| Ridge Racer | |
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Cover art of Ridge Racer |
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| Developer(s) | Namco |
| Publisher(s) | Namco |
| Platform(s) | Arcade, PlayStation, PlayStation 2, Mobile phone, Zeebo |
| Release date(s) | Arcade
PlayStation [1]
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| 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, and is the first title in the long-running Ridge Racer series of games released for arcades and home systems.
The first home version of Ridge Racer was released in Japan in 1994 and North America and Europe in 1995 as a launch title for the original Sony PlayStation console. The game played a major role in establishing the new system and in giving it an early edge over its nearest competitor, the Sega Saturn.
According to Namco America the twin seat Ridge Racer arcade unit sold to distribution for $11,995.00 in 1993.
Ridge Racer is also mentioned in the song My Console (1999) from the Italian electronic dance group Eiffel 65.
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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 11 other cars) and Time Trial (against one other car). The Course Select screen also displays data about the course's shape and difficulty.
The game consists of 4 race course modes. They are the "Beginner", "Mid-Level", "High-Level" and "Time Trial" (on the screen will show "T.T" instead). The "Beginner" and the "Mid-Level" would be racing on the same circuit. However, the Beginner mode only has 2 laps and there were no night racing. On the Mid-Level mode, the cars will be faster. The race will run 3 laps instead of 2 and there will be night racing in the middle. Once the player advances to "High-Level" and "Time Trial", the circuit will be longer as a technical section is added with more sharp and difficult curves. The "Beginner", "Mid-Level" and the "High-Level" will be a 12 cars battle but the "Time Trial" will be the battle of 2 cars only. This game contains unlimited restarts. The player can restart during a race at any time.
After the players wins all the race modes, the player has to go to the "Time Trial" (either regular or extra) race mode and this will turn into a 3 car battle. The player will have to face one more extra car- "Devil 13th Racing" car. This car is very fast and extremely difficult to beat due to a lack of rear view mirror. To win, the player must learn the perfect racing line of the track. By sticking to racing line around the track, the Devil car will be blocked from passing and will crash into the back to the player. If the player manages to block the car for all 3 laps and wins the race, they will obtain the Devil car. This is especially important for Time Trial mode.
At the same time, extra game (extra courses) will be given. The player will be racing on the same tracks but in reverse directions. The extra tracks lack one checkpoint and therefore the player is at a much higher risk of running out of time, making the game more difficult. If the player obtains the Devil car before playing the extra courses, the player can use that car to race in all the courses including extra courses in order to complete the entire game.
A special 'mirror mode' version of the track could be played by turning the car around on the starting line and driving into the wall behind at top speed. The car will pass through the wall and the track will revert to the mirror of the normal track.
Another bonus for the original PlayStation version released in 1995 allowed the player to listen to music through the PlayStation by removing the game disc and inserting a music CD. This was because the entire game code ran within the RAM of the PlayStation and the CD was used only for playing music tracks from the disc once the game was loaded.
The Transmission menu allows the player to select the between Automatic or Manual transmission. Automatic transmission (AT) permits less experienced players easier turns and drifts, while manual transmission (MT) restricts the AI from assisting but allows more experienced players to gain faster track times.
Normally only 4 cars are selectable, but all 12 (excluding the Black No.13 'Devil' Car) are selectable if a player is able to defeat 100% of the enemies on the Galaxian loading game before the title screen.
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.
The audio-tracks on the Ridge Racer game CD can be played in a standard CD-audio player, as game CD was mastered in Mixed Mode CD format. Track 1 is used for data.
Ridge Racer was awarded Best Driving Game of 1995 by Electronic Gaming Monthly.[2]
The game was reviewed in 1995 in Dragon #221 by Jay & Dee in the "Eye of the Monitor" column. Jay did not rate the game, but Dee gave the game 2 out of 5 stars.[3]
In the UK magazine Computer And Video Games, April 1994 issue, the arcade machine (based on the full-scale unit) was rated 80% overall by writer Paul Rand. Graphics received 97%, Sound 95%, and Gameplay 80%.
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-projected triple screen (which benefitted from 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. The game's P.C.B. was located under the hood of the car.
The steering wheel could be re-linked to the rack and pinion steering of the car, making it easier to move.
A version of Ridge Racer with 3 screens was also released in the arcades to give a peripheral vision effect. The machine used multiple System 22 arcade boards to drive the additional monitors and was only available in the sit down version.
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). It only features the beginner mode version of the track, but runs at a solid 60fps compared to the orignal Ridge Racer's 30 fps. The gameplay was pretty much the same as the original Ridge Racer. Like usual, after the regular courses were beaten, the extra courses were unlocked. At the same time, the player would be required to race against the duel cars.
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