Ridge Racer 6

It’s honestly quite hard to recommend the game over the likes of PGR3 or NFS: MW, but RR6 still does some things right and provides a reasonably good online experience for a good amount of racers at once.

A solid arcade racer; perhaps the best that has been released on a console. But only you will know for sure if $60 is a worthy asking price for such a simple game.

Ridge Racer 6 is recommended for nuance-loving race fans. With the amount of fore-thought and planning required to win, casual fans are likely to frustrated.

This is old school arcade racing right down to the shiny looking graphics. After playing "Need for Speed Most Wanted," I missed the obstacles such as oncoming traffic and hidden shortcuts.

Anyone buying a Ridge Racer game knows exactly what they’re getting and won’t be disappointed with this shiny and seemingly unending racing bonanza. [Christmas 2005, p.129]

Namco debuts their flagship racer on the 360, wowing everyone with the fast arcade style racing it is famous for, except for a lag-plagued online play.

Like every Ridge Racer title, RR6 oozes that instant fun playability that attracts gamers of every skill to play a quick race or a marathon session.

RR6 is perhaps best thought of as a succulent appetiser, foretelling of the potential of what a full blown next-gen Ridge Racer game could be like if Namco truly set their minds to it. And for now, this is enough. Just.

While serious gear heads will hate the lack of customization and the sim freaks will scoff at the outrageous handling there is a certain charm that comes packed with RR6.

If you find that PGR3 is a little too rich in depth for you, or that you are more of a casual gamer or even just a fan of the series, then this game is for you and will serve you well. If you are more into realistic racers that replicate the excitement of the race, then my advice would be to steer well clear.

A fine, glossy racing game. [Issue #3]

Definitely worth a purchase for arcade racing devotees and Ridge Racer fanatics.

For what RR6 is trying to do, it succeeds -- it's just not trying to do too much.

Ridge Racer 6's graphics may be pure 360 shininess, but the gameplay is from a generation ago... hell, two generations ago and that's generous.

If you take the game on it's own merits - as a fun arcade racer - you'll have a ball.

If you enjoy arcade-like vehicle response, solid background music, and simplistic racing controls with heavy emphasis on air and abusive nitrous, then this title will meet all of your needs and more. If you're looking for something to replace "Forza" or "Gran Turismo," please look elsewhere.

Offers neither the palm-moistening, heart-racing action of a really great arcade racer, nor the challenge and satisfying controls of a decent simulation. It seems that Namco has seriously misjudged the level of challenge in the game.

Fans of simulation racers are going to crap a brick when they see this game: the physics are incredibly implausible. Arcade-racing fans will be more forgiving.

Even faulted, the gameplay grows on you, but you probably won’t have the patience or desire to let it get to that point.

The engine noises all sound way too similar from car to car. The race announcer is extremely annoying and way too hyper – your first order of business will likely be turning this voice off. The backing music is your standard techno fare.

Ridge Racer is just too basic when compared to the competition. Its fun for the first while, but it grows old quick.

It does feel more than a little cheesy when you're probably expecting it to be one of the early stars on Microsoft's wunderkind console. [Jan 2006, p.74]

RR6 lazily limps into the 360 debut party wearing last year's fashions. Seriously, this doesn't look any better than "Forza" (Xbox) or "Gran Turismo 4" (PS2).

Mediocre at best. If you’re trying to find a simple racer to appease someone who is confused with such daunting tasks as, say, reciting the alphabet, then Ridge Racer 6 might be what you’re looking for.

This is a sterile affair which, although adequate in every department, excels in none.

The jalopy of the group. Gamers who go gaga for drifting will still show up in droves, but the majority of you will be much better off with "Project Gotham 3's" melding of replay and realism or "Need For Speed: Most Wanted's" frantic cop chases and customization.

It has moments where it's genuinely fun, but these are too soon replaced by a sense of tedium as the "been there, done that" element comes to color later races.

Couple the ropey gameplay to the lousy load times, endless splash screens, mediocre graphics, repetitive nature of the sometimes awful levels (parts of the Vegas-esque one look like you’re driving through a giant lower intestine) and game mechanics straight out of 1996, and I’m afraid we have a real turkey here.

Building textures look noticeably low-res even at blurringly fast speeds, and the cars themselves fall short of models seen in "Forza." Borrowing levels from previous games, the game's stages fail to excite you.

The lack of car customisation options, the constrained three-lap race limit, the irritation of having to win each race in World Explorer to progress to the next, and the overly predictable format - even right down to the stereotypical announcer who hollers banalities at you while you race - smacks of by-numbers development. [Official UK Xbox Magazine]

In the end, Ridge Racer 6 isn’t a broken game in any sense, it’s just boring and I don’t care to play it.