSP hardware. Full use of the Wi-fi includes internet access to the Wipeout webpage to download add-ons, and online and ad-hoc multiplayer. Custom paint jobs can even be created on the webpage and downloaded. The online painter is even less complex than Microsoft paint, but should still get the job done for someone with a good eye. Up to 30 of your own songs can be included to the music playlist. I put on the original Wipeout XL soundtrack in there just for kicks with a little Prodigy and I feel like its 1997 all over again. An in-race camera mode is also available. The pics are saved to your mem stick as jpegs for later viewing. The camera always centers on your ship though, keeping from making many artsy shots.
Wipeout Pulse is an excellent polished game that uses its platform well. As much of a fan of the series I am, I hate to say its starting to feel a little tired. Pulse doesn't offer much new in the series. Maintaining the formula for for this series is important, as Fusion proved deviating too much can easily break the game. However Studio Liverpool could have played a little less safe and made more creative uses of the new mag strip, and also come up with some other interesting track concepts like that.