When Wipeout Pulse came out in mid-December 2007, it met with pretty hostile reception from gamers. The game limped on the UK PSP chart at number 20 and managed to number 15 since then. These are dangerous signals for Sony as the franchise helped launch the PlayStation and the PlayStation Portable in the West. Thankfully, the poor performance has not prevented Sony from coming up with a PlayStation Network version of the series. Wipeout HD as it’s called will contain tracks, music and ships from the previous games and top it off with 1080p graphics. The game contains 10 tracks in all, six of them from Wipeout Pure and two from Wipeout Pulse. Although the layouts remain the same, the increased processing power of the PS3 allows for plenty of visual enhancements. The PS3 also features a motion sensitive controller which is another reason to play the game. The franchise is no stranger to alien controller given that it was compatible with Namco’s neGcon controller back then. It was expected that the floating ships of Wipeout would be perfect fit for Sixaxis, well unfortunately it’s not the case, and the controller feels undefined and loose compared to conventional controls. Sixaxis control system is set to off by default but fans of the series may get a kick out of trying it.
Wipeout HD runs at a 60 fps and upto 1080p resolution which provides for some smooth and detailed visuals and a great atmosphere. Adverts for futuristic products and racing teams are more clearly visible and camera and background details have undergone a massive improvement. The vehicles have a rugged grimy look and the floating projection units merge to form a ghost once you set a lap record. The visual design is as sharp as you expect from the series, the menu system is a nice balance of clean lines and white spaces. As with the previous game, the campaign structure is split into several smaller events with race types such as Zone, Speed Lap, single Race and Time Trail within each category. Single Race tasks you to pick up weapons from the track and destroy your competition. All the weapons have been imported from previous games but are slightly modified, so the rocket now creates beautiful honeycombs explosions. The Speed Lap requires you to beat a record time, over the course of seven laps. The Zone mode isn’t new, but it has been revamped and looks much better. As you guide the craft through zones at ever-increasing speeds, the track changes color while billboards display visualizations for whatever music track you’re hearing. The game supports eight–player races in the final product, coupled with leaderboards that show best lap times. The only problem that was encountered was the occasional slowdowns when a lot of ships showed up on screen. A funny bug in the Chenghous Project track lets you complete a lap by crashing into a magical billboard. There still plenty of time for Sony to fix the glitches before it’s released on PlayStation Network sometime in the next three months and come up with a stunner of a game.
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