Ridge Racer V...How Good?!?!

[C']

Unfortunately, the great reviewers around the world considered RRV to be "the sanmme" as all ridge games. Which is a) not a bad thing but b) blatantly untrue anyway.
This will lead to RR6 being gash in all likelyhood

Didn't CVG give it 5/5 on its Japanese release?

Then slated it a few months later.

[geldra]

Someone here must not enjoy the game and want to sell me either a US or JPN copy of the game. Please

No, no one here fits that description.

Its because of this forum I want the game. I was always told it was a poor game.

Give Cex a ring. I'm sure I've seen it in a couple of their branches for as low as ?2 (yes! two quid!!!!).

[Vaipon]

The Ridge games have always had superb soundtracks, although each game normally centres on one particular style so it's inevitable that not everyone is going to agree on a particular ridge soundtrackl. RR1/revolution was hardcore dance. Rage Racer was rock/combo. RRt4 was funk/jazz style. RR5 is by far the most progressive sounding game imo, and it's actually my favorite soundtrack of them all. I love the ending to Ridge5. The music track ("On the Painted Desert" by Boom Boom Satellites) works so well with the imagery. Anyone who likes the two BBS tracks in RRV btw should check out the BBS album "Out Loud". Some great tracks on it.

[Brats]

Unfortunately, the great reviewers around the world considered RRV to be "the sanmme" as all ridge games. Which is a) not a bad thing but b) blatantly untrue anyway.
This will lead to RR6 being gash in all likelyhood

Well it is very similar to the 60hz version of RR that came out on the PS1.

I think my initial disappointment with the title was that this was the game that was sold as being the premier title on the PS2, the machine that was supposed to change everything once again. I probably made a mistake by first playing the game straight after playing Daytona in the arcades. I expected a game on Sony's mega new powerful hardware to look better and play harder than the old Model 2 arcade machine and it doesn't on both counts.

I agree with Marcus that the presentation is fabulous and the graphics are perfectly acceptable. The thing that I find less exciting is the handling model, which has virtually no depth to it at all, especially compared to Daytona. In 1995 this was fresh and exciting, but in 2000 it was a case of "Is that it?". This makes the game an absolute piece of piss to play, even with the high performance, ****e handling cars.

I own the game and I'm glad to have it in my collection, but IMO it doesn't hold a candle to games like Burnout 2 which took the arcade racer into fresher territory.

[replicant]

I own the game and I'm glad to have it in my collection, but IMO it doesn't hold a candle to games like Burnout 2 which took the arcade racer into fresher territory.

/me shakes head

Burnout 2....hmm........

While Burnout 2 is fun for a novelty title it does not hold a candle to the pure arcade racing of Ridge Racer V. Burnout 2 uses cheap gimmicks to try and flesh out its gameplay e.g. the extremely annoying crash camera. If the gimmicks were removed from BO2 it would be an empty shell of a game. On the other had RRV does what Namco intended it to do. A pure arcade racing game. Nothing more, nothing less. No cheap gimmicks, just fast arcade action.

Ridge Racer V was slated because it was fashionable to critise the PS2 launch. As most people know my biggest bug about Edge over recent years is their Ridge Racer V review. It was unjust, and completely inaccurate. Edge critised the game without acknowledging the fact that it achieved what Namco wanted it to do, and its damn good fun. They were too interested in slating it for alaising issues, and because it didn't develop the racing genre. Ironic that Tempest 3k got 9/10 when it was basically the same game as T2k, and T. Handling? They gave Daytona DC a better score while acknowledging the handling via the standard controller was problematic, and a steering wheel was required. Inconsistent.

Ridge Racer, and Ridge Raver V are my two most expensive games as I bought JPN launch psx, and ps2 consoles to play them. I have no regrets, and used to find it funny reading all those people critising RRV on the basis of a handful of poor reviews. Shame none of them owned an import PS2, and had actually played it.

Lets not forget. You can race as Pac-Man

[Brats]

[all those people critising RRV on the basis of a handful of poor reviews. Shame none of them owned an import PS2, and had actually played it.

Not all . I didn't own a PS2 for ages and yet I'd played it extensively (NTSC version and arcade).

I agree about the inconsistency of Edge reviews, but that's not the issue here. I would still have the same feelings about the game had Edge given it 9/10 (There are a myriad of titles that i find myself disagreeing with Edge about like MGS, Rez and Gun Valkyrie to name but a few).

There seems to be some laughable assumption that anyone who doesn't think RRV is amazing must have just read the Edge review and not played the game . I played the game well before the Edge review appeared and judged my own opinion on it. It is a solid title, but it is too basic imo. The argument that it does what Namco set it out to do is irrelevant. DOAXV does exactly what Tecmo set out to do, does that make it a premier title? I think not.

Burnout 2 is a far superior game IMO (a title I note Rep gave best game of 2002 to). Forgive me, but I can't see how the crash cam is a gimmick? It's a penalty, a loss of time to penalize the player for crashing. It's like saying the crash animation of Outrun is a gimmick . Nothing about the pure arcade action of Burnout 2 is gimmicky. It has far more depth to it than RRV .

[saif]

I find the handling model is vastly deeper than previous ridges. There is a real importance to when you come out of a slide and into it that was less important in prev versions. Its a great game and I think a lot of the criticism was based on second hand knowledge rather than experience.
And I do not think it was that similar to 60Hz RR

Brats, I can't remember but didnt you post on RRV when we had that gaming confessions thread? I thought you did but i could be horribly wrong.

[Brats]

I did, but it was joke started in irc .

[Treble]

It doesn't matter if people don't think it's fundamentally superb (like me and Vaipon, etc. do), the point is, the reviews at the time made it out to be a really, really terrible game.

This was compounded by the fact that I only saw the PAL version running (up until the thread on the old forum praising the game), and couldn't believe the borders. How can anyone play a game where peripheral vision is paramount when about 33% of the screen has disappeared??!?

Anyway, I'm writing a review of it soon, so you have a score to argue over as well as content. Won't that be nice for you?

[Brats]

I think on reflection I'd give the game 7/10, which is not a bad score. I think if you'd asked me shortly after I first played it, it would be nearer a 5/10.

Definately not worth the 9/10 that some people bandy about. If RRV is a 9, the arcade version of Daytona must be an 11/10 .

[replicant]

I didnt vote Burnout 2 as the best title of 2002 mate. You talking porkies now

[Vaipon]

Anyway, I'm writing a review of it soon, so you have a score to argue over as well as content. Won't that be nice for you?

Look forward to readin it mate. Justice will prevail!

[Brats]

I didnt vote Burnout 2 as the best title of 2002 mate. You talking porkies now

That's funny, I'm sure you did. You even joked about voting for a Western title on irc.

[replicant]

nah mate, was vice city.

[lordcookie]

I got hold of my copy yesterday and I am really impressed with it. This is my first proper RR game as I only ever played the first one for about 5 minutes.

The speed is incredible, and considering a lot of magazines made a big thing about the graphics, I think they are pretty nice. Plus the handling is great, although it did take me a couple of races to get used to. So thanks to all these magazine I missed out on some great racing action.