Redout 2 Review
Redout 2 is a high-speed futuristic racing game in the vein of F-Zero and Wipeout. 34BigThings clarified that Redout 2 is exclusively for players who enjoy this genre. It’s a love letter to classic arcade games where the machine encouraged continuous play (and more quarters). Every single track in Redout 2 is beautifully rendered in neon chrome and sleek glass, with bright colors that assault players’ eyes at every turn. Even at top speed, the vortex of blurring colors is visually stimulating and awe-inspiring enough to tempt you to stop looking at the track ahead just to appreciate the background. There are tons of weird places: Fuji, Cairo, the Mariana Trench, Tokyo, the moon, and even a black hole. Every single track is amazing. If nothing else, it’s worth coasting slowly to appreciate all the effort that went into each level.
What’s even better is that all the locals are introduced with a short backstory about how they came to be. There is amazing world building in these introductions. The entire galaxy has essentially been turned into a development project on steroids by a handful of billionaires. Each area is invested by a specific named billionaire whose motives, personality, and intentions are completely unknown. There was just a bit of intrigue in how each location was built, which could have made for some fantastic hooks in a larger story. For example, when entering the Mariana Trench for the first time, players are told that there was a Water World War in the past. Sadly, players don’t get answers to those questions. The unfortunate part about these settings is that they are in a racing game, not an RPG. While the backgrounds are incredible and the lore behind them fascinating, players rarely get to see the more interesting side of them or explore the world they walk through. They face a racing track, and have little time to look at anything while maintaining mach speed and avoiding walls. Outside of a brief introduction to a new setting, there is no story or characters. What could be fantastic settings for a fantastic single-player campaign are turned into animated postcards with a historical blurb on the back.
This is especially damaging in a game whose gameplay isn’t necessarily challenging. While these types of racing games are meant to be unforgiving—the first iteration of Redout was known for its high difficulty—they pale in comparison to how punishing Redout 2 is. game precise inputs while moving at breakneck speed. When we say precise, we mean precise; players cannot hold the stick in a direction to turn to do something as simple as turn. That’s the easiest way to go up the wall ten times and explode in a shower of neon bits. This requirement creates a huge learning curve right from the start. Part of what makes Redout 2 difficult is the dual-stick steering. Players use the left stick to turn and the right stick to both strafe and park their vehicle. The tutorials don’t do a good job of explaining when players are meant to do any of these things. The only obvious one is pitching, which is when players tilt the right stick up or down to match the curve of the track. Choosing whether to turn or strafe or do both is very difficult. There are no indicators to indicate which is better suited to any particular part of the race, and by the time the players think they know the answer, they are forty miles into the next part of the track. There is only one way to make the game easier, and that is to adjust the difficulty. However, those struggling with the last tutorial mission are unlikely to improve. The difficulty level can only be changed after completing the tutorial. Until then, it’s permanently locked into a challenging difficulty. This is a strange restriction that may turn away casual players.
The lack of sophisticated difficulty settings diminishes Redout 2’s appeal to casual players. Aside from changing the sensitivity or remapping the controls, there’s no way to make the game more forgiving. Players are forced to make quick, accurate, and precise inputs at an absurd speed. The game makes no attempt to explain the controls, so players are left to fend for themselves. There are also no access options, which is a pretty basic oversight. Experienced players in this genre and fans of F-Zero will probably like Redout 2. It is suitably challenging and adrenaline pumping. When players struggle with control, there is little fun. Redout 2 is now available on PC, PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X/S, and Nintendo Switch. GameRant received a PS5 code for this review. MORE Ranking the 18 Best Street Racing Games of All Time