R4: Ridge Racer Type 4

Last updated
R4: Ridge Racer Type 4
Ridge Racer Type 4.jpg
North American cover art
Developer(s) Namco
Publisher(s) Namco [lower-alpha 1]
Producer(s) Shigeru Yokoyama
Programmer(s) Masatoshi Kobayashi
Artist(s) Kazutoki Kono
Composer(s) Kohta Takahashi
Hiroshi Okubo
Asuka Sakai
Series Ridge Racer
Platform(s) PlayStation
Release
  • JP: 3 December 1998
  • EU: 16 April 1999
  • NA: 4 May 1999 [1]
Genre(s) Racing
Mode(s) Single-player, multiplayer

R4: Ridge Racer Type 4 [lower-alpha 2] (Ridge Racer Type 4 in Europe) is a racing video game developed and published by Namco for the PlayStation. It is the fourth title in the Ridge Racer series after Rage Racer and the last to be released for the PlayStation. It was released on December 3, 1998 in Japan and further released the following year in Europe and North America. It was later re-released on the PlayStation Network in 2011, again in 2023 for PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5, and pre-loaded on the PlayStation Classic which was released on December 3, 2018. [2] It is the first Ridge Racer series game on the PlayStation to use Gouraud shading on polygons and was followed by Ridge Racer V in 2000.

Contents

Development

Music

Hiroshi Okubo served as the sound director and lead composer of the game's soundtrack, with Kohta Takahashi and Asuka Sakai also contributing several tracks, and Tetsukazu Nakanishi and Koji Nakagawa contributing two tracks each. Whereas previous games had music inspired by rave and hardcore, R4 instead explores music styles encompassing funk, breakbeat, acid jazz, UK garage, progressive house, and neo soul. [3] Okubo had previously composed additional tracks for Ridge Racer Revolution with Nobuhide Isayama and the whole soundtrack of Rage Racer with Nakanishi, both of which roughly retain the rave sound of the earlier games. A handful of tracks in the game, including the theme song "Ridge Racer (One More Win)", feature vocals by American singer Kimara Lovelace. Okubo first discovered her at a club event in Nishi-Azabu in May 1998; he was impressed by her powerful voice, and felt she fitted the game direction's keywords of "urban" and "cool". [4]

The music was design to correspond with the game's human drama, so the composers aimed to evoke emotions of sadness and tension in their tracks. Both Takahashi and Sakai previously did not have much knowledge or interest in club music; initial tracks they composed for the game were frequently rejected by Okubo for not fitting into the club sound or being "game like". Takahashi described him as "the gatekeeper to club sound hell", [5] while Okubo took piano parts from one of Sakai's tracks and reworked it into "Quiet Curves", [4] much to her annoyance. [6] Nakagawa, who was working on the soundtrack for Techno Drive at the time, was asked by Okubo to contribute due to his experience with composing techno music, while Nakanishi was involved towards the end of the project. [7]

A soundtrack for the game, R4: Ridge Racer Type 4 Direct Audio was released by Media Factory on January 27, 1999. [3] On March 21, 2019, SuperSweep released R4: The 20th Anniv. Sounds, consisting of two CDs: the first includes new remixes by a variety of artists, and the second including a remastered version of the original soundtrack. [8]

Gameplay

A typical race in progress, taking place at the Helter Skelter circuit, featuring the player driving the Terrazi Ambitious as part of the Pac Racing Club attempting to overtake the Lizard Bonfire of Dig Racing Team. Ridge Racer Type 4 gameplay.png
A typical race in progress, taking place at the Helter Skelter circuit, featuring the player driving the Terrazi Ambitious as part of the Pac Racing Club attempting to overtake the Lizard Bonfire of Dig Racing Team.

