The first thing that hits you about Ridge Racer 5, is the very blocky edges to all polygon objects. It appears that the Playstation 2 has problems with anti-aliasing, and does affect the overall polish to games. Once you do overlook this ‘problem’ though, there are many other aspects which are excellent. The reflections on the cars are one such example.

The overall game structure is very similar to Ridge Racer Revolution and the Nintendo 64 version. This means that you basically race around sets of tracks, vying for first place which will then give you the opportunity to earn new cars. Although this means that there is very little depth, it does provide some simple yet very playable fun. 

The cars are all new, with some loosely based on previous models. All are beautifully modeled, but suffer slightly from blocky textures. They all have smooth curves, reflective surfaces and even brake discs which can be seen glowing during races. Let’s have some toy versions please Namco! They all control like Ridge Racer cars, but some do have a little more depth to their control. They are all spot-on though. If you crash or hit the scenery, then it’s your own fault, and not a control issue. It feels like a heavier version of the first Ridge Racer, but improves on it significantly.

The tracks are pretty much perfect. All are based around the same set of roads, with new routes open in each. The very first Ridge Racer track is back, looking better than ever, but unfortunately doesn’t have the nice waterfalls from the Nintendo 64 version. All other tracks are new, and all feel different enough to one another to avoid the problems with the previous games in the series. Also, very rarely, if ever, there are any annoying parts to the tracks. Revolution and Rage Racer had some annoying parts, meaning that you would collide with walls even if you were an expert driver. The tracks are now wider, and allow for a greater drifting and overtaking distance. Some do suffer slightly from pop-up, but is very distant and infrequent. A big problem lies in the 2 player split screen mode. The frame rate is as high as the 1 player game, but unfortunately, all the tracks are shrouded in thick fog to minimize draw distance. This really shouldn't be the case these days, and makes the game look very un-professional. As usual, many large buildings surround the tracks, some even having others behind them which can only be seen in replays. The windows on these buildings are nearly always reflective, with the reflections moving as you drive past them. This looks very nice, and although it probably isn't a 'true' reflection, it does stand out as a good effect. Also, especially in replays, the horizon and distant elements of the track are left out of focus until you are near them. This could be argued that it is done to keep up the frame rate (which I'm sure it isn't), it looks very realistic, and is great to see the track slowly blurring off into the distance. Pity the entire game is very 'grey' looking though.

Music has a similar feel to the previous games, but offers a wider style to choose from. Nearly all are listenable tunes, and rarely grate. Sound effects, too, are right, with nice powerful sounding engines and suitable tyre screeching. The announcer does get a little annoying, but adds comedy value by unintentionally pronouncing the words ‘Rookie’ and ‘Comfort’ wrongly.

Thankfully, there is no FMV intro. Actually, there is no FMV in the entire game. This should be the case with all games now on the Playstation 2 and Dreamcast, as they are both powerful machines, which can impress far more when rendering cut-scenes on the fly. The new Ridge Racer 'girl' is only seen in the introduction, and looks very good. She isn't up there with Shenmue quality, but she does look excellent and far better modeled than the Tekken Tag cast.

The lastability of the game is in question, with the game being pretty easy to finish, and the bonus cars being almost unusable yet very fast. There is no way to have a quick race on a track of your choice either. If you want to race against computer opponents, then you have to start a championship which always contains a pre-defined set of races. This affects the game by loosing it’s arcadey feel, but doesn’t give it a simulation feel either. It’s somewhere in between and destroys any scope for a quick play. You can build up your collection of cars by going through the game with all available vehicles, but that’s as deep as it gets I’m afraid. The 99 Lap Race which is unlocked near the end, is quite novel, but takes approximately 1 hour and 40 minutes to finish, and can be hard to gain first place! Finishing in first gives you nothing, except a trophy which makes the whole act feel pointless. Another addition is the Pac Man Mode, which has you racing a car driven by Pac Man, with all opponents being ghosts on scooters! A nice extra, but one that takes far too long to earn. You must accumulate 3000km of racing (1 lap equals about 5km), but finishing the entire game will leave you with about 2000km. This means you must gain another 1000km by just playing the same old bits, working out at about 200 laps just for a gimmick! Very stupid.