I have not once had a bad experience with the Wipeout series.  The games have always had a certain aesthetic to them that seems to pop.  The futuristic racing series has a certain look, sound and feel that has always popped whenever you play them.

When Sony announced that Wipeout HD would be a sort of PS3 “greatest hits” version of the PSP games, it seemed like an iffy measure.  Simply porting Wipeout Pure and Pulse levels to the PS3 may have done the job, but it would have been a massive letdown.  Thankfully, what is contained in the $20 package is much more than shinier versions of the PSP version’s tracks. 

Turn on the 90's techno and hit the jump for details.

As an exclusive PSN title, this game nothing short of stunning on several levels.   While there are only 4 modes of play, each of them has a certain polish that is extremely impressive.  The four modes are race, tournament, time trials and zone.  The race and tournament modes are basically what you would expect.  You race around each of the eight tracks against 7 opponents.  Using weapon upgrades, your goal is to beat your opponents to the gold by any means necessary.  This can mean pushing your opponents off the tracks to their fiery doom or launch weapons ranging from machine guns to a weapon that changes the solid track into a flaming wave.

Time trials can be stressful to the perfectionist, as getting gold medals can be extremely tricky.  Each of the tracks has small tricks that you need to perfect in order to get in under the target times.  In any given time trial, you can either go for a lap time or a full race time.  In a lap time trial, you are given 7 laps to get a gold medal, while in a race time trial you have to get low time across 3 laps to get the gold medal.  Both the time trials and the race modes are fairly traditional when you compare it to zone mode, however.

The zone mode is where the game sets itself apart.  Within a zone race, you simply go around a given track for as long as you can without destroying your vehicle.  Your vehicle will continue to go faster and faster the longer you are on the track.  It may seem simple, but what sets this mode apart is its look.  Instead of going for realism, this mode turns the track and your vehicle smooth and changes the color palate of the level to shades of neon.  The longer you race, the more the level will change in its color scheme.   It appears that this particular mode is the reason for the seizure warning that is featured when you first load the game, as this mode is definitely a trippy experience.

Thankfully there’s no story mode, as many racing games get seem to get very tangled when they try to jam in a narrative.  Instead, you will receive loyalty points for racing for specific teams.  The more loyalty points you earn, the more paint jobs you can unlock for your vehicle of choice.   It’s a small thing, but if you want to unlock everything this game has, you will spend hours racing the same race multiple times with different cars. 

What really sets this game apart is its presentation.  It’s very clear that there was a lot of love put into this game as it looks like a completely different game from its PSP brethren.  While the level layouts are the same, each track has a certain level of polish that is something to behold.   The vehicles themselves look amazing, even at high speeds when you may only see a blur travelling by you.  In addition to the look, the incredible techno that is played enriches the experience to an even higher level.

None of this would matter if it wasn’t fun, though.  Thankfully, the presentation matches the fun factor as the game is a blast to play.  There’s enough variety in off-line play to keep players going through each of the games events and the perfectionist will defiantly be trying to get gold medals on every race.  The most fun, however, is in the zone modes.  I found myself mad when I didn’t unlock more of those modes in the single-player campaign.  If you want gold medals on every race, like myself, you will find yourself playing for hours on end trying to turn a corner just a little tighter, or hitting a boost pad at just the right angle to send your car into a perfect straight-away. 

Online is functional and fun if you have enough experience.  Jumping right into the online mode, however, can be frustrating as new players will most likely stand little to no chance of winning.  If you can get past this initial learning curve, however, the game’s online features are just as well developed as its offline brethren.  The included trophy support also adds re-playability to this title.  Also, if you don’t like the soundtrack you can use custom soundtracks to make the experience sound the way you want it to.

Wipeout HD is an absolutely stunning package for anyone looking for a good racing game on the PS3.  This game is so good looking on a visual level, it may put you into a seizure (I wish that was a joke, but the game does have a seizure warning when you first load it up).  It’s a fun experience that can last you a long time and with the promise of future downloadable content, it’s hard to say that it’s not worth it.  I’m sure that given the opportunity, I would have gladly paid more that the low price of $20.  All of this combined makes this a great purchase for anyone on PSN. 

Final Score: A-

Comments (2)

Subscribe to this comment's feed

MoreNachos said:

... I agree. WOHD is awesome. WipEout is the best racing game out there. I have all the iterations and play the PSP versions a lot on business trips. Great game!! ...although, I would not have given it the "minus".

October 17, 2008

Addam Kearney said:

... The main reason I gave it the minus (I probably didn't make it as clear as I should have) is that I would have liked to see original tracks. While they look amazing, I would have liked to have some real original tracks. I'm sure there will be some in DLC form, but I would have liked just one or two originals. Honestly, though, it's the only problem I had with it.

October 17, 2008