Ridge Racer 6 all the way. Played it to death on the 360 (All 1000 achievements) the speed, courses and OST were perfect.
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Ridge Racer -- ResetEra's top 3 games in the series
- Thread starter halcali
- Start date
R4
7
Ridge Racer 2 PSP
A proper Ridge Racer on PS5 will see me pre-ordering both the moment I can.
7
Ridge Racer 2 PSP
A proper Ridge Racer on PS5 will see me pre-ordering both the moment I can.
1 - Ridge Racers 2 (PSP)
2 - Ridge Racer 6
3 - Ridge Racer 5
I also enjoyed Ridge Racer Vita for what it was.
2 - Ridge Racer 6
3 - Ridge Racer 5
I also enjoyed Ridge Racer Vita for what it was.
1. RR7
2. Ridge Racers
3. RR type 4
I slightly prefer RR7 to RR6. If RR7 didn't exist then RR6 would be top of the list. I've also never managed to find a copy of Ridge Racers 2 (it was technically released in Europe, but I haven't seen it in a retailer, and there's no downloadable version on the PlayStation Store) - I'm pretty sure I'd rate it over the original game if I had a chance to play it properly.
2. Ridge Racers
3. RR type 4
I slightly prefer RR7 to RR6. If RR7 didn't exist then RR6 would be top of the list. I've also never managed to find a copy of Ridge Racers 2 (it was technically released in Europe, but I haven't seen it in a retailer, and there's no downloadable version on the PlayStation Store) - I'm pretty sure I'd rate it over the original game if I had a chance to play it properly.
R6/7 - truly incredible games, I count them as one and the same. Played 6 more than 7, but both were absolutely incredible. I fucking loved the tracks, both from a design standpoint and aesthetics. Music was great, and the sense of speed was awesome. Love them to death
PSP games - what needs to be said? Felt like you were playing the future in your hand at the time. Incredible games
PSP games - what needs to be said? Felt like you were playing the future in your hand at the time. Incredible games
1. the original arcade, the only Ridge Racer I really liked.
2. the PSX port RIdge Racer Revolution
3. Rave Racer (arcade)
I thought Rage and R4 were pretty amazing, too. Those were proper games though, and Ridge Raced in my eyes was always the condensed, near zero content arcade version, same as Daytona 1 or Sega Rally 1.
2. the PSX port RIdge Racer Revolution
3. Rave Racer (arcade)
I thought Rage and R4 were pretty amazing, too. Those were proper games though, and Ridge Raced in my eyes was always the condensed, near zero content arcade version, same as Daytona 1 or Sega Rally 1.
Rage Racer (That draw-distance was amazing for the time)
Ridge Racer 6 (Played a ton of it back in the day)
Ridge Racer 4 (Never really got into it, but I acknowledge its extremely well-liked)
Fun series. Its a shame it degenerated into a console-launch obligatory shoo-in, as the best ones were almost always the mid and late generation releases, when they weren't under so much time pressure and actually knew more about the console hardware. Rage and R4 were technical marvels for their time on the PS1.
Ridge Racer 6 (Played a ton of it back in the day)
Ridge Racer 4 (Never really got into it, but I acknowledge its extremely well-liked)
Fun series. Its a shame it degenerated into a console-launch obligatory shoo-in, as the best ones were almost always the mid and late generation releases, when they weren't under so much time pressure and actually knew more about the console hardware. Rage and R4 were technical marvels for their time on the PS1.
I have played them all (except Ridge Racer 7, and the one on the DS) and my top three favourites are:
- Ridge Racer (PSP)
- Ridge Racer 6 (Xbox 360)
- Ridge Racer Type 4 (PSone)
Type 4
....And then the 360/PS3 games
Honestly if anyone is going to play a game in the series at this point it should be Type 4. It's easily the most well rounded in the series and has the best presentation imo. It's also fairly easily obtainable. I can't believe it ran on a PSX
....And then the 360/PS3 games
Honestly if anyone is going to play a game in the series at this point it should be Type 4. It's easily the most well rounded in the series and has the best presentation imo. It's also fairly easily obtainable. I can't believe it ran on a PSX
Ridge
Rage
Type 4
I never played anything after that, due to a combination of poor reviews for entries on the main consoles. and not being a fan of the boost added into the PSP titles - it spoils the purity of the handling.
Rage
Type 4
I never played anything after that, due to a combination of poor reviews for entries on the main consoles. and not being a fan of the boost added into the PSP titles - it spoils the purity of the handling.
Anyway, going slightly OT, i guess a japanese-developed new Ridge Racer is about to be unveiled.
