R: Racing Evolution

"A decent attempt at taking Ridge Racer in a new direction"

Introduction
Namco's Ridge Racer series is one of the most popular arcade-racing franchises. Ridge Racer was unique because it emphasized power sliding around corners rather than slowing down at them. Because of this, races always moved at a fast pace. However, when Ridge Racer V, it got decent reviews. It's not that it was a bad game, but it was just that Ridge Racer's gameplay was getting kind of old. Because of this, Namco decided to go in a different direction with R: Racing Evolution. While this game isn't really an evolution for racing games, it is a dramatic change from the old Ridge Racer formula.

Graphics: 8/10
Most of Namco's games are known for looking great, and R: Racing Evolution is no different. Both Rena and her rival, Gina, are easy on the eyes, and the car models look great as well. I'd say that the game looks almost, if not just as good, as good as Gran Turismo 3. The courses themselves look great as well as the background scenery, especially in the Yokohama Circuit. The buildings actually look like buildings and not just boxes. However, the grass found on most courses looks pretty weird. The game also runs at a consistent 60 FPS, and I have not experienced any type of slowdown at all.

Controls: 8/10
The controls for R: Racing Evolution are pretty good. Accelerate/Brake can be mapped to either L/R or the C-Stick, so you can easily control your speed and stopping power. You can also tune various settings on your cars to your liking. These include things like Steering Response, F/R Brake Bias, Top Speed/Acceleration, F/R Shock, F/R Springs, and more. You can also improve your car's performance by increasing its HP/Torque and reducing its weight. The cars handle pretty well, but I find that it's pretty hard to control cars during a Rally Race. Even with firm F/R Shocks, F/R Springs, and F/R Stabilizers and quick Steering Response, the cars are still prone to slipping and spinning out of control. I'm guessing that it takes a bit of practice to be good at Rally Races, too.

Gameplay: 7/10
I'd like to start off with my biggest gripe with this game - there is no sense of speed whatsoever. I'm racing in a Saleen S7-R and the speedometer reads 170 mph, but I'm just not convinced that I'm going that fast. 7R: Racing Evolution has several game modes open to you - Racing Life, Event Challenge, Arcade, Time Attack, and VS. Racing Life is basically the game's story mode. It consists of 14 Chapters with a story-related FMV between each chapter. Event Challenge consists of about 250 races divided into several categories like Time Attack, Rally, Tournament, and Drag. Each time you complete an event, you'll be awarded either a Gold, Silver, or Bronze based on your performance. You can also use RPs (Reward Points) to tune the cars you have or buy new ones at the Car Dealership. RPs are basically gained for doing various actions such as gaining positions, finishing in 1st place, building up an opponent's Pressure Meter, and cornering well. Arcade is pretty much the same as every other racing game. Pick a track and car, and change other options like Number of Laps, Difficulty, and your car's settings. Time Attack is mainly used for practice to learn the various courses, to see how the various cars handle, and to determine how to tune your car. VS is standard 1v1 split-screen action. However, you can chose between Normal, a race to see who can finish first, or Points, where the winner is based on the player with the highest amount of RP at the end of the race.

In addition to the different game modes, there are also different race types - Race, Tournament, Rally, and Drag. Race and Tournament are pretty much self-explanatory. Rally is racing from one point to another along a certain course, usually a rugged area. Drag is very simply since it's just racing in a straight line. However, you have to hold down the brake all the way, and release it when GO! shows up. As you near the finish line, you can use your Nitro to get a speed boost.

The game features a good selection of cars - everything from your standard cars, to F1 cars, and even old school cars. However, most of these cars are the same model but just palette swapped. There are only 14 race tracks (all based on their real-life counterparts), about 2 drag tracks, and about 5 rally courses. It might seem like there aren't enough tracks, but I actually didn't mind.

3 unique features of the game are the Pressure Meter, Brake Assist, and Radio Chatter. Each car has a bar that will appear when you get close enough to them. As you get closer to a car, the meter will start to fill, going from light blue, to yellow, and to red, and it will start to flash. When the bar flashes, there is a good chance that the driver will mess up (usually around a bend), allowing to overtake them. However, the bar will reset if you and an opponent are too far apart. Building up the Pressure Meter has several advantages - you can slip-stream them to gain speed, you get RP for doing this, and you'll be able to pass your opponent. Brake Assist makes the game extremely easy. Basically, the game will brake for you when you go around turns, so you can just hold down acceleration for the entire race. Personally, I think that you should turn Brake Assist off. Besides making the game way too easy, you won't be able to cut any corners or take shortcuts with it can. Whenever you go off the track, Brake Assist will always be activated. Finally, there's the Radio Chatter. Throughout the racer, your Pit Crew and opponents will talk to you. Your Pit Crew will give you some advice and comment on your performance. Your opponents will comment on you as well, usually when you get close to them, pass them, or get far ahead.

Sound: 5/10
The sound is probably R: Racing Evolution's weakest aspect. The soundtrack is like a mix of jazz, techno, and decent J-Pop. The music isn't bad, but it's not really something that fits well into a racing game. In my opinion, the sound of the engines is my biggest grip about the game. They sound nothing like real engines, and they all sound the same as well. It basically sounds like high-pitched, synthesized buzzing. I don't know about you, but I have trouble believing that a Saleen S7-R sounds the same as a Dodge Charger. On the other hand, I think the voice acting in the game pretty good, especially the Radio Chatter. As you build up an opponent's Pressure Meter, you can hear them start to freak out. They'll also sound shocked when you pass them or comment on Rena's driving if she's way ahead of the other racers. However, there are a few awkward lines in the script that could've been worded better.

Replay Value: 6/10
Racing Life can be completed in a relatively short amount of time on Normal. It'll probably be a lot less on Easy and a bit more on Hard. The Event Challenges will probably last you for a while because of the sheer number of them and because of the fact that you have to purchase each one. You can also replay chapters from Racing Life in order to get cars you didn't get last time. You'll also probably have to play through various Chapters/Events to gain enough RP to buy new cars and fully tune all of them. Multiplayer gets old pretty fast, especially since you can't have AI opponents included in VS races.

Final Thoughts
R: Racing Evolution could have been a great game, but it fell just a little short. However, I won't hold anything against Namco for trying something new with Ridge Racer. Rather than being a cross between Ridge Racer and Gran Turismo, I think the game would've been better if Namco chose to go in a one direction. I would've liked to have a Ridge Racer-type game with licensed cars and real-life tracks. I like how Namco tried to implement a decent story into a racing game, but it could've been better. The Pressure Meter and Radio Chatter is pretty unique as well. You can find this game for around $10-15, so if you only own a GCN and are looking for a racing game with licensed cars, you should consider picking this up. If you own a PS2 and/or Xbox as well, I wouldn't even bother with this game.

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 05/07/05