![]() It doesn’t actually even manage 30fps consistently, which means you’re getting a small, technically flaky game of varying quality across its diminutive track selection. Speaking of which, unlike the PSP games before it, this game doesn’t run at 60fps. It’s grindy, yes, but the grind is lessened by drip-fed progress that tangibly affects the way the game moves and feels. There’s also some surprisingly close racing to be had, if you don’t plump for the DLC cars straight away and instead work your way up through the upgrades map. Being so based on Ridge Racer 7, similar hidden depths reveal themselves as you start to learn where to boost in order to end the speed rush at the start of a big drift corner to fill the bar straight up again with residual speed. So you really are just left to play Spot Race and Time Attack, which isn’t particularly appetising when you’re hungry for a proper meal.Įven so, limited to spot race one-offs, there is merit to the game’s design. 10 years on, while the servers are still up, nobody’s on them. The game is intended to be played online, but unless you’ve been grinding away and got the top machines, you’re simply always going to lose because someone’s inevitably always got the best car. ![]() It just doesn’t feel finished, and every new track release brought disappointment instead of progress. ![]() ![]() Southbay Docks has some pretty snazzy special effects and feels like a clear step-up over the previous generation, but DLC tracks like Redstone Thunder Road are demonstrably bland and empty. The DLC tracks’ quality is also quite plainly lower than that of the included trio. What there is simply isn’t memorable enough or varied enough, even by Ridge Racer’s own standards. Normally at this stage, I would point to Sega Rally Championship, Daytona USA (the car from which is available here as a DLC purchase!) and, yes, the original Ridge Racer and say: “three tracks is plenty, if they’re good enough”.īut while three tracks is plenty if they’re good enough (damn it, I still said it), even I have to admit it’s too few here. To make up for this, the game was a mere £20, perhaps encouraging everyone to buy into it and then upgrade their game with add-ons, which were (and remain) reasonably cheap, most coming in at around £1.19-£1.99. In its cartridge and original download form, it’s only got four tracks to race around. Starting a new game in 2021, unlike the full-fat offering on PSP a generation previously, Vita’s Ridge Racer is diminutive, to say the least. I thought it was awesome.īut while I evidently found the then-new generation of 2011 more exciting than most, I can take off my nostalgia goggles it’s time for some real talk. It was almost like everyone wanted it to fail, which baffles me. They’d be surprised by my enthusiasm, and even that I’d bought it myself on launch day… and then leave, unconvinced. I worked at GamesRadar at the time of the game’s release, and while personally, I was sitting at my desk, eagerly playing my next-gen handheld and its pretty Ridge Racer, colleagues from different publications would walk by and look over my shoulder. When everyone’s telling you it sucks, that’s not easy to do, but I’m pretty sure I can decide what I like, and you know what? You just have to ignore the zeitgeist and give yourself permission to see its beauty. PS1, PS2, PS3, PSP and PS Vita all had a Ridge Racer to enjoy on day one, but this game ended that trend, and you’re about to see why it fell out of favour so spectacularly.īut I feel I should point out that a flawed diamond is only objectively worthless. It is noteworthy for being the last Ridge Racer to launch with a new PlayStation console. How can Ridge Racer on PS Vita be 10 years old? A full decade.
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