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"[GAME] Wipeout 2048 (Vita)"

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Thu 29/03/12 at 10:57
Regular
"And in last place.."
Posts: 2,054
Wipeout 2048 takes us back to the origins of the racing series. The informative intro sequence illustrates how mankind made the transformation from road racing to anti-gravity racing, not that any of us have given it a second thought over the years.

No Sony hardware is complete without some form of Wipeout offering and the Vita is no exception. Coming in as a launch title, Wipeout 2048 is one of the showpiece software titles of the initial releases.

Wipeout 2048 comes with the same range of weapons and the racing teams that fans of the series are more than familiar with. Those in need of fresh ideas from Studio Liverpool are going to be left somewhat wanting but that’s not to say this is any less of Wipeout game. With a 3 season single player campaign, an extensive multiplayer campaign and online cross play with Wipeout HD on the PS3, Wipeout 2048 is certainly far from lacking in terms of content.

As mentioned, the single player campaign covers 3 seasons with each season takes place within a separate year, starting naturally in the year 2048. The only difference between the 3 years is the increase in difficulty. It goes without saying but I’ll say it anyway, 2048 is the easiest season and 2050 is the hardest.

Wipeout has never been the easiest of games. Anti-gravity racing is very different to traditional race games, particularly around the braking aspect. Wipeout also has a habit of hurtling along at breakneck speeds requiring instant reaction times from the player to avoid bouncing off the walls during a tight corner. With Wipeout 2048 it feels as if the developers have tried to make this a little more welcoming. On the whole the tracks are wider and you can also choose a single button brake mechanism rather than the traditional left or right air brake set up. It is only a little more welcoming, it is still comes with a challenge, a challenge that was still too great for one of my friends who openly admits he has never been any good at Wipeout.

Each of the events in a season takes the form of a traditional race, a time trial, a Wipeout Fury style battle and zone mode. Each event has 2 sets of requirements that must be met for completion. The first set of requirements is for a standard pass but you can go the extra mile and push yourself towards an Elite pass. Naturally the Elite pass is harder to achieve. On top of this, you will also be able to see how the people on your friends list have performed in the event. What good is an Elite pass if you are not top of the leaderboard among your friends?

The race events play out as every other Wipeout game. At times there will be a restriction on the class of vehicle you can choose and a limit of the range of weapons but beyond that, they play the same as always which is no bad thing. There is a slight tweak to the weapons this time round. The pads on the track are still the means of picking up the weapons but this time, rather than have a coloured pad to represent the weapon that will be awarded, the pads are distinguished by just 2 colours. The green pads will give you a defensive weapon such as a shield or the turbo and the yellow/orange pads will give you the offensive range of weapon. It does add a bit of strategy to the events.

Time trial events will have you aiming to beat a certain lap time or an overall race time. Hitting the speed boost pads is the key here but remembering their location is only half the problem, you still need to be in a position to hit them and that is not always as easy as it sounds.

The battle events will be familiar with anyone who has played the Fury extension to Wipeout HD. This is a game changer, you will play Wipeout in a completely different manner to what you are used to. The weapons take centre stage for this event, crossing the finish line first plays no part. Points are awarded for every hit with a weapon. Points are taken off when your ship is destroyed. The winner is the person who hits the required points total first. It is fast, it is frantic, it is chaos and it is brilliant. To spice things up you are able to do a 180 degree spin. This allows you to travel the course backwards or lie in wait for some unsuspecting opponents.

The zone events are presented in psychedelic colour schemes which are very impressive, more so than any of the zone events in the other Wipeout games. The tracks are barely recognisable at times. The idea of the zone mode is that you have to steer your ship round the track as the speed gets increasingly fast. It all starts off nice and gentle but by the time you hit Mach 1 class it is a blur.

As you progress through the single player campaign, you will unlock different ships as well as different events. There are some hidden events which consist of 10 lap endurance races at the top end of the speed range. These present a considerable challenge but are worth completing for the prototype ships that will be rewarded upon your success.