Ridge Racer 3D - Yeah, the framerate is messy but it controls like a dream, and the speed feeling is top notch. It's my favorite RR to date, despite being far from flawless
Ridge Racer PSP 2
Ridge Racer Type 4
Ridge Racer PSP 2
Ridge Racer Type 4
My first choice: the PSP Ridge Racers duo are blissful greatest hits.
I'll go with Rage Racer for number 2 (was my no.1 for years until the PSP ones came out).
And third would go to RR7.
I spent so much time with the NeGcon with the original RR, RRR, and Rage Racer (and a good amount of time with R4 and RRV).
If we got a new RR for PS5, I'm 100% in, but I'll gladly take an uprezzed PSP duo.
I'll go with Rage Racer for number 2 (was my no.1 for years until the PSP ones came out).
And third would go to RR7.
I spent so much time with the NeGcon with the original RR, RRR, and Rage Racer (and a good amount of time with R4 and RRV).
If we got a new RR for PS5, I'm 100% in, but I'll gladly take an uprezzed PSP duo.
1. Ridge Racer V
My absolute favorite arcade racing game of all-time. No other game has come close to the pitch perfect drifting mechanics in RRV. It's the maximum, purest expression of sideways driving. It has a small number of tracks and vehicles, but it gives it a certain intimacy that is lost when you have a seemingly endless number of both. You can't help but quickly learn the quirks of each car and track by heart.
2. R4: Ridge Racer Type 4
One of the most stylish games ever made. From its overall aesthetic presentation to its top tier soundtrack, it's Namco's artistic peak basically. It's easy to see why this is the RR game most people love. I'm not a huge fan of the driving model, since it's unfortunately a little too straight-forward and a little too grippy, but it's still a fun racer.
3. Ridge Racer 7
The end of the road for this franchise. It has by far the most content in a RR, a bunch of tracks, cars, and ways to customize your cars with all kinds of engine, tire and nitrous upgrades. Which brings me to the addition of nitrous to Ridge Racer. As far as I'm concerned it was a huge mistake to introduce this stuff in the PSP game, and even worse that it became a staple of the series since then. With nitrous in the picture everything in the game revolves around it. It's the single most important thing in the game. In high-level races memorizing a track isn't enough, you have to memorize exactly at which point in the tracks you have to unleash nitrous, and for how long. And I don't really care for that shit. I just want to drift in peace. Which brings me to drifting. It feels the game is on autopilot when I drift, all the finesse required in RRV is gone. The overall aesthetic is also a little too plain and basic for Ridge Racer, I guess the wonderfully talented people that worked in RRV and R4 were no longer at this company. Still good enough for third place. My misgivings come from a place of a hardcore RR fan, but it's still a decent arcade racer and like I said there really is A LOT of content in this game.
My absolute favorite arcade racing game of all-time. No other game has come close to the pitch perfect drifting mechanics in RRV. It's the maximum, purest expression of sideways driving. It has a small number of tracks and vehicles, but it gives it a certain intimacy that is lost when you have a seemingly endless number of both. You can't help but quickly learn the quirks of each car and track by heart.
2. R4: Ridge Racer Type 4
One of the most stylish games ever made. From its overall aesthetic presentation to its top tier soundtrack, it's Namco's artistic peak basically. It's easy to see why this is the RR game most people love. I'm not a huge fan of the driving model, since it's unfortunately a little too straight-forward and a little too grippy, but it's still a fun racer.
3. Ridge Racer 7
The end of the road for this franchise. It has by far the most content in a RR, a bunch of tracks, cars, and ways to customize your cars with all kinds of engine, tire and nitrous upgrades. Which brings me to the addition of nitrous to Ridge Racer. As far as I'm concerned it was a huge mistake to introduce this stuff in the PSP game, and even worse that it became a staple of the series since then. With nitrous in the picture everything in the game revolves around it. It's the single most important thing in the game. In high-level races memorizing a track isn't enough, you have to memorize exactly at which point in the tracks you have to unleash nitrous, and for how long. And I don't really care for that shit. I just want to drift in peace. Which brings me to drifting. It feels the game is on autopilot when I drift, all the finesse required in RRV is gone. The overall aesthetic is also a little too plain and basic for Ridge Racer, I guess the wonderfully talented people that worked in RRV and R4 were no longer at this company. Still good enough for third place. My misgivings come from a place of a hardcore RR fan, but it's still a decent arcade racer and like I said there really is A LOT of content in this game.