R4: Ridge Racer Type 4 is an arcade-style racing game with a strong emphasis on powersliding around corners. Vehicles use one of two styles of powersliding depending on the make of car they select: Drift and Grip. Drift cars require players to tap the brake once while turning to break into a smooth powerslide while Grip cars requires players to alternate between brakes and gas while turning to powerslide. [9]

Vehicles are earned by playing through the game's Grand Prix mode. Players select one of four teams; R.C Micro Mouse Mappy (France), Pac Racing Club (Japan), Racing Team Solvalou (Italy), and Dig Racing Team (United States), who each have varying difficulties, and one of four manufacturers; Age Solo (France), Lizard (United States), Assoluto (Italy), and Terrazi (Japan), which determines the style of car and powerslide type the player will use. In each race, the player must attempt to reach a qualifying position, with later stages requiring players to place in higher positions to qualify. Depending on the qualifying position in each race, players will be awarded a new vehicle, or an upgrade to their current one, based on their team and manufacturer, with better cars earned for reaching consistently higher positions (i.e. the best cars are earned by placing 1st in each match while the least impressive cars are earned by just clearing the minimum qualifying positions). There are a total of 320 vehicles earned by racing with every combination of team, manufacturer and qualifying position. If the players unlock all 320 cars, they will unlock an additional one modelled after Pac-Man, for a total of 321 vehicles. [9]

The game also features Time Attack mode, in which players can attempt to get the fastest time on each course, and VS. Battle, a split-screen mode for two players (the first to appear in the home console series) and an undocumented PlayStation Link Cable mode, allowing four players to play simultaneously. Players can also create their own car decors and participate in Extra Trials against powerful prototype cars. The game is also compatible with the JogCon peripheral and the PocketStation device, which allows players to trade cars with friends. [9] [10]

Release

A peripheral, the JogCon, was released alongside the game, packaged in special editions. The device features a steering wheel type device in the middle of the controller to provide accurate control.

Reception

Contemporary

The game received "generally favorable reviews" according to the review aggregation website Metacritic. [11]

Jeff Gerstmann of GameSpot [19] and Next Generation gave positive reviews to the game. [21] In Japan, Famitsu gave it a score of 35 out of 40. [15]

Retrospective

James O'Neill of Push Square noted it as the best of the PS1 Ridge Racer games. [24] Jeremy Peeples of Hardcore Gamer said in 2018 that "R4 remains a high mark for the series and no entry has quite topped it yet." In 2023, Time Extension ranked the game first on their "Best Ridge Racer Games" list. [25] Polygon and GamesRadar have ranked the game among the best PS1 games. [26] [27] Den of Geek included the game on their list of "20 PlayStation One Games That Were Way Ahead of Their Time" for getting the balance of "arcadey" and "realistic" right, also noting it as one of the best-looking PS1 titles. [28]

Sales

It was a commercial success in Japan, the United Kingdom, [29] and the United States.

The game sold 759,527 units in Japan [30] and 297,564 units in the United States, [31] for a total of 1,057,091 units sold in Japan and the United States.

Notes

  1. ↑ Published in North America by Namco Hometek and in Europe by Sony Computer Entertainment Europe.
  2. ↑ Japanese: リッジレーサータイプ4, Hepburn: Rijji Rēsā Taipu Fō

Related Research Articles

Racing games are a video game genre in which the player participates in a racing competition. They may be based on anything from real-world racing leagues to fantastical settings. They are distributed along a spectrum between more realistic racing simulations and more fantastical arcade-style racing games. Kart racing games emerged in the 1990s as a popular sub-genre of the latter. Racing games may also fall under the category of sports video games.

Ridge Racer is a racing video game series developed and published for arcade systems and home game consoles by Bandai Namco Entertainment, formerly Namco. The first game, Ridge Racer (1993), was originally released in arcades for the Namco System 22 hardware, later ported to the PlayStation two years 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) with the latest mainline game being 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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jogcon</span>

The Jogcon is a controller developed and produced by Namco for the PlayStation.