The online mode has seen the biggest change. Rather than just race and earn ranking points, this time round there is an actual online campaign. The online events consist of the race and battle events and there are 20 tiers to complete. Each tier is made up of a series of challenges similar to the single player mode. You will be faced with anything from hitting a certain racer with a weapon to not finishing last in order to pass. As with the single player mode, there are 2 classes of pass, standard and Elite. It gives the online mode a welcome purpose. The only downside is that you are thrown into a lobby rather than being able to choose. This means you can join a lobby where the even has just started leaving you with a bit of waiting about.

Another welcome addition to the online mode is being able to cross play with Wipeout HD players on the PS3. Using the cross play you can play the Wipeout HD online mode on the Vita which is an excellent addition to the Vita package.

Graphically the game is excellent and in my opinion the best in the series. With the game featuring the beginning of anti-gravity racing, most of the tracks don’t have the futuristic, purpose built look of the likes of Wipeout HD. In 2048 you will find yourself zipping along city roads that are lined with buildings, hurtling past lakes and whizzing up the side of a sky scraper. The environments are much more detailed and much busier than before. It is a lot to take in, especially at the speeds it hits but it never fails to impress. There are shortcuts to exploit for the more capable. These shortcuts are tight and will hinder your progress if you don’t take them well. I avoid them.

The presentation is as impressive as ever. Events are presented in hexagonal icons and you use the touch screen to scroll around to select your event. The background ripples away as you scroll about, it is nice, clean presentation which very much fits the Wipeout mould.

The control scheme feels more sensitive than on Wipout HD due to the smaller analogue sticks but you soon get used to it.

The audio is also very Wiepout with the selection of electronic dance tracks. It’s not to my taste in music but it has always fitted in well with the game.

Wipeout 2048 may not add anything new to the series but it is the best looking game, have a very extensive package which is to be bulked out further with DLC and ultimately is a thoroughly enjoyable game.

9
Fri 30/03/12 at 08:58
Regular
"And in last place.."
Posts: 2,054
Thanks PB.

I'm more than ready for that DLC, got as many Elite passes as I can manage now I reckon.
Thu 29/03/12 at 15:31
Moderator
"possibly impossible"
Posts: 24,985
Great review, fully agree with what you've said too.

Can't wait for the free DLC that will be available for Wipeout HD/Fury owners too.
Thu 29/03/12 at 10:57
Regular
"And in last place.."
Posts: 2,054
Wipeout 2048 takes us back to the origins of the racing series. The informative intro sequence illustrates how mankind made the transformation from road racing to anti-gravity racing, not that any of us have given it a second thought over the years.

No Sony hardware is complete without some form of Wipeout offering and the Vita is no exception. Coming in as a launch title, Wipeout 2048 is one of the showpiece software titles of the initial releases.

Wipeout 2048 comes with the same range of weapons and the racing teams that fans of the series are more than familiar with. Those in need of fresh ideas from Studio Liverpool are going to be left somewhat wanting but that’s not to say this is any less of Wipeout game. With a 3 season single player campaign, an extensive multiplayer campaign and online cross play with Wipeout HD on the PS3, Wipeout 2048 is certainly far from lacking in terms of content.

As mentioned, the single player campaign covers 3 seasons with each season takes place within a separate year, starting naturally in the year 2048. The only difference between the 3 years is the increase in difficulty. It goes without saying but I’ll say it anyway, 2048 is the easiest season and 2050 is the hardest.

Wipeout has never been the easiest of games. Anti-gravity racing is very different to traditional race games, particularly around the braking aspect. Wipeout also has a habit of hurtling along at breakneck speeds requiring instant reaction times from the player to avoid bouncing off the walls during a tight corner. With Wipeout 2048 it feels as if the developers have tried to make this a little more welcoming. On the whole the tracks are wider and you can also choose a single button brake mechanism rather than the traditional left or right air brake set up. It is only a little more welcoming, it is still comes with a challenge, a challenge that was still too great for one of my friends who openly admits he has never been any good at Wipeout.

