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Ridge Racer
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Ridge Racer
Ridge Racer is a series of racing video games created by Namco and owned by Bandai Namco Entertainment. The first game, Ridge Racer (1993), was originally released in arcades for the Namco System 22 hardware, later ported to the PlayStation one year later as a launch title. It was met with several sequels and spin-off games for multiple platforms, the latest being the mobile game Ridge Racer Draw & Drift (2016) and the latest mainline game, developed in-house, was Ridge Racer 7 (2006). Gameplay involves the player racing against computer-controlled opponents to be the first to finish in a race. Drifting is a core aspect of the series and is used to keep speed while turning corners; Ridge Racer pioneered the real-life technique in video games. The series is considered influential to the racing game genre. On June 5, 2025, the arcade version of the first game was added to the Arcade Archives and Arcade Archives 2.
Ridge Racer is a spiritual successor to Sim Drive (1992), a racing simulation game met with a limited release in Japanese arcades using an actual body of a Mazda Eunos Roadster. Originally meant as an F1 racing game, similar to Namco's own Pole Position and Final Lap series, it was instead replaced with racing on mountain roads, a popular trend for Japanese car enthusiasts at the time. The PlayStation version was a launch title for the console and was an astounding success for Namco, prompting the creation of several sequels for arcades and home platforms.
Earlier Ridge Racer games received critical acclaim for their graphics, gameplay, and musical score, many citing it as a contributing factor to the success of the PlayStation in its early years. Later entries were criticized for straying too far from the source material and lack of content, with Ridge Racer Vita (2011) being the first game to receive generally negative reception from critics; its base content was considered extremely lacking, with the player forced to obtain the vast majority of additional content by purchasing DLC. The last mainline title, Ridge Racer Unbounded (2012) received mixed-to-average reception from critics.
The basic gameplay of the Ridge Racer series has remained relatively consistent throughout each installment. The objective is to race against computer-controlled opponents to finish each track in first place — the player begins the game in last place, and have a limited number of laps around the track to complete where they can overtake opponents. Some entries have a time limit that the player must race against, with each completed lap extending the timer; if the timer reaches zero, the game ends regardless of which lap the player was on. Later entries remove the timer and instead requires the player to finish the race in a minimum-assigned place to advance to the next course.
Unlike other racing games, which usually feature closed circuits, Ridge Racer instead has races laid out on streets, beaches, cities and mountains, taking place in the fictional coastal metropolis "Ridge City" — circuit tracks are included in some entries. Nearly every entry in the series features the original tracks from Ridge Racer and Ridge Racer 2, sometimes modified to accompany for certain mechanics. Players can drift their car around corners to maintain speed, as most of the tracks were based on real-world locations that were not intended for race speeds. Ridge Racer Unbounded (2012) removes the drifting mechanic in favor of vehicular combat, similar to the Burnout franchise.
The playable cars each have their own stats and mechanics, such as a faster speed or improved drifting. Many of these are also named after older Namco video games, including Dig Dug, Xevious, NebulasRay, Rolling Thunder, Bosconian and Solvalou. The PlayStation sequel R4: Ridge Racer Type 4 introduces the concept of racing teams for the series, all being named after Dig Dug, Mappy, Pac-Man, Xevious and Galaga. Similar to Namco's own Tekken series, several games feature classic Namco arcade games as short minigames that play during loading screens, a mechanic that was later trademarked by Namco — the PlayStation home port of the original Ridge Racer features Galaxian, while Ridge Racers features New Rally-X. Completing these minigames will award the player with new tracks or cars, sometimes unlocking a full emulated version of the minigame to play.
Starting with Rage Racer, each game offers cars with fictional automakers and model names. Certain manufacturers specialize in a particular component of their cars' performance, such as top speed, grip, and acceleration:
Designed by Kei Yoshimizu, Reiko Nagase is a virtual idol fictional character who is the mascot and "host" of the Ridge Racer series. Described as a race queen from Tokyo, Reiko officially first appeared and was named in Rage Racer (1996), in the game's full motion video intro directed by Kei Yoshimizu from Keica, also appearing in-game. In R4: Ridge Racer Type 4 (1998), she was given more prominence, as the opening animation, which used a song by Kimara Lovelace, was a short story starring her. Type 4 also introduced a redesign to her 3D model by Kei Yoshimizu. This is when Namco started giving more exposure to the character, heavily using her image to promote the game. She also appears in Ridge Racer 64 (2000).
