Riptide GP Renegade is a fast pace Hydro Jet racing game that makes me think a lot about games such as Wave Race and Jeto Moto,both of which are good games to be compared to.
In the game's story you star as an illegal hydro jet racer that is involved in a race against another friend/counter part, but things take a turn for the worst when the two would be racers are confronted by the police. In the twist of the story,you are betrayed and your opponent that you were just racing against turned you in to the cops and this was all a set up!
Two years after the arrest,you're finally released back out into the world, so what do you do? yep,you guessed it,back to illegal racing! But your journey has only begun from here and it is now your ultimate goal to make it back to the top of the illegal racing league once more.
Option Modes:
There are various modes to play and paths to take in Riptide. Some of them will bring you hours of fun,while others might feel a bit lacking,but thats ultimate up to you to decide as each players preference differ from another. The choices you have to choose from are as follows: Career/Quick Race/Online/SplitScreen 2-4 players
Career mode:
Career mode is where I feel most of the fun is going to be had in this game if you do not like freestyling or playing online against other people. There are multiple different styles of play during the career mode.
For instance you have your normal and standarized form of racing where you compete in races against 7 other CPU's to try to get first place to gain the most amount of money possible for future upgrades to your HydroJet.
You have also have an elimination style of race where you compete to stay ahead of anyone in last place. In this style of race you have a timer of exactly 15 seconds that does a countdown till it reaches 0 seconds and when that time comes,the racer that is in the very last spot of the race,gets eliminated. These races can make for some high adrenaline fueled moments due to countdown anxiety!
Time attack races are probably my least favorite part of the career mode. Its your standard race against time and you have steer your HydroJet and go to the left or the right of the markers set on the race track. It's not boring or bad, but after playing in the elimination style races,it can feel a tad underwhelming.
Money/Races/HydroJets/Skills:
One of the main objectives for this game is to get lots of money by getting a 3 star rating on your races,this can be obtained by coming in first place in your respective race. The amount you win depends on the the star rating you get, 1 star is the lowest amount and 3 star rating can can gain you over $1000 as a reward.
Make sure to save up a lot of money because the further you proceed in the game,the more racers(riders) and hydro jets you will earn and unlock,as well as upgrades towards any currently owned hydro jet that you have.
There is a total of 9 different riders that will be available to you in this game and a total of 10 different hydrojets you will be able to unlock the further you advance and the more money you earn from your races.
Skills can be learned a different intervals and vary according to your level. For instance you learn skills at level 1,2,5,10,15. With the starter level(1) you're able to acquire skills such as ''Bar Hop'',when this skill is purchased and owned,you will be able to hit any ramp or big wave and will be required to press both your joysticks in the upward position at the same time to perform a specific jump. Other skills act in a similar fashion,such as Front Flip or Superman,both of which have their own specific set of movements you have to perform.
Using these skills and tricks are essential for maintaining a good speed and advantage against your rival racers because for every time you complete a move it fills your speed and boost meter and when full it gives you hydro jet a good speed boost to stay ahead or close the gap on any racers. Say goodbye to those losers!
Paint/Decals/Upgrades:
You don't have to stick with your generic and dull hydrojet that you originally started off with. You may customize your hydrojet with paint and decals. Painting your hydrojet is pretty self explanatory,you get to choose three layers you want to change on your rider and your hydrojet, I chose to go with the three colors of purple,black and black because I like dark colors with purple.
For decals you have a wide variety of options to choose from,most of which have to be unlocked by completing career mode and there's a whopping 84 different decals to unlock and choose from!
Controls:
Controls are extremely responsive and performing skills and different moves on the ground or in the air is a piece of cake. Navigating your hydrojet around feels very satisfying, there's a perfect amount of weight to your Hydrojet that makes it feel very stiff and tight,which is always great for racers like this.
This harkins me back to the games of old such as Jeto Moto and Wave race. Games with tight feeling stiff controls that when racing on the water or hitting a ramp,the physics react to this and send you in a direction accordingly or spins you and moves you on a different path depending on how you're hitting the waves.
Environments/Tracks/Graphics:
No good racer would be complete without well designed tracks and environments to race on and here with Riptide GP:Renegade, it still remains the same. The tracks on this game have some variety, for instance one minute you can be racing along on a pretty standard straight forward racing track,but then the next track will cut off to a left or right fork in the road and you have to choose where to go and by choosing where you want to go will determine whether you will end up underground in a subway area or above ground hitting ramps and landing on top of walkways for pedestrians.
The subtle touches in the tracks and environments itself are what caught my eye the most. While you're doing some fast pace racing,if you happen to glance down at the water below you, you will see wild life and fish swimming in the water below you,its a small touch but definitely something I noticed.
Another subtle touch to the levels is the futuristic approach to it,as I mentioned before Riptide GP is a futuristic take on series like Jet Moto and Wave Race and staying true to this, the developers added flying ships and cars in the backdrops of the cities, something I really enjoyed and felt it was a very nice touch
The graphics in the game are definitely not the games strong point. But in my opinion,which may not be the popular one, it doesn't have to be. The game itself looks like something you'd see on an older gen console like a Wii U or 360 era and that fits it just fine. The games fun factor lies in its game play alone and the fast pace racing it provides, helps you overlook any or most of its shortcomings it has on the graphical side of it.
Overall thoughts:
Overall there's not much to say that I haven't already said. If you enjoyed and had fun with games like Jeto Moto and Wave Race then you will definitely enjoy this title. Despite its somewhat lackluster time attack moments and some minor graphical gripes I had, I still recommend this game to any Switch owner.
Riptide GP: Renegade is out now on Nintendo Switch/PS4/PC
Pros:
-Controls
-Fast paced
-Career Mode
-Elimination races
-No noticeable frame drops
Cons:
-Time attack mode
-Could've done more graphically
Or
8 out of 10
*Review code provided by Vector Unit
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