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This thread has been linked to the game 'Ridge Racer 3D'.
In the build up to the release of the brilliant Nintendo 3DS there was a lot of uncertainty as to whether the launch line up would reflect the quality of the hardware itself. Looking over the list time and time again it was getting to a point where I wasn’t sure what I was going to get. Amongst dodgy Ubi Soft ports, a lacking Monkey Ball and the casually aimed Nintendogs + Cats nothing really jumped out. With one week to go though, I finally bit the bullet. Ridge Racer 3D... Was it the right choice?
Everyone knows the drill by now when it comes to a Ridge Racer title and little has changed here beside the obvious extra dimension in display. Whether it’s the actual driving itself or the options on offer, everything is simple and easy to get into.
Ridge Racer 3DS is an arcade racer through and through offering simple controls and super fast gameplay. Rather than focusing on taking corners with a careful finger over the brake, here you’ll perform impossibly long drifts at over 300kph. As you do so you’ll earn nitrous for your boost tank which can then be used at opportune moments to overtake your opponents. Races consist of three laps against seven other drivers with you starting at the back of the pack and working your way up. And that is pretty much all there is to it. Simple stuff.
Upon loading up the game and watching a short (and fairly impressive) opening video you are then presented with the sadly disappointing small selection of modes. Lone players can choose the Grand Prix mode (more on that in a bit), time trial, a randomly selected exhibition race or simply check out your garage of cars. There is also the Street Pass feature that sees your best times being transferred between other people as you pass them. Sadly it is so limited in scope it hardly seems worth including at all. As for racing friends if you are lucky enough to find someone else with a 3DS AND a copy of the game (good luck) then a local multiplayer is also available. Those hoping for an online mode will be disappointed as NAMCO have decided to ignore this altogether. As to why is anyone’s guess.
Grand Prix mode is where you’ll spend a majority of your time and consists of three increasingly difficult tournaments. Each of these offer around twenty to thirty events with four races to tackle in each. Finish high enough in a race and you’ll move onto the next one opening up more tracks, cars and upgrades. If it sounds overly basic, that’s because it really is. Fortunately the steady unlocking of newer faster cars and tougher opponents helps prevent things from getting too repetitive.
At around fifteen tracks long (only which around two are brand new), it isn’t exactly the biggest selection in a racer. Sure there are reverse versions of these, but it would have been nice to see even more. After all we know this series has a wide selection to pick from its back catalogue so why not throw in a couple more. One other niggle I have is in the environments. When you’re racing through canyons, snowy mountains or underwater aquariums the game looks and feels brilliant. Sadly these moments are few compared with the countless cityscapes you’ll find yourself in. I like variation in tracks and it’s a shame not to see some more unexpected locations such as deserts or forests. It helps to prevent races feeling too familiar and samey. The cars on the other hand are great ranging from classic looking vehicles to muscles and even trucks. There’s plenty to purchase and test each offering a range of paint jobs and boost types.
Of course when it comes to a game that offers glasses-less 3D you want one that delivers and here is where Ridge Racer excels. While other titles like Street Fighter and Nintendogs offer a more subtle approach to its effects, Ridge Racer takes a more emphasised route. Roads go on for what appears miles, you’ll see vast mountain ranges in the distance while other cars will feel closer when battering you aside and even random debris will get stuck to your screen as you race by. It’s a good starting point for this newly implemented dimension in handheld gaming and I for one cannot wait to see where it goes from here.
NAMCO has played it very safe with Ridge Racer 3D. It doesn’t take the series anywhere particularly new nor does it add much in terms of fresh content but what is here is still a fun game. If the multiplayer and the career and well... everything had been a bit more fleshed out then we’d be looking at a brilliant launch title. Instead we have something that is a decent enough introduction to the Nintendo 3DS and one of the better titles in the launch line up.
7/10
Everyone knows the drill by now when it comes to a Ridge Racer title and little has changed here beside the obvious extra dimension in display. Whether it’s the actual driving itself or the options on offer, everything is simple and easy to get into.