Each of the events in a season takes the form of a traditional race, a time trial, a Wipeout Fury style battle and zone mode. Each event has 2 sets of requirements that must be met for completion. The first set of requirements is for a standard pass but you can go the extra mile and push yourself towards an Elite pass. Naturally the Elite pass is harder to achieve. On top of this, you will also be able to see how the people on your friends list have performed in the event. What good is an Elite pass if you are not top of the leaderboard among your friends?

The race events play out as every other Wipeout game. At times there will be a restriction on the class of vehicle you can choose and a limit of the range of weapons but beyond that, they play the same as always which is no bad thing. There is a slight tweak to the weapons this time round. The pads on the track are still the means of picking up the weapons but this time, rather than have a coloured pad to represent the weapon that will be awarded, the pads are distinguished by just 2 colours. The green pads will give you a defensive weapon such as a shield or the turbo and the yellow/orange pads will give you the offensive range of weapon. It does add a bit of strategy to the events.

Time trial events will have you aiming to beat a certain lap time or an overall race time. Hitting the speed boost pads is the key here but remembering their location is only half the problem, you still need to be in a position to hit them and that is not always as easy as it sounds.

The battle events will be familiar with anyone who has played the Fury extension to Wipeout HD. This is a game changer, you will play Wipeout in a completely different manner to what you are used to. The weapons take centre stage for this event, crossing the finish line first plays no part. Points are awarded for every hit with a weapon. Points are taken off when your ship is destroyed. The winner is the person who hits the required points total first. It is fast, it is frantic, it is chaos and it is brilliant. To spice things up you are able to do a 180 degree spin. This allows you to travel the course backwards or lie in wait for some unsuspecting opponents.

The zone events are presented in psychedelic colour schemes which are very impressive, more so than any of the zone events in the other Wipeout games. The tracks are barely recognisable at times. The idea of the zone mode is that you have to steer your ship round the track as the speed gets increasingly fast. It all starts off nice and gentle but by the time you hit Mach 1 class it is a blur.

As you progress through the single player campaign, you will unlock different ships as well as different events. There are some hidden events which consist of 10 lap endurance races at the top end of the speed range. These present a considerable challenge but are worth completing for the prototype ships that will be rewarded upon your success.

The online mode has seen the biggest change. Rather than just race and earn ranking points, this time round there is an actual online campaign. The online events consist of the race and battle events and there are 20 tiers to complete. Each tier is made up of a series of challenges similar to the single player mode. You will be faced with anything from hitting a certain racer with a weapon to not finishing last in order to pass. As with the single player mode, there are 2 classes of pass, standard and Elite. It gives the online mode a welcome purpose. The only downside is that you are thrown into a lobby rather than being able to choose. This means you can join a lobby where the even has just started leaving you with a bit of waiting about.

Another welcome addition to the online mode is being able to cross play with Wipeout HD players on the PS3. Using the cross play you can play the Wipeout HD online mode on the Vita which is an excellent addition to the Vita package.

Graphically the game is excellent and in my opinion the best in the series. With the game featuring the beginning of anti-gravity racing, most of the tracks don’t have the futuristic, purpose built look of the likes of Wipeout HD. In 2048 you will find yourself zipping along city roads that are lined with buildings, hurtling past lakes and whizzing up the side of a sky scraper. The environments are much more detailed and much busier than before. It is a lot to take in, especially at the speeds it hits but it never fails to impress. There are shortcuts to exploit for the more capable. These shortcuts are tight and will hinder your progress if you don’t take them well. I avoid them.

The presentation is as impressive as ever. Events are presented in hexagonal icons and you use the touch screen to scroll around to select your event. The background ripples away as you scroll about, it is nice, clean presentation which very much fits the Wipeout mould.

The control scheme feels more sensitive than on Wipout HD due to the smaller analogue sticks but you soon get used to it.

The audio is also very Wiepout with the selection of electronic dance tracks. It’s not to my taste in music but it has always fitted in well with the game.

Wipeout 2048 may not add anything new to the series but it is the best looking game, have a very extensive package which is to be bulked out further with DLC and ultimately is a thoroughly enjoyable game.

9

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