Ridge Racer

"Namco blows away the competition with this fantastic game!"

Ridge Racer is made by Namco. Ridge Racer is a racing game but its not like Gran Turismo. There is no 2 player mode or tuning up cars. In Ridge Racer there is only 1 stage. Just because there is only one stage doesn’t mean it’s a bad game. You are in a race against 12 other cars. In Ridge Racer you have to win the race in first place on easy, medium and hard difficulty. Then you go to the 1 on 1 championship race. After you win the championship race you get to do the whole thing over again. The only difference is that you are racing backwards. In Ridge Racer you can choose Automatic or Manual transmission. Lets get on with the review.

Graphics 10/10

The graphics are spectacular. They are better than Gran Turismo’s graphics. The cars look great and there is no slowdown. The course also looks good and when the stage goes from day to dawn to night it looks great! Overall super graphics!

Sound 11/10

That’s right. I just gave the sound an 11 out of 10. That’s how good it is. In Ridge Racer you can choose 6 different songs and each one of them sound great. When you finish a race you will hear some of the greatest music ever created on a video game. That is why it is so good. The sound is really good. The engines sound just like a real engine and when you crash it sounds so real. Something really good about the sound is the commentary. There isn’t much commentary but when you make a sharp turn without hitting a car or wall the person speaking will scream out something like “Wow, what a turn, you have to teach me someday!”. Like I said the sound is so good that it earned the 11/10.

Control 10/10

The control is well done in Ridge Racer. There are 4 different types of control but the type that most people use is type A. In type A the X button on Accelerate and the Square button is brake. The Direction-Pad is moving your car. The control is very good in Ridge Racer.

Challenge 10/10

Ridge Racer offers a good challenge but can sometimes get frustrating.

Replay Value 7/10

The replay value isn’t too high due to the fact that there aren’t any secrets in Ridge Racer. Once you beat the regular tracks, then the extra tracks and then get all the hidden cars you really did everything you can do in Ridge Racer. There also isn’t any 2 player mode in Ridge Racer which brings the score down. But its always nice to just hear the marvelous music and play it again.

Goods
-Great Graphics and Control
-The sound and music is Fantastic!
-Ridge Racer is very fun
-A brand new copy of Ridge Racer can be found for about $15!

Bads
-No two player mode
-Sometimes it can get a bit frustrating
-The replay value isn’t very high

Buy, Rent or Don’t Bother?

Ridge Racer is a very fun and you don’t even have to be a racing fan to enjoy it. Although it maybe too short for some people its still recommended that you buy it.

Overall 10/10

Ridge Racer is one of the greatest racing games to ever hit the Playstation. Buying it might be one of the greatest decisions you ever made.

Reviewer's Score: 10/10, Originally Posted: 02/21/02, Updated 03/26/02