Ridge Racer 3DS is an arcade racer through and through offering simple controls and super fast gameplay. Rather than focusing on taking corners with a careful finger over the brake, here you’ll perform impossibly long drifts at over 300kph. As you do so you’ll earn nitrous for your boost tank which can then be used at opportune moments to overtake your opponents. Races consist of three laps against seven other drivers with you starting at the back of the pack and working your way up. And that is pretty much all there is to it. Simple stuff.
Upon loading up the game and watching a short (and fairly impressive) opening video you are then presented with the sadly disappointing small selection of modes. Lone players can choose the Grand Prix mode (more on that in a bit), time trial, a randomly selected exhibition race or simply check out your garage of cars. There is also the Street Pass feature that sees your best times being transferred between other people as you pass them. Sadly it is so limited in scope it hardly seems worth including at all. As for racing friends if you are lucky enough to find someone else with a 3DS AND a copy of the game (good luck) then a local multiplayer is also available. Those hoping for an online mode will be disappointed as NAMCO have decided to ignore this altogether. As to why is anyone’s guess.
Grand Prix mode is where you’ll spend a majority of your time and consists of three increasingly difficult tournaments. Each of these offer around twenty to thirty events with four races to tackle in each. Finish high enough in a race and you’ll move onto the next one opening up more tracks, cars and upgrades. If it sounds overly basic, that’s because it really is. Fortunately the steady unlocking of newer faster cars and tougher opponents helps prevent things from getting too repetitive.
At around fifteen tracks long (only which around two are brand new), it isn’t exactly the biggest selection in a racer. Sure there are reverse versions of these, but it would have been nice to see even more. After all we know this series has a wide selection to pick from its back catalogue so why not throw in a couple more. One other niggle I have is in the environments. When you’re racing through canyons, snowy mountains or underwater aquariums the game looks and feels brilliant. Sadly these moments are few compared with the countless cityscapes you’ll find yourself in. I like variation in tracks and it’s a shame not to see some more unexpected locations such as deserts or forests. It helps to prevent races feeling too familiar and samey. The cars on the other hand are great ranging from classic looking vehicles to muscles and even trucks. There’s plenty to purchase and test each offering a range of paint jobs and boost types.
Of course when it comes to a game that offers glasses-less 3D you want one that delivers and here is where Ridge Racer excels. While other titles like Street Fighter and Nintendogs offer a more subtle approach to its effects, Ridge Racer takes a more emphasised route. Roads go on for what appears miles, you’ll see vast mountain ranges in the distance while other cars will feel closer when battering you aside and even random debris will get stuck to your screen as you race by. It’s a good starting point for this newly implemented dimension in handheld gaming and I for one cannot wait to see where it goes from here.
NAMCO has played it very safe with Ridge Racer 3D. It doesn’t take the series anywhere particularly new nor does it add much in terms of fresh content but what is here is still a fun game. If the multiplayer and the career and well... everything had been a bit more fleshed out then we’d be looking at a brilliant launch title. Instead we have something that is a decent enough introduction to the Nintendo 3DS and one of the better titles in the launch line up.
7/10
In the build up to the release of the brilliant Nintendo 3DS there was a lot of uncertainty as to whether the launch line up would reflect the quality of the hardware itself. Looking over the list time and time again it was getting to a point where I wasn’t sure what I was going to get. Amongst dodgy Ubi Soft ports, a lacking Monkey Ball and the casually aimed Nintendogs + Cats nothing really jumped out. With one week to go though, I finally bit the bullet. Ridge Racer 3D... Was it the right choice?
Everyone knows the drill by now when it comes to a Ridge Racer title and little has changed here beside the obvious extra dimension in display. Whether it’s the actual driving itself or the options on offer, everything is simple and easy to get into.
