Star Wars Episode I: Racer (PS4/NSW) - May 12, 2020

[6souls]

Ported by Aspyr

Spoiler: show

Now this is podracing.

The ’90s classic Star Wars Episode I: Racer is coming to Nintendo Switch and PlayStation 4 complete with modernized controls, Lucasfilm and developer Aspyr announced today. A beloved racing title based on the podracing sequence from Star Wars: The Phantom Menace, Star Wars Episode I: Racer puts you behind the controls of your favorite podracers as you speed through flaming methane lakes, Tusken Raider assaults, anti-gravity tunnels, and much more in a pulse-pounding, do-or-die fight to the finish line. Features include:

• 25 playable racers including: Anakin Skywalker, Sebulba, and Ratts Tyerell
• Race tracks spanning 8 unique worlds including: Tatooine, Baroonda, and Malastare
• Work with pit droids to upgrade your podracer for higher top speeds and acceleration
• Discover short-cuts and secrets to master your lap times
• Split-screen multiplayer (Nintendo Switch and PlayStation 4) and LAN multiplayer (Nintendo Switch)

https://www.starwars.com/news/the-cl...switch-and-ps4
https://www.aspyr.com/

StarWars.com: Star Wars Episode I: Racer is really fondly remembered. What do you think is the legacy of that game?

James Vicari: Legacy is an interesting thing to try and talk about. There’s like the pure metrics aspect, right? It’s one of the bestselling racing games of all time. At some level that means something, but it’s not the thing that makes people talk about a game 20 years later. That’s an intangible. And with Racer, I think its legacy is a very specific feeling of joy. When we announced it within the company, it was crazy how many faces lit up. Once we had it up and running, people from every department kept dropping in to check it out. If you’ve played it, you know. There’s just something about being in one of the coolest scenes from a Star Wars movie.

StarWars.com: Why is reintroducing Racer important to Aspyr?

James Vicari: Honestly, because good games should never be forgotten and great games deserve to be revisited as much as possible. I think Racer, like Jedi Academy and Jedi Outcast before it, has two crucial qualities: it’s a great game and it has emotional resonance. Those are very important to us. We really believe in reuniting fans with something they cherished, or connecting a new audience with something they may have missed.

StarWars.com: What can you tell us about the modernized controls you’ve developed?

James Vicari: Racer originally came out in an interesting time for controllers. We were really starting to see interesting things — rumble, multiple analog sticks. Even the shape of the N64 controller. So it’s sort of fitting that when you look at controls today, we’re seeing the same thing. Like the Switch Joy-Cons. You really want to make sure that the game plays well and embraces as much of the variations as possible for them. So we’ve done a lot of work to make sure that the game feels comfortable in all configurations, including playing with each individual Joy-Con. The team here is a big believer that the best control scheme is the one you don’t ever think about and that philosophy really permeates everything we’ve done with the controls.

StarWars.com: It’s also really exciting to have this game on Switch, since Racer debuted on a Nintendo console. “The circle is complete,” in other words.

James Vicari: It’s super exciting. For many gamers, the Nintendo 64 was their first console and Episode I was their first Star Wars, which puts Racer in a very special place. And where before they may have been playing with their friends, now they can play it with their kids, their families. You know, Nintendo and Star Wars are really a generational experience and we’re incredibly grateful for the opportunity to be part of that circle.

StarWars.com: What are your hopes for players experiencing Racer for the first time?

James Vicari: We set some pretty high standards here. Bare minimum, we want them to love it and to question why they are just now playing it for the first time. But our absolute “we know we’ve nailed it” hope? We want players speeding around the Grabvine Gateway on Baroonda to forget that they’re on their couch, holding controllers in their hand, and instead feel like they’re in their own racer, fighting against Sebulba and the rest for that finish line. And we want them to exclaim “Yoka to Bantha poodoo” as they clear it.

https://www.starwars.com/news/star-w...acer-interview

[Cail]

Oh snap

[Kaisha]

Am guessing this is based on the Dreamcast release, since the PC port didn't have splitscreen, but this version also lacks online (which PC had). Would it have killed them to touch up the UI at the least? Anyhoo, I played this a couple years ago using my flight stick, and the game is still fantastic, minus being short, so I'm not against the game getting some love again. Maybe we'll get lucky and a new one comes out.

Spoiler: show

Racer's Revenge was kinda 'eh in comparison.

[Karbuncle]

Will have to see how much it costs TBH, unless I'm missing it. It was a fun game, price will make or break it considering its not even an HD upgrade or something.

[6souls]

https://blog.us.playstation.com/2020...ts-ps4-may-12/

Features on the PS4 version are slightly different.

• We uprezzed all of the FMV sequences in the game. Output resolutions have massively changed in the past 20 years, as have file size restrictions. This allowed us to natively re-export everything into greatly increased resolutions that will look better than ever on your 4K TV. Despite the age of the original models, these cutscenes look stunning and will take you back to seeing the track on Tatooine for the first time in 1999.
• We re-mapped all of the controls to feel right for DualShock 4. This might sound trivial, but to really feel like you’re piloting a Podracer takes a very special touch. The controls that captured the thrill of Podracing in 1999 simply don’t feel as natural on the modern controller, but our team was dedicated to creating the ultimate Podracing experience. You can expect controls that feel natural and modern.
• Trophy hunters will be happy to hear that we’ve added Trophies. You’ll even be able to prove you’re the ultimate Podracing champion with a Platinum trophy!

Aspyr also ported Jedi Outcast & Jedi Academy.

[6souls]

Will have to see how much it costs TBH

https://www.engadget.com/star-wars-r...150056535.html

$15