is a 1994 arcade

racing In sports, racing is a competition of speed, in which competitors try to complete a given task in the shortest amount of time. Typically this involves traversing some distance, but it can be any other task involving speed to reach a specific g ...

game developed and published by

Namco was a Japanese multinational video game and entertainment company founded in 1955. It operated video arcades and amusement parks globally, and produced video games, films, toys, and arcade cabinets. Namco was one of the most influential c ...

for arcades. A sequel to ''

Ridge Racer is a series of racing video games created by Namco and owned by Bandai Namco Entertainment. The first game, ''Ridge Racer (1993 video game), Ridge Racer'' (1993), was originally released in arcades for the Namco System 22 hardware, later ported ...

'', it features more quality-of-life changes than substantial new content. One major addition is the ability to play with up to eight human players. The game would be followed up by '' Rave Racer.'' The

PlayStation is a video gaming brand owned and produced by Sony Interactive Entertainment (SIE), a division of Japanese conglomerate Sony. Its flagship products consists of a series of home video game consoles produced under the brand; it also consists ...

version of ''Ridge Racer'' was followed up by ''

Ridge Racer Revolution ''Ridge Racer Revolution'' is a Racing game, racing video game developed and published by Namco for the PlayStation (console), PlayStation. It is the sequel to the PlayStation version of Ridge Racer (1993 video game), ''Ridge Racer'' (the arcade ...

'', which inherited ''Ridge Racer 2's'' soundtrack.

Gameplay

The gameplay is very much like that of the original, but unlike the

vanilla Vanilla is a spice derived from orchids of the genus ''Vanilla (genus), Vanilla'', primarily obtained from pods of the flat-leaved vanilla (''Vanilla planifolia, V. planifolia''). ''Vanilla'' is not Autogamy, autogamous, so pollination ...

version of ''

'' (which was a single-player game), in ''Ridge Racer 2'' up to eight players can play simultaneously when four two-player cabinets are linked together. A player's number determines their car. There also are six new songs, including remixed ones from the original, that can be selected with the gear shifter at the start. The enormous television screen above the entrance to the first tunnel shows footage from Namco's 1979 title ''

Galaxian is a 1979 fixed shooter video game developed and published by Namco for arcades. The player assumes control of the Galaxip starfighter in its mission to protect Earth from waves of aliens. Gameplay involves destroying each formation of alien ...

'' (in the original, it was playing ''

Mappy is a 1983 platform video game developed and published by Namco for arcades. It runs on Namco's '' Super Pac-Man'' hardware modified to support horizontal scrolling. The name "Mappy" is likely derived from , a slightly pejorative Japanese sl ...

''). There is a rear-view mirror at the top of the screen, so a player can see other cars coming from behind. There is also a change in daylight from day to night (a car driven into the track's tunnel during the day will come out the other end at night).

Reception

Commercial

In Japan, ''Game Machine'' listed ''Ridge Racer 2'' on their August 15, 1994 issue as being the fourth most-successful upright/cockpit arcade game of the month. In North America, ''RePlay'' reported the game to be the fourth most-popular deluxe arcade game at the time. ''

Play Meter ''Play Meter'' (initially ''Coin Industry Play Meter'') was an American trade magazine focusing on the coin-op amusement arcade industry, including jukebox and arcade game machines. It was founded in December 1974 by publisher and editor Ralph C ...

'' also listed the title to be the thirty-seventh most-popular arcade game at the time.

Critical

Next Generation Next Generation or Next-Generation may refer to: Publications and literature * ''Next Generation'' (magazine), video game magazine that was made by the now defunct Imagine Media publishing company * Next Generation poets (2004), list of young ...

'' reviewed the arcade version of the game, rating it four stars out of five, and stated that "eight-user multi-player link-up has been added to enable ''Ridge Racer 2'' to compete on equal footing with Sega's ''

Daytona USA is a 1994 arcade racing game developed by Sega AM2. Inspired by the popularity of the NASCAR motor racing series in the US, the game has players race stock cars on one of three courses. It was the first game to be released on the Sega Model 2 ...

'' and Namco's new ''

Ace Driver is a 1994 racing arcade game developed and published by Namco. The player controls a Formula One racer, with the objective being to complete three laps of a race course and to avoid a collision with opponents and other obstacles. Three difficult ...

''." In 2023, Time Extension ranked the game 11th on their "Best Ridge Racer Games" list.

References

Notes

Footnotes

External links

*
''Ridge Racer 2''
at the Arcade History database {{Ridge Racer series 1994 video games Arcade video games Arcade-only video games Multiplayer and single-player video games Namco arcade games Namco System 22 games Racing video games Ridge Racer Video games developed in Japan Video games scored by Shinji Hosoe