WipEout Pulse (PSP)

Sony's latest futuristic racer is every bit as good as its predecessor, and then some.
2/26/2008 12:00 AM | 0 Comments | Page 1 of 3

WipEout Pulse is a game that doesn't try to fix what isn't broken. This is to say that it takes the formula laid down by its futuristic racing forebears, tweaks it ever so slightly, and wraps it in a package of new features over which any fan of WipEout is sure to salivate. Customizable ship skins, custom soundtrack features, a new open-ended single-player progression and full online play features are the highlights of the aforementioned package, and they're more than enough to make Pulse a worthy purchase for almost any PSP owner.

Fans of WipEout Pure for the PSP won't have much trouble jumping into this sequel. Pulse features precisely the same brand of tough yet exciting futuristic racing as the earlier entries in the WipEout series. Races play out like a combination of F-Zero and Mario Kart, with lightning-quick ships zooming around highly dangerous tracks, all while launching various weapons of varying degrees of obliterative power at one another. Machine guns, missiles, bombs, speed boosts, shields, shurikens, quakes ... they're all at your disposal and a blast to use.

Using your weapons carefully and navigating each track's twists and turns are paramount to success. One accidental bump against the railing or a missed boost pad often spells the difference between victory and defeat. Fortunately, the controls are tight enough to make the precise turns and movements required with minimal frustration, though your opponents are bound to cause a bit of that.

Artificial-intelligence-controlled opponents are relentless, coming at you time and time again with tough driving that's guaranteed to keep you gripping your PSP with white-knuckled tension. On the plus side, the AI challenge never comes across as needlessly cheesy. If you get a big lead and manage to drive well for the rest of the race, opponents won't just randomly catch up with you, but the second you slip up, they'll be there ready to overtake.

One thing that has changed rather radically in Pulse is the progression of the single-player mode. Gone is the linear progression of old, and in its place is a grid-based methodology that provides you with a variety of events from which to choose. The system is tiered, and as you earn points in each tier (medals won in races earn points), you unlock new tiers.

Each tier offers a variety of events, from standard races to time trials, speed laps, elimination races and zone races. The latter of those two are arguably the best action the game has to offer, though both also bear a bit of explanation. Elimination races are purely combat-oriented affairs, where you and opponent drivers simply work toward a set number of destroyed ships as you race around the track. Zone races put you in an ever-accelerating ship, one that won't stop until it has run out of shield power and explodes. As you race, you're working your way through set zones, which are essentially 10-second periods. Your goal is to clear a set number of zones before you inevitably 'splode.

If there's any real flaw with WipEout Pulse, it's that given how lengthy its single-player mode is, it doesn't have a great deal of variety. Ships are suitably varied, but there simply aren't enough tracks, with only 12 (each with a reversible version of itself) available, and given the number of grids through which you'll have to play, the repetition does start to wear thin.