<i>Ridge Racer Revolution</i> 1995 video game

Ridge Racer Revolution is a racing video game developed and published by Namco for the PlayStation in 1995. It is the sequel to the PlayStation version of Ridge Racer. Like the original Ridge Racer, the player races computer-controlled cars with the objective of winning a series of races, and supports Namco's NeGcon controller. Ridge Racer Revolution adds two hidden cars, and two-player support via the PlayStation Link cable, and took roughly the same time to develop as the first. The intention was to increase the depth and add features.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">NeGcon</span> Video game controller manufactured by Namco

The NeGcon, stylized as neGcon, is a motion-based game controller manufactured in 1995 by Namco for the PlayStation. One of the first third-party peripherals for the system, the controller is connected by a swivel joint, allowing the player to twist the halves relative to each other. The controller also replaces the "symbol" buttons on the original PlayStation controller with two "A" and "B" buttons, as well as "I" and "II" buttons that allowed for analogue control. A black variant was released exclusively in Japan.

<i>Ridge Racer 2</i> 1994 racing video game

Ridge Racer 2 is an arcade racing game that was released by Namco in 1994 for their System 22 hardware. Despite its name, Ridge Racer 2 is more of an updated version of Ridge Racer, than an actual sequel.

<i>Ridge Racer V</i> 2000 video game

Ridge Racer V is a 2000 racing game developed and published by Namco for the PlayStation 2, as a launch game for that platform. It is the fifth title of the Ridge Racer series succeeding Ridge Racer Type 4 and was followed by Ridge Racer 6 in 2005. The game received a home-to-arcade port named Ridge Racer V: Arcade Battle.

<i>Rage Racer</i> 1996 video game

Rage Racer is the third title in the Ridge Racer series of racing games on the PlayStation. Developed and published by Namco, it was released in Japan on December 3, 1996, with releases in the U.S. and Europe following in 1997. It was the first game in the series to feature a CGI animated introduction, and introduced a new "mascot", Reiko Nagase.

<i>Ridge Racer 6</i> 2005 racing video game

Ridge Racer 6 is a racing game by Namco released in 2005. It was the sixth console game in the Ridge Racer series but unlike the previous mainline entries, which were released for PlayStation consoles, this entry was released exclusively as a launch title for the Xbox 360. In a similar fashion to the first Ridge Racer on PS1, Ridge Racer V on PlayStation 2, Ridge Racer(s) on PlayStation Portable and eventually Ridge Racer 7 on PlayStation 3. All are exclusive launch titles for their respective consoles.

<i>Ridge Racer 7</i> 2006 racing video game

Ridge Racer 7 is a racing video game developed by Namco Bandai Games for the PlayStation 3. It was released in Japan and North America by Namco Bandai Games in 2006 and PAL territories by Sony Computer Entertainment in 2007. The seventh mainline installment in the Ridge Racer series, it was developed as a launch title for the console. The game has around 40 cars, many of which return from Ridge Racer 6 and the PSP incarnations of the game. There are also 22 courses, available in forward, reverse and mirror mode. The game runs at 1080p native resolution and 60 frames per second. It also features Dolby Digital 5.1 surround sound and free online gameplay via the PlayStation Network.

<i>Ridge Racer</i> (2004 video game) 2004 video game

Ridge Racer, released in Japan as Ridge Racers, is an arcade racing video game developed by Namco for the PlayStation Portable. It is named after the eponymous Ridge Racer video game series to which it belongs. The game was released in Japan on 12 December 2004, in North America on 24 March 2005, and in Europe and Australia on 1 September as a launch title. Available in the game is a fully playable version of the Namco arcade game New Rally-X.

<i>Ridge Racer</i> (1993 video game) 1993 racing video game

Ridge Racer is a 1993 racing video game developed and published by Namco. It was released initially on the Namco System 22 arcade system board and ported to the PlayStation console in 1994. It is the first title in the Ridge Racer series released for arcades and home consoles.