Ridge Racer 3DS is an arcade racer through and through offering simple controls and super fast gameplay. Rather than focusing on taking corners with a careful finger over the brake, here you’ll perform impossibly long drifts at over 300kph. As you do so you’ll earn nitrous for your boost tank which can then be used at opportune moments to overtake your opponents. Races consist of three laps against seven other drivers with you starting at the back of the pack and working your way up. And that is pretty much all there is to it. Simple stuff.
Upon loading up the game and watching a short (and fairly impressive) opening video you are then presented with the sadly disappointing small selection of modes. Lone players can choose the Grand Prix mode (more on that in a bit), time trial, a randomly selected exhibition race or simply check out your garage of cars. There is also the Street Pass feature that sees your best times being transferred between other people as you pass them. Sadly it is so limited in scope it hardly seems worth including at all. As for racing friends if you are lucky enough to find someone else with a 3DS AND a copy of the game (good luck) then a local multiplayer is also available. Those hoping for an online mode will be disappointed as NAMCO have decided to ignore this altogether. As to why is anyone’s guess.
Grand Prix mode is where you’ll spend a majority of your time and consists of three increasingly difficult tournaments. Each of these offer around twenty to thirty events with four races to tackle in each. Finish high enough in a race and you’ll move onto the next one opening up more tracks, cars and upgrades. If it sounds overly basic, that’s because it really is. Fortunately the steady unlocking of newer faster cars and tougher opponents helps prevent things from getting too repetitive.
At around fifteen tracks long (only which around two are brand new), it isn’t exactly the biggest selection in a racer. Sure there are reverse versions of these, but it would have been nice to see even more. After all we know this series has a wide selection to pick from its back catalogue so why not throw in a couple more. One other niggle I have is in the environments. When you’re racing through canyons, snowy mountains or underwater aquariums the game looks and feels brilliant. Sadly these moments are few compared with the countless cityscapes you’ll find yourself in. I like variation in tracks and it’s a shame not to see some more unexpected locations such as deserts or forests. It helps to prevent races feeling too familiar and samey. The cars on the other hand are great ranging from classic looking vehicles to muscles and even trucks. There’s plenty to purchase and test each offering a range of paint jobs and boost types.
Of course when it comes to a game that offers glasses-less 3D you want one that delivers and here is where Ridge Racer excels. While other titles like Street Fighter and Nintendogs offer a more subtle approach to its effects, Ridge Racer takes a more emphasised route. Roads go on for what appears miles, you’ll see vast mountain ranges in the distance while other cars will feel closer when battering you aside and even random debris will get stuck to your screen as you race by. It’s a good starting point for this newly implemented dimension in handheld gaming and I for one cannot wait to see where it goes from here.
NAMCO has played it very safe with Ridge Racer 3D. It doesn’t take the series anywhere particularly new nor does it add much in terms of fresh content but what is here is still a fun game. If the multiplayer and the career and well... everything had been a bit more fleshed out then we’d be looking at a brilliant launch title. Instead we have something that is a decent enough introduction to the Nintendo 3DS and one of the better titles in the launch line up.
7/10
Everyone knows the drill by now when it comes to a Ridge Racer title and little has changed here beside the obvious extra dimension in display. Whether it’s the actual driving itself or the options on offer, everything is simple and easy to get into.
Ridge Racer 3DS is an arcade racer through and through offering simple controls and super fast gameplay. Rather than focusing on taking corners with a careful finger over the brake, here you’ll perform impossibly long drifts at over 300kph. As you do so you’ll earn nitrous for your boost tank which can then be used at opportune moments to overtake your opponents. Races consist of three laps against seven other drivers with you starting at the back of the pack and working your way up. And that is pretty much all there is to it. Simple stuff.
Upon loading up the game and watching a short (and fairly impressive) opening video you are then presented with the sadly disappointing small selection of modes. Lone players can choose the Grand Prix mode (more on that in a bit), time trial, a randomly selected exhibition race or simply check out your garage of cars. There is also the Street Pass feature that sees your best times being transferred between other people as you pass them. Sadly it is so limited in scope it hardly seems worth including at all. As for racing friends if you are lucky enough to find someone else with a 3DS AND a copy of the game (good luck) then a local multiplayer is also available. Those hoping for an online mode will be disappointed as NAMCO have decided to ignore this altogether. As to why is anyone’s guess.