My favorite:
Ridge Racer V
It may lack the super-sleek presentation of Type-4 but, when it comes to gameplay, RRV is a massive improvement over its predecessor. This is easily the best game in the series IMO, as well as one of the best arcade racers ever made. Everything that the classic Ridge Racer formula wanted to achieve since 1993 was fully realized in this game. The perfected physics, the absolutely sublime handling, the cars that have a much greater sense of weight, the extremely satisfying, highly technical, drifting mechanics and, of course, the silky smooth 60fps gameplay, everything just comes together in RRV. The classic Ridge Racer formula peaked so hard in this game that, for better or worse, Namco had no option but to reboot the series. Absolutely brilliant game that deserves a place next to games like OutRun2 and F-Zero GX as one of the best arcade racers of the PS2 era.
Ridge Racer 2 (Arcade)
I love the original Ridge Racer. Despite the severe lack of content, I still go back to it fairly frequently and always have a blast. Over the years, I've actually spent more time with the Hi-Spec/Turbo Mode Demo from Type-4 than with Type-4 itself. I'm going with Ridge Racer 2 arcade as this is the most refined and, thus, the best version of the original Ridge Racer (unlike the PS1 game, it also runs at 60fps). I also can't stress enough how much I love the, SEGA-style, over-saturated color palette and the uplifting "vaporwave" vibe of the early Ridge Racer games.
Rage Racer
It's definitely rough around the edges, the collision detection in particular can be annoying at times. But, despite the lack of polish, I find the gameplay more engaging compared to other entries in the series. The verticality of the course design with its focus on steep inclines that force you to shift gears and keep your momentum up make this a deeply idiosyncratic RR. The cars have a greater sense of weight and give the game a proto-RRV vibe. It's also the first game in the series that featured a "career mode" (and thankfully, unlike the Story mode in Type-4, it actually doesn't feel like a complete chore to replay). More importantly, though, gear shifting, cornering and drifting requires a lot of finesse in Rage Racer and this is precisely what gives it its staying power for me. I also have to mention the awesome, gritty yet elegant, aesthetic of the game. Mythical Coast, in particular, with its "European potpourri" scenery is pure perfection.
Almost.
It's Ridge Racer 1 with enhanced graphics and 60fps (and, yes, it's as glorious as it sounds!), but you only race against 1 AI car (2 in the car attack races).
I'm not a big fan of Type-4, but calling it "trash" is a little unfair. Especially considering that its the most "polished" of the PS1 era games.
Other than that, though, I'm 100% with you. Type-4 took what was already a fairly simple gameplay formula and casualized it to death. When you dump down the drifting mechanics so much, there's simply not much to look forward to in a game like Ridge Racer (the modern games also feature on-rails drifting, but they have the whole "nitrous" aspect to compensate for their super-basic driving model). For all its polish, not to mention its absolutely phenomenal presentation, Type-4 is simply way too shallow and has no staying power. The lack of an arcade mode (seriously WTF, an arcade racer without an arcade mode?) also kills what little replayability this game could have.
I've only played the two PSP games, the one on Vita and the DS entry. Absolute favorite is RR2 PSP. Such a content bomb. Lots of tracks, lots of music, lots of cars and super tight gameplay. It is probably my favorite racing game. I play it for a few weeks every year.
(I did play Type 4 for a little bit, but I'm in PAL-land and the shitty conversion made me turn it off within like 10 minutes.)
I would kill for a collection of these games on modern systems or a new entry :(
(I did play Type 4 for a little bit, but I'm in PAL-land and the shitty conversion made me turn it off within like 10 minutes.)
I would kill for a collection of these games on modern systems or a new entry :(
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Ridge Racer V - The best instalment in every regard: finally, we got 60fps RR at home (the Hi-Spec demo only sort of counts) and the handling is perfect. That this didn't get a HD remaster is criminal.
Rave Racer - I've been lucky enough to play this in the arcades and it really does deserve all the praise it gets.
Ridge Racer 2 PSP - I don't care for nitrous particularly but there's so much classic Ridge Racer crammed in here.
Rave Racer - I've been lucky enough to play this in the arcades and it really does deserve all the praise it gets.
Ridge Racer 2 PSP - I don't care for nitrous particularly but there's so much classic Ridge Racer crammed in here.
1. Ridge Racer Vita
2. Ridge Racer Unbounded
3. R: Racing Evolution
... OK, to be serious, I only have strong thoughts on two games in particular:
1. Ridge Racer Type 4 - Playing R4 feels like transporting yourself back in time to the late 90s, the atmosphere is off the charts. The different stories were simple yet engrossing, the moody lighting on the later tracks is gorgeous, and the OST has yet to be topped by any other game in the series. I like the addition of nitrous to the series, but IMO the non-nitrous gameplay was perfected here. (Sorry to everyone who likes RRV, I think that game pales in comparison.)