<i>Ridge Racer 2</i> (2006 video game) 2006 racing video game published by Namco and SCEE

Ridge Racer 2, released in Japan as Ridge Racers 2, is an arcade-style racing game developed by Namco Bandai Games for the PlayStation Portable hand-held console, marking the 14th release in the Ridge Racer series and also the sequel to the PSP launch title Ridge Racer. It saw release in Japan on 14 September 2006, followed by its 13 October European launch and 19 October release in Australia. The original North American release was cancelled. On 20 December 2022, Ridge Racer 2 was made available worldwide to download on PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5 as part of the PlayStation Plus Premium subscription service.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pac-Man (character)</span> Video game character

Pac-Man is a fictional character and the titular protagonist of the video game franchise of the same name. Created by Toru Iwatani, he first appeared in the arcade game Pac-Man (1980), and has since appeared in more than 30 licensed sequels and spin-offs for multiple platforms, and spawning mass amounts of merchandise in his image, including two television series and a hit single by Buckner & Garcia. He is the official mascot of Bandai Namco Entertainment. Pac-Man's most common antagonists are the Ghost Gang — Blinky, Pinky, Inky and Clyde that are determined to defeat him to accomplish their goals, which change throughout the series. Pac-Man also has a voracious appetite, being able to consume vast amounts of food in a short timespan, and can eat his enemies by consuming large "Power Pellets".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">PlayStation Link Cable</span> Peripheral cable for the PlayStation console

The PlayStation Link Cable (SCPH-1040) is a peripheral cable for the 1st generation PlayStation console. Utilizing the serial I/O port found on the back of most PlayStation models, it allows for two consoles to be connected in order to play compatible multiplayer games on separate consoles. It was released in July 1995 in Japan for ¥2000, and during the 1995 Christmas shopping season in the United States.

Shinji Hosoe, also known as Megaten and Sampling Masters MEGA, is a Japanese video game composer and musician most famous for scoring Ridge Racer, Street Fighter EX and many Namco arcade games between 1987 and 1996. He also runs the music production and publishing company SuperSweep, alongside long time collaborator Ayako Saso.

<i>Ridge Racer 3D</i> 2011 racing video game

Ridge Racer 3D is a racing video game for the Nintendo 3DS console published and developed by Namco Bandai Games. The game was released in Japan on 26 February 2011 and in North America on 22 March, five days prior to the launch of the Nintendo 3DS itself in that region. Ridge Racer 3D was also released in Europe on 25 March and in Australia on 31 March.

<i>Ridge Racer Unbounded</i> 2012 racing video game published by Namco Bandai Games

Ridge Racer Unbounded is a racing video game developed by Bugbear Entertainment and published by Namco Bandai Games for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 in 2012. It is the eighth installment of the Ridge Racer franchise, and the first game in the series to be released on Windows. Unbounded is also the most recent game in the series to be released on home consoles as its successors only focused on handheld devices.

<i>Ridge Racer</i> (2011 video game) 2011 racing video game

Ridge Racer, originally named Ridge Racer Vita, is a racing video game released for the PlayStation Vita as a launch title on 17 December 2011 in Japan, 22 February 2012 in Europe, 23 February in Australia and 13 March in North America. It is the 5th handheld game in the Ridge Racer series.

Kohta Takahashi is a Japanese composer. He is best known for his work on Namco games, including multiple Ridge Racer and Klonoa titles, as well as Ace Combat 2 and the console version of Tekken 5.

