There are many types of racing games; realistic, simulator, arcade, cart and others. But one of my favorites is the dizzying speed of futuristic hovercraft racing, like Wipe Out and F-Zero. Redout came out years ago and was pretty well received. This year, Redout 2 arrived with crisp graphics, some new features, and a solid soundtrack. While it’s not groundbreaking or top notch, it’s still a lot of fun.
At the first launch of the game, the tutorial showing the basics and new elements introduced by Redout 2 compared to other similar racing games. After that introduction, there’s a fairly simple campaign, some multiplayer modes, an arcade mode, and a stopwatch. All of the modes are quite challenging and force players to focus and use the new mechanics. Redout 2 definitely has a steep learning curve, the new mechanics are impactful and can affect winning or losing a race far more than most people would expect. But overall, players can tackle a very similar path to that offered by all racing games with a progressively difficult campaign and simple multiplayer modes. I want at least one more unique game mode that uses up and down the court mechanics or other stuff like that offered by Redout 2, but the game modes available now are fine.
As for actual racing, Redout 2 to doesn’t feel as tight as Wipe Out, but it’s still a lot of fun. The races are fast and the AI feels smarter in their running skills than generally faster than you, which is nice. The tracks look really great and help sell that sense of speed. However, I found some of the jumps inconsistent and at times unfairly difficult. I was able to play one or two games online, but it was hard to find players and it wasn’t very stable. I assume things will improve over time as they work on bugs. It was still relatively cool to play online, but the player base was pretty sparse during the week I was trying to play.
Redout 2 offers a really fun and risky experience that goes through very similar rhythms and goals to many games before it’s done. The actual ride works quite well, but lacks some polishing. If you are in love with racing games or want an introduction to this specific racing genre, Redout 2 can be quite fun. However, it won’t really offer anything new except for a few small game variations, and it can take a bit of dedication and time to dive into what the game is really about.
by Daniele Nero
Source: Geek Tyrant