2. Ridge Racer 3D - Perhaps a bit blasphemous to some folks given that it's largely a rehash of the previous games and has some framerate issues at times, but this one will always hold significance for me due to being the game that got me into Ridge Racer (and also for being the only meaty, satisfying game in an otherwise incredibly dire 3DS launch lineup). I could never get into previous games because I didn't quite understand the drifting, but the new one-button drift controls in 3D helped me wrap my head around the gameplay and eventually transition into the normal controls.
I also love what they did with the menu music. "Composition that evolves in different ways based on what part of the menu you're in" is uncommon but easily my favorite musical gimmick in gaming, and then they tie it all together by having the credits theme be a rap remix of all the menu themes combined.
If I had to pick a third, it would be Ridge Racer 6. Had a lot of fun watching my brother play through it and eventually playing it myself.
2. Ridge Racer Unbounded
3. R: Racing Evolution
... OK, to be serious, I only have strong thoughts on two games in particular:
1. Ridge Racer Type 4 - Playing R4 feels like transporting yourself back in time to the late 90s, the atmosphere is off the charts. The different stories were simple yet engrossing, the moody lighting on the later tracks is gorgeous, and the OST has yet to be topped by any other game in the series. I like the addition of nitrous to the series, but IMO the non-nitrous gameplay was perfected here. (Sorry to everyone who likes RRV, I think that game pales in comparison.)
2. Ridge Racer 3D - Perhaps a bit blasphemous to some folks given that it's largely a rehash of the previous games and has some framerate issues at times, but this one will always hold significance for me due to being the game that got me into Ridge Racer (and also for being the only meaty, satisfying game in an otherwise incredibly dire 3DS launch lineup). I could never get into previous games because I didn't quite understand the drifting, but the new one-button drift controls in 3D helped me wrap my head around the gameplay and eventually transition into the normal controls.
I also love what they did with the menu music. "Composition that evolves in different ways based on what part of the menu you're in" is uncommon but easily my favorite musical gimmick in gaming, and then they tie it all together by having the credits theme be a rap remix of all the menu themes combined.
If I had to pick a third, it would be Ridge Racer 6. Had a lot of fun watching my brother play through it and eventually playing it myself.
Rage Rager probably. I think its the best one. Volcano vehicle is Peak Namco sound composition.
After that, RRV and either Type 4 or RR7. RR7 has the content and everything, but I don't like the nitro much as well.
After that, RRV and either Type 4 or RR7. RR7 has the content and everything, but I don't like the nitro much as well.
That's my list exactly!
Honorable mention for Ridge Racer 6/7. 7 has more content, but the frame drops, rough image quality, the awful triggers on the Sixaxis/DS3 and lack of rumble (sure, patch in 3DTV support, but not rumble, thanks Namco!) means that 6 just wins out.
I still love Type 4 but playing through that unskippable story mode to unlock everything is rough in 2020.
The only game I've played in the series is the original (it's what convinced me and I think my dad to get a Playstation!), so I don't have anything to contribute really, but thanks to this thread I have the OST blasting on my speakers and god I forgot how amazing it is. Thanks!
I wish 6 would be made BC... if we can't have a new Ridge Racer I'll take RR6 in 4K as a consolation. š
Yes, Type 4 was 30FPS.
There's very few PSOne games that would hold up well side-by-side with a (first party) Dreamcast game in the same genre, to be fair. And Sega Rally 2's 60FPS was unstable enough that it needed to be enabled via a cheat code, only really got to 60FPS by dropping details, and still dropped hard on large sections of track.
Not sure if you mean PS2/PS3 here, or maybe PSP. I'm pretty certainly you don't mean PS4 though.
The Jogcon was interesting. Due to how Namco showed it in pictures, I thought that little indent on the wheel had to stay at the top and that I had to steer kinda holding each side with my thumbs, which pretty much sucked. Come to discover that you can center it with that indentation anywhere you want, so I put it to the left side so that my left thumb sat in it and I could provide fine-tuning with the right. Once I did that, it was so much better to play with. Agree that the NeGcon was better in terms of how nuanced it was, although I wish it had some kind of notch or light lock when you returned it to center. Still, a great controller!
7 can be played now on RPCS3 at pristine 4k and higher. It's something, heh.
Ah, yes, the 99 Trial, racing flat out for over an hour and a half non-stop. No room for failure. I wonder what the prize will be? A secret car? A special credits sequence?
Nope, it's a medal. Thanks guys.