Ridge Racer (arcade game)
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| Ridge Racer | |
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| Developer(s) | Namco |
| Publisher(s) | Namco |
| Platform(s) | Arcade, PlayStation, PlayStation 2, Mobile phone |
| Release date | Arcade JPN October 7, 1993 PlayStation [1] JPN December 3, 1994 USA September 9, 1995 PAL September, 1995 |
| Genre(s) | Racing |
| Mode(s) | Single-player |
| Cabinet | Sitdown |
| Arcade system | Namco System 22 |
| Display | Raster, 640 x 480 pixels (Horizontal), 32768 colors |
Ridge Racer (リッジレーサー Rijji Rēsā?) is a racing game created by Namco. It was released in 1993 on the Namco System 22 arcade system board. It is the first title in the Ridge Racer series.
Ridge Racer was ported to the PlayStation in Japan in 1994 and in the United States and Europe in 1995 as a launch title. It was also included in the NamCollection for the PlayStation 2 in 2005, released exclusively in Japan.
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[edit] Gameplay
Ridge Racer was very innovative for its time, introducing minor car sim elements intertwined with the gameplay. The player could choose from the options of Course Select, Transmission, Car Select, Sound Select, Start, and Options. Course Select allowed the player to choose a course, each of varying difficulty, and choose between the two modes of a Race (against 12 other cars) and Time Trial (against one other car). The Course Select screen also displays data about the course's shape and difficulty.
The Transmission menu allowed the player to select the between Automatic or Manual transmission. The automatic transmission (AT) shifts the gears automatically and permits less experienced players easier turns and drifts. The manual transmission (MT) allows the player to change the gears freely through use of input. This restricts the AI from assisting but allows more experienced players to gain faster track times.
Car Select introduces the selectable vehicles for racing. The mode also served as a gallery, serving the player with multiple views by rotating the camera with the L1 and R1 triggers on the PlayStation controller. Sound Select allowed the player to change between 1 of six background music tracks, while the Options menu allowed button configuration and the lap records to be viewed.
Extras could be earned near the completion of the game, such as extra tracks and bonus cars that often possessed higher statistics. Additionally experienced players were able to execute a special "mirror track" race by rotating the inverse direction in a current race and taking advantage of a glitch. However, the extra tracks lack one checkpoint and therefore the player is at a much higher risk of running out of time, making the game extremely difficult.
An interesting bonus for the original PlayStation version released in 1995 involved allowing the player to listen to music through the PlayStation by removing the game disc and inserting a music CD. [2] This was done after the loading screen. However, players could not switch tracks, and the music was started on a random track.
The Ridge Racer game CD can also be played on a CD player as a music disc.
[edit] Ridge Racer Full Scale
Ridge Racer was simultaneously released in 1993 in what Namco called the Full Scale version. Players sat inside an adapted red Eunos Roadster, the Japanese right-hand-drive version of the Mazda MX-5 Miata, and controlled the same car on-screen. The game was played in front of a 10 ft/3 m-wide, front-placesprojected triple screen (which required dimmed ambient lighting), with the car's wheel, gear stick and pedals functioning as the game's controls. The ignition key was used to start the game, the speed and RPM gauges were fully functional, and fans blew wind on the player from inside the air vents. Speakers concealed inside the car provided realistic engine and tire sounds, while overhead speakers provided surround music. In almost all locations, an operator stood by a console, to collect payment and control the operation.
Past locations of Full Scale setups:
- Hollywood Bowl (Now AMF Bowling), Washington, Tyne & Wear, UK
- Clarence Pier Arcade, Southsea, UK
- Beta, Southern Gales, Australia
- Maremagnum shopping mall, Barcelona, Spain
- Codonas Pleasurefair, Aberdeen, UK
- Blackpool Pleasure Beach, Blackpool, UK (unattended, 2 GBP)
- Fun World (later Sega World) at the Trocadero, London, UK (5 GBP)
- Meadowhall, Sheffield, UK
- Sega Virtualand at the Luxor Casino, Las Vegas, USA
- Mutiny Bay Arcade at the Treasure Island Hotel, Las Vegas, USA
- Dreamland at Margate, Kent, UK
- Funworld in Nashua NH USA
- Pier 39, San Francisco, USA
- Timezone Arcade, Singapore International Airport
[edit] Ridge Racer Turbo
R4: Ridge Racer Type 4 includes a bonus disc containing a new version of the original Ridge Racer, called Ridge Racer Turbo (known in Europe as Ridge Racer Hi-Spec Demo). This game runs at 60 frames per second with gouraud shading utilised on the car models, as seen in R4.
[edit] References
- Ridge Racer Custom Music, YouTube, September 06, 2007. Accessed September 06, 2007.
[edit] External links
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