Sony’s classic high-speed, anti-gravity racing game series Wipeout is getting a new game. No, it’s not for the PS5 or even the PS4. Titled Wipeout Rush, instead, the game will be coming to Android and iOS mobile platforms sometime later this year. Wrapped in a colorful comic book-like visual, it features more than 60 iconic ships from the franchise and a robust single-player campaign through 12 championship cups. But if you’re expecting an additional multiplayer mode like in Mario Kart Tour to play with friends while waiting for the bus, you will be disappointed.
For some reason, instead of making a traditional racing game for Android and iOS devices publisher Rogue Games and developer Amuzo said in this game we play as a team manager, and winning is determined by “decisions rather than reflexes.” In Rogue Game’s projects portfolio page, the company also described Wipeout Rush as an “intense marriage of merge, idle, and card collection” where you can experiment with ships upgrades and tracks to find the winning combination.
The trailer doesn’t show clear details on the gameplay, but you can catch a glimpse of it. Judging from the video, it seems all you need to do is just match pictures of anti-gravity ships to unlock more ships while a video of a race is playing in the background like some sort of stylish Candy Crush. Watch and judge it yourself below around the 0:13-0:19 mark.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4liaGiG1ku0
A mobile experience from well-known Sony IPs shouldn’t come as a surprise. Early this year, it was reported that Sony is trying to get into mobile gaming once again after its Xperia phones failed to gain traction. According to Eurogamer, Sony was looking for a Head of Mobile to help the PlayStation Studios “focus on successfully adapting PlayStation’s most popular franchises for mobile”. And Wipeout Rush for Android and iOS might be one of the results.
Despite the nice-looking visuals, the fact that Wipeout Rush isn’t made as a racing game with PVP — especially since there are a ton of decent racing games on mobile nowadays — and is the first new entry in the series since 2017 after the Omega Collection remaster for PS4 might put a bad taste in fans’ mouth. If this franchise is more popular, I’d say this questionable business decision is almost as bad as the Diablo Immortal fiasco. Still, as a Wipeout fan, will you be checking this out when it comes out in late 2021? Tell us what you think in the comments and stay tuned for more nerd and gaming updates at The Nerd Stash.