30 years of PlayStation and it never got better than Ridge Racer Readers FeatureGameCentralPublished December 7, 2024 9:00am The PS1s most important launch game (Bandai Namco)A reader shares his fond memories of playing Ridge Racer on the original PlayStation and explains why it was so influential on the rest of his gaming life.I have enjoyed all the discussion of PlayStations 30 years in the business over the last week or so and after feeling so pessimistic about Sony for so long its been nice to feel warm and fuzzy about them again. Theyve even had a good marketing campaign for it, with the kids through the ages unwrapping their presents, which adds to the cosy feelings.The original PlayStation was my first console when I was 12. Before that Id just played on a friends Mega Drive and anothers Amiga, but Id never owned either myself. Therere no embarrassing photos of me in my pyjamas, ripping the wrapping paper off as if my life depended on it, but I was definitely super excited. Especially as I knew it came with a top notch game: Ridge Racer.Or at least Id heard it was top notch. Unlike GC, I had never seen it in arcades as, in my experience, it was actually quite a rare coin-op and so all I knew is that it was a racing game where the graphics looked completely real. That seems laughable when you look at it nowadays and yet I still think theres an elegant simplicity to it that matches the equally simple but still very fun gameplay.People talk about the moment they first saw Super Mario 64 as a milestone event, a switch from 2D to 3D that has never been matched again. But I missed out on that too. I didnt know anyone that had a N64 and I never saw the game until years after it first came out and it was no longer a groundbreaker.For me, that special moment of realisation, where I felt the gaming world morph from 2D to 3D, happened right there in Ridge Racer on the PS1. It may have had only one track, but I dont know how many hundreds of hours I happily put into it, trying to unlock everything, get better times, and do weird things like hit the helicopter.I still feel the game looks good today and seeing it in action it makes me feel nostalgic in a way I rarely ever am usually, about games or anything else. Ive joked before that the PlayStation has never got better for me since then and obviously thats not really true there have been plenty of better games on each PlayStation console.But in terms of that magic feeling, that sense that a new age has come and you are right there at the start of it nothing has ever beaten that. I understand it was the same for Super Mario 64 players and its sad that improvements in graphics have now slowed to almost a stop, so its never likely that feeling will be repeated.That doesnt mean we cant be wowed by graphics anymore, as there are tons of amazing looking games every year, but its never the same quantum leap as it was with the first PlayStation and Ridge Racer. VR is the closest thing but while I dont own a headset I have played them before and while the effect is impressive all the games still seem like tech demos to me.More TrendingI suppose you could argue that Ridge Racer was as well, to at least some degree, but for me it will always be my fondest memory of the original PlayStation and the most influential game when it comes to my love of gaming.By reader DaleL Wow, what a start! This is just what I wanted to see (Bandai Namco)The readers features do not necessarily represent the views of GameCentral or Metro.You can submit your own 500 to 600-word reader feature at any time, which if used will be published in the next appropriate weekend slot. Just contact us at gamecentral@metro.co.uk or use our Submit Stuff page and you wont need to send an email.GameCentralExclusive analysis, latest releases, and bonus community content.This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. Your information will be used in line with our Privacy Policy