R: Racing Evolution Game Sample - GameCube
157Developed by Namco in 2003, "R: Racing Evolution" is a pretty cool departure from their usual "Ridge Racer" titles, emphasizing less on arcade-style gameplay and more on realistic "sim" racing, though the end result is neither one or the other but a strange hybrid, as it includes GT, Rally, and Drag racing with various mechanics and a little arcade-style flair. Also included are various gameplay modes, lots of movies and unlockables, an actual story mode of sorts, in-game radio communications, a pressure system (tracking opponents can increase their tension and make them screw up on the track), many options for tuning your cars, and authentic licensed cars and products/services. While released on GameCube, PS2 and Xbox, some copies of the GameCube version come bundled with "Pac-Man Vs."
The plot involves Rena Hayami, a Japanese ambulance driver who lives in a nondescript Western Country who is on a "routine job" one day as she rushes to save the life of a race driver from a "high-profile" team, GVI. The manager of the team, Stephan Garnier, is so impressed with her that he offers her a place on his team, which Rena gladly accepts until she eventually learns the truth from a rival racer, Gina Cavalli.
The graphics are quite good, though the music is a little dull IMO (the opening is great though) and the soundtrack is fairly limited. The gameplay is great, though it takes a while to get the hang of the various controls for the different races, and the cars never really give you a great sense of speed even when you're moving at 80+ MPH. Even so, "R: Racing Evolution" is one of the better racers on GameCube. This is a video of the game in action. Enjoy.