Ridge Racer 6
_Ridge Racer 6 is not only an Xbox 360 launch title but also the first time this franchise has appeared on Microsoft hardware. Fans of the series will know that it started out in the 90s as an Arcade machine but has since become almost synonymous with Playstation hardware. After making a portable appearance on PSP and DS, the series finally makes a next generation appearance.
If you are expecting licensed cars, customization, realistic physics and even a story then this is not the game for you. Ridge Racer 6 sticks very close to its arcade roots and the focus is firmly on the racing. The bulk of the single player experience is the "World Explorer." This career mode presents you with a grid of 111 races that unlocks more cars and tracks as you progress. This sounds very impressive but in reality there is only about 15 unique tracks and while some races are mirror or take places during different times of the day, repetition is inevitable. Ridge Racer veterans might find the initial races to be a bit easy but more unlock as you progress and things get increasingly harder. If you have played the PSP game, you will know what to expect from this one gameplay wise. Racing is focused primarily on drifting and I do not think that I have ever touched the brake button in this game. Cars slide around corners in the most unrealistic manner imaginable but it is all part of the fun. There are enough realistic racers out there so it is a good thing that Ridge Racer sticks to what it knows best. Apart from getting you around even the tightest corner in a rush, drifting also fills up your nitrous bars. You use these nitrous boosts to give your car a speed injection in order to gain valuable ground. Drifting while nitrous is active will not recharge the meter so it takes careful timing to use this feature effectively. You can even use double or triple nitrous which will drain the meters in one go but can mean the difference between second and first place. In case you did not know, second and third means nothing in this game as only first will allow you to progress. Each race covers three laps so losing can be a big waste of time. While the game starts out very slow there are four speed classes and three car classes to choose from so things speed up nicely towards the end. The cars are indestructible and show no visible signs of damage either. Full speed collisions with walls or opponents carry no penalty beyond the loss of speed you experience. The cars also feature no customization beyond the ability to alter paint jobs but even this must be unlocked first. On the upside, there are tons of cars to unlock, although the special concept cars are saved for last. Visually the game looks like something that could have been created for the original Xbox but with some next generation polish. Some of the textures are still a bit blurry but at least the frame rate is nice and smooth. The tracks are ok and feature some typical Ridge Racer elements like helicopters hovering above the road or planes flying past. With a bit more polish, the game could really have shined up as far as launch titles go, Namco did an adequate job. The audio is nice and a few of the tunes are rather catchy. Its mostly electronic stuff and you will even hear a few samples from past Namco classics. The announcer on the other hand is a huge pain and his voice will drive anyone insane after a few laps. The amount of times that he excitedly carries on about nitrous border on the absurd. Later in the game, you unlock a new announcer, which Tekken fans will immediately recognize but his Japanese ramblings, is more of a novelty than anything else. The controls work fine once you get the hang of drifting and I found the game to be very responsive with the Xbox 360 gamepad. There is a split screen mode which allows you to challenge friends locally or you can take the challenge online using Xbox Live. I found very little online opponents to race so I cannot really comment on this aspect of the game. This is a pity as quite a few of the achievements are tied to the online mode. None of the achievements are easy to get so do not expect that this game will boost your gamerscore much if you do not put in the effort. While I enjoyed playing Ridge Racer 6 there is no denying that it can become repetitive. The amount of cars you unlock will keep you coming back but it's not until you start racing in the special class that things really become interesting. Oh in case you are wondering, you can unlock the original Pac-Man arcade game to play at any point from the options menu. You will even encounter the yellow pill popper on the road as well if you are skilled enough. It is small things like this that sets the game apart from the rest of the pack and makes it worth playing.
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TAGS: Ridge Racer 6, Drifting, Nitrous, World Explorer,
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