Ridge Racer was once a staple arcade racing series. And yet, aside from a handful of negligible mobile entries, the series has been dormant for 13 years. However, leaked footage seemingly shows that a new entry nearly made it to Nintendo Switch.
Ridge Racer 8 was reportedly in development as a Switch exclusive but before it was cancelled. Although it was never officially announced, the leaked footage gives us an idea of how the unreleased Switch entry would have looked and played.
The footage is reportedly taken from a build discovered on a development kit, which also contained old Splatoon 2 debug builds, Rime and several other unreleased titles, including Lego Civilisation and a new Retro Studios game called Project Harmony.
Bandai Namco Studios Singapore was reportedly developing the unreleased Ridge Racer game on Unreal Engine 4. Although it was never officially announced, the leaked build apparently dates back to January 2017.
Assets shown in the footage appear to be taken from the PSP and Vita Ridge Racer entries. A video shared on YouTube shows the blue and white Kamata SYNCi from the 2011 Vita title racing with three AI opponents on a new coastal track called Eastside Grand Prix.
First introduced in the 2005 PSP entry, the three-tier nitro system carries over, as does slipstreaming from Ridge Racer V. The game’s title is not shown, with the menu text simply saying, “welcome to Ridge Racer.”
Another video even reveals the full car list along with the main menu screen showing campaign, single event, boss duel, quick race and time trial game modes. Judging from the crude car handling and visual pop-in, it appears to be from an unfinished build. The Switch console can also be seen in the controls menu.
It looks like an unfinished build, judging from the rudimentary car physics, low-resolution textures and glaring pop-in. We can also hear the Disco Ball music track from the PSP game and a rather unenthusiastic race announcer, which is presumably a placeholder.
Rumours of Ridge Racer 8 drifting onto Nintendo Switch date back to 2018 when Bandai Namco Singapore Studios’ Shawn Pitman listed it on his Linkedin page as a project in development. Since then, Ridge Racer 8 was reportedly canned, and his profile was updated to say he worked on “an unannounced racing game.”
The last mainline entry in the arcade racing series was 2012’s Ridge Racer Unbounded, developed by Wreckfest’s Bugbear Games. It was a divisive entry, mixing car combat and environmental destruction with traditional drift racing. Sadly, Bandai Namco has shown no signs of reviving the franchise, despite fans clamouring for Ridge Racer to return.
Incidentally, the original Ridge Racer is being ported to the Nintendo Switch 2 in June, though it’s being handled by Hamster Corporation instead of Namco. Notably, it will be the first time the original arcade game has had a home release since it hit arcades in 1993.
Are you disappointed that Ridge Racer 8 was cancelled for Nintnedo Switch? Let us know in the comments below.
Chat with the Community
Sign Up To CommentIt's completely Free