14 DAY TRIAL // Namco Bandai Games America, as the publisher, and Bugbear Entertainment, as the developer, have announced that they are working on Ridge Racer: Unbounded, a new racing title that will be launched on the PC, the PlayStation 3 from Sony and the Xbox 360 from Microsoft.
This is the first new release in the well-known franchise since Ridge Racer 7 was launched at the same time as the PS3 came out, and it’s the first time that the Japanese franchise has been entrusted to a development team that is based in the West, more precisely in Helsinki.
Bugbear has some experience with more arcade-racing offerings, having worked on both FlatOut for Empire Interactive and on the PlayStation Portable port of the 2007 edition of Sega Rally.
Some Japanese publishers have chosen to take some of their most important intellectual properties out of Japan and link them with Western developers in an effort to create games that have a wider appeal.
The Namco Bandai announcement talks about adding a “punishing dose of destruction” to the Ridge Racer franchise, with initial information pointing to something similar to what developer Criterion has been doing with its Burnout franchise.
Ridge Racer has always been an arcade racer where real world physics and handling are less important than adrenaline spikes delivered via tight corners, but an emphasis on destruction and taking out rival racers is something new to the franchise.
Carlson Choi, who is the vice president of marketing for Namco Bandai Games America, has stated when the announcement was made that, “Ridge Racer injects a shot of adrenaline into one of the most revered racing franchises in video game history.”
He added, “The talented Bugbear development team is committed to crafting a game with the amazing attention to detail the Ridge Racer series is known for, while also delivering a destructive game, fans old and new will appreciate.”
The full debut trailer can be downloaded from Softpedia.