BugBear Entertainment News, BugBear Entertainment Features

Destruction derby

Finnish developer Bugbear Entertainment is working on a brand new collision-heavy car game which promises to plot a return to the studio’s roots. The team most recently worked on Ridge Racer: Unbounded, but is perhaps best known for the first two FlatOut titles on PlayStation 2. The title – currently dubbed ‘Next Car Game’...

Developer Bugbear is almost ready to release its controversial Ridge Racer reboot, Ridge Racer: Unbounded

The surprisingly destructive arcade racer has been steered towards a release date of March 6th by publisher Namco Bandai. We know fans have got some concerns with the game's Burnout inspired edges, but having spent some hands-on time with the game recently, we think it's going to surprise some..

It's certainly a unique sight: a demo kiosk labelled with the Ridge Racer name, showing vehicles smashing through stone pillars and crashing into each other

Regardless of whether Ridge Racer Unbounded turns out to be the best racing game ever conceived, Namco's got its work cut-out convincing long-time fans that a more destructive racer is what they want. It's a catch-22 really. If it dares to..

Don't tell long-term fans of the series, but we think Ridge Racer Unbounded looks kinda cool

As we've already established, it does not look like a Ridge Racer game in the slightest, but as a Burnout-hybrid, we reckon developer BugBear's got things nailed. The gameplay crux is thus: you fill your power meter by drifting. This can then be used to open up new pathways and shortcuts, similarly to in..

Given how hard Sony's pushed user-generated content over the past three years, it's surprising so few other publishers have followed their lead

When thinking about non-Sony games that have done user-generated content well, it's tough to come up with anything. But Namco and BugBear's upcoming Ridge Racer rethink, Unbounded, at least adopts some of the user-generated philosophy. A new create mode..

Amongst the seductive narrative, wobbly bass-lines and crunching metal, there's the shocking realisation that Ridge Racer: Unbounded is a game with "Ridge Racer" in the title

While we applaud the attempt at trying something new, we can't help but feel this isn't the series Kaz Hirai went gaga for at E3 all those years ago. </em>

Picture the scene: you're in a hot pursuit against an equally powered super-car

You've taken a turn into an alleyway and are still haven't managed to shake your pursuer. There's a wall dead ahead, with no other exit. Do you: a) hit the handbrake and slide into a perfect u-turn ready to boost out of the alley, or; b) drive through the wall in front of you? Yup, we'd go for option B too. Ridge Racer..