References

  1. ↑ "psx.ign.com: R4: Ridge Racer Type 4". 2001-03-03. Archived from the original on 2001-03-03. Retrieved 2023-06-13.
  2. ↑ "Announcing PlayStation Classic's Full Lineup of 20 Games". PlayStation.Blog. 29 October 2018.
  3. 1 2 Greening, Chris (August 1, 2012). "Ridge Racer Type 4 Direct Audio". VGMO.
  4. 1 2 R4 / RIDGE RACER TYPE 4 / DIRECT AUDIO (CD) (in Japanese). January 27, 1999.
  5. ↑ Greening, Chris (June 15, 2011). "Kohta Takahashi Interview: Cutting-Edge Namco Scores". VGMO.
  6. ↑ Greening, Chris (June 8, 2010). "Asuka Sakai Interview: What Constitutes Game Music?". VGMO.
  7. ↑ "ナムコ「リッジレーサーズ」 サウンドチーム大集合(前編)". GAME Watch (in Japanese). December 22, 2004.
  8. ↑ Kotowski, Don (June 25, 2019). "R4 -THE 20TH ANNIV. SOUNDS-". VGMO.
  9. 1 2 3 リッジレーサータイプ４オフィシャルガイドブーク (in Japanese). アスペクト. 7 January 1999. ISBN   9784757203075.
  10. ↑ Namco Official Guide Book R4 (in Japanese). 3 December 1998. 4907892080072.
  11. 1 2 "R4: Ridge Racer Type 4 for PlayStation Reviews". Metacritic . CBS Interactive . Retrieved 24 March 2017.
  12. ↑ Mark Kanarick. "R4: Ridge Racer Type 4 - Review". AllGame . All Media Network. Archived from the original on 15 November 2014. Retrieved 25 March 2017.
  13. ↑ Edge staff (February 1999). "R4 - Ridge Racer Type 4". Edge . No. 68. Future plc. pp. 74–75. Retrieved 3 June 2020.
  14. ↑ Sushi-X; Ricciardi, John; Davison, John; Hager, Dean (June 1999). "R4: Ridge Racer Type 4". Electronic Gaming Monthly . No. 119. Ziff Davis. p. 135.
  15. 1 2 "R4 -リッジレーサー タイプ4- [PS]". Famitsu (in Japanese). Enterbrain . Retrieved 3 June 2020.
  16. ↑ "[R4] Ridge Racer Type 4". Game Informer . No. 73. FuncoLand. May 1999.
  17. ↑ Dan Elektro (1999). "R4: Ridge Racer Type 4 Review for PlayStation on GamePro.com". GamePro . IDG Entertainment. Archived from the original on 9 February 2005. Retrieved 25 March 2017.
  18. ↑ Sean Johnson (June 1999). "R4: Ridge Racer Type 4 Review". GameRevolution . CraveOnline. Archived from the original on 9 September 2014. Retrieved 3 June 2020.
  19. 1 2 Jeff Gerstmann (17 December 1998). "Ridge Racer Type 4 Review". GameSpot . CBS Interactive. Retrieved 29 December 2015.
  20. ↑ Craig Harris (5 May 1999). "R4: Ridge Racer Type 4". IGN . Ziff Davis. Retrieved 29 December 2015.
  21. 1 2 "[R4:] Ridge Racer Type 4". Next Generation . No. 55. Imagine Media. July 1999. pp. 90–91. Retrieved 3 June 2020.
  22. ↑ Keith Stuart (May 1999). "Ridge Racer Type 4". Official UK PlayStation Magazine . No. 45. Future plc. pp. 80–84. Retrieved 2 June 2020.
  23. ↑ Mark MacDonald (May 1999). "R4: Ridge Racer Type 4". Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine . Vol. 2, no. 8. Ziff Davis. pp. 80–81. Retrieved 3 June 2020.
  24. ↑ O'Neill, James (4 December 2018). "Ridge Racer Type 4 Review (PS1)". Push Square . Hookshot Media. Retrieved 28 February 2023.
  25. ↑ McFerran, Damien (16 February 2023). "Best Ridge Racer Games - Every Ridge Racer, Ranked". Time Extension. Hookshot Media. Retrieved 17 February 2023.
  26. ↑ Parish, Jeremy (30 November 2018). "The 20 best PlayStation 1 games". Polygon . Vox Media . Retrieved 28 February 2023.
  27. ↑ Thorpe, Nick; West, Josh; Retro Gamer Team (26 June 2022). "The 25 best PS1 games of all time". GamesRadar+ . Future plc . Retrieved 28 February 2023.
  28. ↑ Byrd, Matthew (13 August 2022). "20 PlayStation One Games That Were Way Ahead of Their Time". Den of Geek . DoG Tech LLC. Retrieved 28 February 2023.
  29. ↑ "Game Charts". Official UK PlayStation Magazine. No. 46. Future plc. June 1999. p. 124. Retrieved 3 June 2020.
  30. ↑ "PlayStation". Game Data Library. Famitsu . Retrieved 25 April 2020.
  31. ↑ "PlayStation US Sales from 1995-2003". Game Pilgrimage. NPD Group . Retrieved 18 October 2020.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.