Game review: WipEout 2048

ANOTHER superb PS Vita launch title, WipEout 2048 sees packs of hovering race cars compete against each other in high-speed duels to reach the finish line. It seems that Sony has once again delivered a thrilling and fluid WipEout experience.

Taking place in less technologically advanced circuits than previous games, tracks span the city streets and purpose-built raceways that spiral and corkscrew the skyline, including around New York’s Brooklyn Bridge, which sees your craft hurtling over the surface of the East River.

Races fall into non-combat and weapons-free variants, among others. The weapon set will be familiar to WipEout veterans, with machine guns, missiles, quake blasts and shields. Weapon-based events are fierce and result in a tense scramble for survival, while keeping one eye on finishing first. Another highlight is the superb Zone Mode, returning from the PS3 hit WipeEout HD.

Taking place on a virtual track, your craft speeds up incrementally until it reaches death-defying highs, and your only aim is to keep on surviving as long as possible before you crash and the race ends.

Aside from the sprawling career mode, you can also take to the online circuit to compete with friends and players across the globe in competitive play that works a treat on Sony’s outstanding new handheld.