R4: Ridge Racer Type 4

aka: Ridge Racer 4, Ridge Racer Type 4
Moby ID: 3701
PlayStation Specs
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Description official descriptions

Developed exclusively for the Sony Playstation, this fourth title in the Ridge Racer series features new visuals, powered by goraud-shaded polygons, giving each car and track a more refined appearance, while keeping the same arcade gameplay popularized by the first game of the series.

While it includes the usual time attack and a new split-screen versus mode, the focus of the game is the Real Racing Roots '99, Ridge City's three heat, seven race championship, with the grand finale in a speedway during New Year's Eve.

The player starts by choosing one of the four teams available (from easiest to harder): Micro Mouse Mappy, directed by the lovely Sophie Chevalier who hopes to win the first title in many years for the French team to honour her ill grandfather, Pac Racing Team, a recently created Japanese team directed by Shinji Yazaki who expects to create an immediate splash in the Ridge City racing scene, from Italy the RRR champions Racing Team Solvalou, with the demanding Enki Gilbert at the helm, and the American team Dig Racing Team, who has fallen into financial difficulties, with team director Robert Chrisman struggling to provide the driver with a car capable of out-handling opponents.

After picking a team, the player can choose one of the four car makers available: Lizard and Assoluto keep the old RR tradition of cars drifting wildly on corners, but Age Solo and Terrazi offer a new experience with their "Grip" cars that require more breaking and careful trajectories, but are easier to control during turns.

The player earns (and so, unlocks for free play) cars by completing races; however, final placement defines how good the car will be. By scraping through the first two heats (the Final GP accepts nothing but a victory), sponsors will be unwilling to invest in the team and instead of a new car, the mechanics will only upgrade the current vehicle. But winning all races allows the driver to reach the Shooting Hoops speedway with the fastest car. By combining all qualifying placements, 320 cars are waiting to be unlocked.

R4 Ridge Racer Type 4 also includes an extra disk, featuring the original Ridge Racer in higher resolution. For a time, the game was also sold as a bundle along Namco's innovative Jogcon controller.

Spellings

  • 山脊赛车4 - Chinese spelling (simplified)

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Credits (PlayStation version)

125 People (84 developers, 41 thanks) · View all

Reviews

Critics

Average score: 88% (based on 21 ratings)

Players

Average score: 4.0 out of 5 (based on 45 ratings with 1 reviews)

Makes Gran Turismo look like Grandpa Trashismo!

The Good
The beginning intro, some of the finest computer animation outside of Pixar TO THIS DAY, is powerful. It sucks you into a world that really has nothing to do with the game, but is powerful nonetheless. The graphics here really put to shame many, many, many intros to many, many, many other games. Reiko is too perfect . . . and that's scary! Then there's the lighting on the tracks and cars. Night looks like night. Day looks like day. Dusk looks like dusk. Morning looks like morning. Why I feel this is the most realistic game to date (outside of EA Sports and Sega's original Dreamcast sports line) is the shading and the 30 FPS video. It really helps. Hey, I've played Ridge Racers that have come after, but the 60 FPS looks fake. 30 FPS and the PERFECT lighting is breaktaking. It really adds atmoshpere to this game. Then, for the ladies, is the soap opera element during Grand Prix mode. It's rewarding to get praised from a coach, and downright bummer when yelled by one. Earn news cars and such. R4 is, perhaps, the first modern Ridge Racer game, like how FIFA 98 was the first modern FIFA game. The music will also blow you away, with real tunes that are real tunes. Use PSMplay and extract that music for your listening enjoyment! While you're using PSMplay, extract that opening intro, too! The ending is mild salsa, if you know what I mean. The cars just drive into formation of the logo (R4). Whoop-dee-[CENSORED]-do. The credits are more impressive. There's 321 cars, some from WipeOut series from Psygnosis, so enjoy. I also used the JogCon controller. Yeah, stick to the regular controller. Lastly, the Pac-Man car. Earn it. It's funny.

The Bad
As with all Ridge Racers, the cars are 100% fake. Some real cars would be nice, for a change. And the WipeOut hovercrafts are out of place (these cars also appear in Ridge Racer 64 for some reason, too). Not enough FMV cinemas (that's a first for me, because I hate FMV cinemas), and not enough Reiko. I also feel that the coaches could've been rendered better. Also, the graphics are in PlayStation's low-res mode (I suppose to save RAM or something), but as a player, I could care less if the machine can do it or not, I would've like it if the game was in high-res, like Ehergeiz or FIFA 99 were. Even Tekken 3 was high-res, so what's the deal here? I did do improvements outside of the regular PlayStation machine (like playing it in a PS2, PS3, emulators on Mac and Windows, prototype of bleem! on Dreamcast, old bleem! and VGS on Mac and Windows . . . no improvement) and the graphics are still low-res. I think Namco did it so save space. Forget that! I say make the disc on 2 to 4 99 minutes or 120 minute CDs and give us a treat! Graphically, that is. You see, sports games have to look real and sound real and feel real. Mario, Sonic and the Kombatants don't need to. It's a shame. Lastly, the drift controls are terrible. Not as bad as Goof Twitchismo from Sony, but not as easy to learn, either. Daytona USA on Saturn, Windows and arcade has the best control of any racing game, followed by those goofs in the Cruis'n series from Nintendo. Drift cars just don't cut it if a person isn't willing to learn.

The Bottom Line
Gran Turismo too fast too furious for you? Step into the ring with Sega CD. Whoops! Wrong game! (That was for Prize Fighter.) Get this game. It's a masterpiece, despite it's shortcomings. Besides, Reiko's in it.

PlayStation · by Fake Spam (85) · 2007

Trivia

1001 Video Games

The PS1 version of R4: Ridge Racer Type 4 appears in the book 1001 Video Games You Must Play Before You Die by General Editor Tony Mott.

Demo Disc

The game was shipped with a demo disc containing the Ridge Racer Hi-Spec demo.

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Contributors to this Entry

Game added by Matthew Bailey.

PSP, PlayStation 3 added by Charly2.0. PS Vita added by GTramp. Android added by CrankyStorming.

Additional contributors: Unicorn Lynx, karttu, Dae, DreinIX, FatherJack.

Game added April 5, 2001. Last modified February 13, 2024.