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Ridge Racer
Ridge Racer is a series of racing video games created by Namco and owned by Bandai Namco Entertainment. The first game, Ridge Racer (1993), was originally released in arcades for the Namco System 22 hardware, later ported to the PlayStation one year later as a launch title. It was met with several sequels and spin-off games for multiple platforms, the latest being the mobile game Ridge Racer Draw & Drift (2016) and the latest mainline game, developed in-house, was Ridge Racer 7 (2006). Gameplay involves the player racing against computer-controlled opponents to be the first to finish in a race. Drifting is a core aspect of the series and is used to keep speed while turning corners; Ridge Racer pioneered the real-life technique in video games. The series is considered influential to the racing game genre. On June 5, 2025, the arcade version of the first game was added to the Arcade Archives and Arcade Archives 2.
Ridge Racer is a spiritual successor to Sim Drive (1992), a racing simulation game met with a limited release in Japanese arcades using an actual body of a Mazda Eunos Roadster. Originally meant as an F1 racing game, similar to Namco's own Pole Position and Final Lap series, it was instead replaced with racing on mountain roads, a popular trend for Japanese car enthusiasts at the time. The PlayStation version was a launch title for the console and was an astounding success for Namco, prompting the creation of several sequels for arcades and home platforms.
Earlier Ridge Racer games received critical acclaim for their graphics, gameplay, and musical score, many citing it as a contributing factor to the success of the PlayStation in its early years. Later entries were criticized for straying too far from the source material and lack of content, with Ridge Racer Vita (2011) being the first game to receive generally negative reception from critics; its base content was considered extremely lacking, with the player forced to obtain the vast majority of additional content by purchasing DLC. The last mainline title, Ridge Racer Unbounded (2012) received mixed-to-average reception from critics.
The basic gameplay of the Ridge Racer series has remained relatively consistent throughout each installment. The objective is to race against computer-controlled opponents to finish each track in first place — the player begins the game in last place, and have a limited number of laps around the track to complete where they can overtake opponents. Some entries have a time limit that the player must race against, with each completed lap extending the timer; if the timer reaches zero, the game ends regardless of which lap the player was on. Later entries remove the timer and instead requires the player to finish the race in a minimum-assigned place to advance to the next course.
Unlike other racing games, which usually feature closed circuits, Ridge Racer instead has races laid out on streets, beaches, cities and mountains, taking place in the fictional coastal metropolis "Ridge City" — circuit tracks are included in some entries. Nearly every entry in the series features the original tracks from Ridge Racer and Ridge Racer 2, sometimes modified to accompany for certain mechanics. Players can drift their car around corners to maintain speed, as most of the tracks were based on real-world locations that were not intended for race speeds. Ridge Racer Unbounded (2012) removes the drifting mechanic in favor of vehicular combat, similar to the Burnout franchise.
The playable cars each have their own stats and mechanics, such as a faster speed or improved drifting. Many of these are also named after older Namco video games, including Dig Dug, Xevious, NebulasRay, Rolling Thunder, Bosconian and Solvalou. The PlayStation sequel R4: Ridge Racer Type 4 introduces the concept of racing teams for the series, all being named after Dig Dug, Mappy, Pac-Man, Xevious and Galaga. Similar to Namco's own Tekken series, several games feature classic Namco arcade games as short minigames that play during loading screens, a mechanic that was later trademarked by Namco — the PlayStation home port of the original Ridge Racer features Galaxian, while Ridge Racers features New Rally-X. Completing these minigames will award the player with new tracks or cars, sometimes unlocking a full emulated version of the minigame to play.
Starting with Rage Racer, each game offers cars with fictional automakers and model names. Certain manufacturers specialize in a particular component of their cars' performance, such as top speed, grip, and acceleration:
Designed by Kei Yoshimizu, Reiko Nagase is a virtual idol fictional character who is the mascot and "host" of the Ridge Racer series. Described as a race queen from Tokyo, Reiko officially first appeared and was named in Rage Racer (1996), in the game's full motion video intro directed by Kei Yoshimizu from Keica, also appearing in-game. In R4: Ridge Racer Type 4 (1998), she was given more prominence, as the opening animation, which used a song by Kimara Lovelace, was a short story starring her. Type 4 also introduced a redesign to her 3D model by Kei Yoshimizu. This is when Namco started giving more exposure to the character, heavily using her image to promote the game. She also appears in Ridge Racer 64 (2000).