Grand Prix mode is where you’ll spend a majority of your time and consists of three increasingly difficult tournaments. Each of these offer around twenty to thirty events with four races to tackle in each. Finish high enough in a race and you’ll move onto the next one opening up more tracks, cars and upgrades. If it sounds overly basic, that’s because it really is. Fortunately the steady unlocking of newer faster cars and tougher opponents helps prevent things from getting too repetitive.
At around fifteen tracks long (only which around two are brand new), it isn’t exactly the biggest selection in a racer. Sure there are reverse versions of these, but it would have been nice to see even more. After all we know this series has a wide selection to pick from its back catalogue so why not throw in a couple more. One other niggle I have is in the environments. When you’re racing through canyons, snowy mountains or underwater aquariums the game looks and feels brilliant. Sadly these moments are few compared with the countless cityscapes you’ll find yourself in. I like variation in tracks and it’s a shame not to see some more unexpected locations such as deserts or forests. It helps to prevent races feeling too familiar and samey. The cars on the other hand are great ranging from classic looking vehicles to muscles and even trucks. There’s plenty to purchase and test each offering a range of paint jobs and boost types.
Of course when it comes to a game that offers glasses-less 3D you want one that delivers and here is where Ridge Racer excels. While other titles like Street Fighter and Nintendogs offer a more subtle approach to its effects, Ridge Racer takes a more emphasised route. Roads go on for what appears miles, you’ll see vast mountain ranges in the distance while other cars will feel closer when battering you aside and even random debris will get stuck to your screen as you race by. It’s a good starting point for this newly implemented dimension in handheld gaming and I for one cannot wait to see where it goes from here.
NAMCO has played it very safe with Ridge Racer 3D. It doesn’t take the series anywhere particularly new nor does it add much in terms of fresh content but what is here is still a fun game. If the multiplayer and the career and well... everything had been a bit more fleshed out then we’d be looking at a brilliant launch title. Instead we have something that is a decent enough introduction to the Nintendo 3DS and one of the better titles in the launch line up.
7/10
Good review.
I quite like the Streetpass idea, it feels a little like Autolog. All they need to do is widen the scope for it and give you more ghost cars to race and a constantly updated leaderboard based on Streetpass lap times to beat.
I quite like the Streetpass idea, it feels a little like Autolog. All they need to do is widen the scope for it and give you more ghost cars to race and a constantly updated leaderboard based on Streetpass lap times to beat.
pb wrote:
Good review.
I quite like the Streetpass idea, it feels a little like Autolog. All they need to do is widen the scope for it and give you more ghost cars to race and a constantly updated leaderboard based on Streetpass lap times to beat.
Thanks pb. I am really keen to see how games take advantage of Streetpass in the future. Street Fighter has an interesting figurine battle feature for example that's good fun.
But I agree, here they need to widen the scope. At the moment it feels incomplete. Compare it to a real online leaderboard and this seems like a step backwards. Maybe in the sequel they could include an option to tweak your cars and race others as you pass them in the street. The winner could be rewarded credits. Or perhaps you could send each other cars with your own unique paint jobs on to show off. Something like that could be fun.
Good review.
I quite like the Streetpass idea, it feels a little like Autolog. All they need to do is widen the scope for it and give you more ghost cars to race and a constantly updated leaderboard based on Streetpass lap times to beat.
Thanks pb. I am really keen to see how games take advantage of Streetpass in the future. Street Fighter has an interesting figurine battle feature for example that's good fun.
But I agree, here they need to widen the scope. At the moment it feels incomplete. Compare it to a real online leaderboard and this seems like a step backwards. Maybe in the sequel they could include an option to tweak your cars and race others as you pass them in the street. The winner could be rewarded credits. Or perhaps you could send each other cars with your own unique paint jobs on to show off. Something like that could be fun.