Redout: Solar Challenge Edition

I'm usually not a big fan of racing games, but throw SciFi in the mix and you got me! F-Zero, Extreme-G, Wipeout - I loved them dearly, and RedOut is scratching the same itch. And it's a really good one. An extremely fast racer with many unique roller coaster-like tracks spanning countless events, a plethora of different ships, all coming with their own stats, upgrades, passive and active devices you can install and - cherry on top - customizable paint jobs. I have currently invested about 13 hours in the game and only gotten through about half of the events the game offers. There's really a lot of them and they encourage you to master each track and the ship you're driving. And that is a challenging, yet rewarding process. Despite the speeds in "supersonic" range, you won't find yourself in the gutter all the time. The controls are tight, responsive and the strafing and pitch controls are a great addition to the genre allowing you to optimize your driving to a point - again, a challenging but rewarding process. Last but not least, the game looks fantastic. It's detailed, sometimes to a point where I misjudge the confines of the road, but still - absolutely beautiful. And it seems really well optimized, hitting 144FPS on a 1440p monitor without breaking a sweat. As I already hinted, if you like games such as F-Zero, WipeOut, Extreme-G, you will LOVE RedOut.

Remember Wipeout? Heavily influenced by the Wipeout series, this is the nearest you will get to a new Wipeout game. Tracks are varied and fun, controls are fluid, ships are distinct enough and the music and sfx fit perfectly. The only real omission that I noticed is that of varied weaponry; there are 'weapon' mods, along with passive abilities, but they are heavily geared towards racing - better grip, higher speed, more durable, etc. - as opposed to the rockets and mines that used to feature in games like this. For many people this won't be an issue, for me however, it just feels like something is missing. I can easily ignore the higher emphasis on racing over combat - this is a racing game after all - but the real kicker is the controls. You can change the keyboard layout, but not specific keys, so you will need to get used to racing with cramped hands as it's wasd for turning, accelerating and braking (WHY?!), arrow keys for tilt/slide, shift for boost and space for your 'weapon'. More than two races leave my hands horribly cramped (and I have small hands) and I can't play any further. So what about controller support? Well apparently this game used to support controllers - indeed in the options menu in tells you to connect a controller for two player mode - however it no longer does. I have tried EVERYTHING but the game refuses to acknowledge any attached controllers and, as such, the painful keyboard controls are currently the only option. This is a fantastic throwback to the Wipeout games but, unless you can tolerate your hands in uncomfortable position for periods of time, I find it very hard to recommend this game. It desperately needs controller support re-added for it to be enjoyable.

Every now and then a game comes along that NAILs all the features you'd expect of the genre so hard that you cannot even fathom why this has not happened earlier. The combination of the epic and rythmic music, sometimes tailored to the track experience with dynamic samples. The slick and ridiculously un-demanding visuals that bombard you with high fidelity light-effects while keeping the game super-fluid and fast. (i love that low poly-count aesthetic) The controls that combine the traditional with an additional touch of flight-controls to make you feel more in control, even if you just missed your turn. The track-design, varied and interesting, yet always readable enough to make your first experience with each track at least a mild success. Did i mention the speed? This is what ludicrous speed feels like. other reviews have mentioned the issues with the multiplayer. I would add an issue with not recognizing game controllers. (got 4 different ones, none are supported) Here is hoping this is not a one hit-wonder and keeps the highspeed futuristic hover-racer alive in the coming years.

When big publishers drop the ball, indie devs come to pick it up. The game features a large amount of tracks that curve, twist, and spin through many different environments ranging from the desert, open space, and many more up to alien planets. Even more, the environments themselves are divided into different settings that can even feature some kind of transition from one to another as you race thorough. There aren't as many racers as in F-Zero or Wipeout, but there are still a good amount, each with its own different stats and designs, which give a unique take on the idea of futuristic racing for eachone. Sometimes even referencing other sci-fi works such as Star Wars, or Wipeout and F-Zero themselves as may be the case. While the racers can use upgrades like speed boosters and harder hulls, it also feels like only two or three of these are really useful, while everything else is either very situational or outright pointless. The racers control good enough for the most, and while this is no Wipeout or F-Zero, it does require some pratice to get used to the game physics, but it sure doesen't feel too hard to learn. The game also has a large (maybe even too large, IMO) Campaign mode, featuring events such as traditional races against opponents or time attack, and special ones like Score, Arena, Speed, and many more. To me, this game only has two real issues. The first being the inconsistent difficulty of the campaign events, which wildly fluctuates between either too easy or too difficult with no in-betweens (this also due to the opponents AI seemingly either too good or too inept). The second, some of the tracks having some really confusing designs, to the point that sometimes is impossible to understand when there is going to be a curve, or worse, a jump (jumps are really bad in this game too). Overall, this is a great game for all the sci-fi racers fans. I gave it a 4 stars, but consider my vote a 4.5, not perfect but nearly so.

I like the game and it is a blast to play in the VR. I have the Oculus Rift. Here is how to play the VR version. For Oculus you need these instructions. This will NOT work > "E:\GOG\Redout\redout.exe -vr" This will work > "E:\GOG\Redout\redout.exe" -vr Just edit your desktop shortcut and add the -vr after the " Once you are in the game you will get a warning about seizures. Click your mouse on the screen and hit SpaceBar or Enter. It will then launch. Harry