R4 Ridge Racer Type 4

Released for the PlayStation at the end of 1998, Ridge Racer Type 4 is the fourth console entry of Namco's arcade racing series. Aside from being a further improvement from the already impressive Rage Racer, R4 also contains highly detailed conversations with various racing teams, a concept that would be taken to the next level with the later spinoff R: Racing Evolution.

PlayStation

PlayStation Network (PS3)

PlayStation Network (PSP)

Overview

Like Rage Racer, Ridge Racer Type 4 was only released for consoles and does not have an arcade version. It features 321 cars and 8 tracks, all of which are fictional. The game is one of the few on the PlayStation to use the intensive "Gouraud shading" for polygons, which gives objects a quality of visual depth that was rarely seen in gaming at the time. It also features, for the first time in the series history, a proper two-player split screen mode. Like previous Ridge Racer installments, Ridge Racer Type 4 featured two different driving models: 'drift' and 'grip' styles.

Ridge Racer Type 4 is the only Ridge Racer game to appear on Edge Magazine's 'Top 100 Games to Play Today', where it squeezed in at number one hundred. Its placement was due to it being "home to the series‭’ ‬finest tracks" as well as the aforementioned Gouraud shading. Its soundtrack and drift gameplay were also praised.

Gameplay

The main mode in the game is the "Grand Prix" mode. The player here takes on the role of an unnamed racing driver who challenges the game's fictional "Real Racing Roots '99" series.

This series is divided into three "stages": two qualifying races, two quarter-final races, then three semi-final races and a final race. Between these four segments, the player will either receive a brand new car or an upgrade to their current car, based on their performance across the races. In order to unlock all 321 cars featured in the game, the player will have to beat the Grand Prix mode with every combination of team, manufacturer, and qualifying position possible, plus knock out the Extra Trials that unlock after beating Grand Prix with each combination of team and manufacturer. This extreme replay value was unheard of in video games at all, let alone compared to other Ridge Racer titles in its time.

Like previous games, cars in the game have one of two disciplines of handling: "grip" driving has the player make tight turns almost like real driving, while the series famous "drift" driving tasks the player with executing sharp drifts around corners.

Car List

The *-marked cars at the bottom are the "supercars" obtained by completing Extra Trials. Pac-Man is a secret vehicle unlocked by obtaining the other 320 cars.

Assoluto	Lizard	Terrazi	Age Solo	Special
Promessa Bisonte Regalo Fatalita Rondine Cavaliere Infinito Aquila Estasi Squalo Vulcano*	Bonfire Detector Wisdom Officer Colleague Comrade Ignition Wisdom Tamer Cataract Reckless Nightmare*	Ambitious Troop Rumor Wildboar Capital Cowboy Starlight Decision Destroyer Utopia*	Prophetie Dirigeant Bataille Megere Dirigeant Bataille Megere Antilope Averse Licorne Espion Sorciere Supernova Ecureuil*	Pac-Man

Race Courses

Helter Skelter
Wonderhill (later included in Ridge Racer (PSP) as Diablo Canyon Road)
Edge of the Earth
Out of Blue
Phantomile
Brightest Nite
Heaven and Hell (later included in Ridge Racer (PSP) under the name Crimsonrock Pass)
Shooting Hoops