"This Game Is a Huge Disappointment"

Ridge Racer DS is a port of the Nintendo 64 game. It's your classic racing game where you can unlock various cars with better attributes to overcome your opponents on the track.

Game play - 5/10
The controls are very poor in this game. You are given three different methods of control and each of them is awful in their own way. The option of using the d-pad is the best of the three but it's still bad. When you use the d-pad the controls are very unresponsive making it hard to get those sharp turns. When you use the stylus or thumb pad option controlling, as far I as I can tell, is impossible. The touch screen is way too sensitive to be able to properly control your vehicle. Just by simply moving the wheel a little in either direction makes the car do a full turn, which results in you crashing and bumping all over the road. The AI in this game is also not very smart. It would be a lot easier to beat them if the controls in the game weren't so bad. The worst thing is that in the whole game, there are only a total of 3 tracks! That's right, only 3 tracks and nothing changes in each race except the direction of the race. Another thing is that the physics of the game are extremely unrealistic. Simply touching an opponent's car makes you spin and lose control of you car.

Graphics/Sound - 8/10
This is probably the only good thing in this game. At the start of each race, you can select from a few different song choices, although they aren't great. The game is in full 3-D, with a map and stats in 2-D on the bottom screen. The 3-D isn't great, but they it is still plausible.

Story - 5/10
There is no story at all in this game. You simply select one of the few cars and race around a track. There is not even a free roam option, to much dismay.

Play Time/Replay ability - 5/10
This game will take you only a few hours to complete. Although you are given three save slots, there is no reason to motivate you into playing again since nothing changes.

Final - 5/10
I was very disappointed by this game. The controls are awful and unresponsive and there really is nothing to keep you motivated to continue playing. This game is not worth the money to buy, but if you must play it, only rent it or borrow it. Sadly, this is one of the worst games I've played on the DS thus far.

Reviewer's Score: 5/10, Originally Posted: 07/18/05