"The Closest Thing to Gran Turismo on the GameCube"

R: Racing Evolution is a game in the Ridge Racer series. However, it is departs significantly from previous games in the series because it features real licensed cars and more realistic driving mechanics. This is probably the factor that garnered the word "evolution" in the name.

The first noticeable enhancement to the usual Ridge Racer formula comes in the opening cut-scene when you are introduced to the game's story mode. In the story mode, you play as Rena Hayami, an ambulance driver who decides she has enough driving skill to become a racer. The story isn't too lame after that, and it has a few twists later on, including a rivalry and some shady deals. Each new twist in the plot gives you a new and different challenge to face as you progress from novice racing to the highest professional leagues. The story mode also embraces the diversity of cars that are in the game, from slow, tiny cars, to dirt racing rally cars, to high-performance street racing cars.

That variety of gameplay carries over to every mode of the game and offers real variety. The game has the largest variety of real-world cars I've seen outside of Gran Turismo and Forza Motorsport. Cars can be bought with credits earned in either story mode or challenge mode, a separate mode that offers racing challenges that can be taken non-linearly and without the trappings of CGI cutscenes. Rally racing is complete with a automated co-pilot that tells you what turns are coming up. There is a large variety of tracks in this game, spanning dirt, city streets, and self-contained tracks.

Graphically, the game looks great on the GameCube. Road and scenery textures are better than Gran Turismo 4, and with just a bit of blur the scenes look real in replay mode. The rally cars kick up an impressive cloud of dust, and both cars and scenery are highly detailed. I don't think I could expect a more graphically impressive realistic racing title on this system.

This game offers another new feature through the use of intimidation. You get to hear the chatter of the other drivers as they react to what your car is doing. This means if you tail someone, a bar appears and slowly ticks down. If you tail the other car long enough to make it empty, the driver of the car will "crack" and swerve wildly, allowing you to pass. It seems too easy to make the drivers crack in this game; the entire concept seems unrealistic. The voice acting is surprisingly acceptable, however. This doesn't detract too much from the overall game, however.

The multiplayer racing only supports two players, but is otherwise well implemented and allows a large variety of cars to allow for variety and balance simultaneously. Unlike Gran Turismo 4, it makes it easy to see which cars match up well against each other for a fair match without having to pick identical cars.

This is not the best racing game on the GameCube. I would give that award to F-Zero GX. But, if you want to race real cars, this is the closest thing to Gran Turismo on the GameCube, and it receives my recommendation.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 07/25/06