WipEout 2048 Critic Reviews

If not for the irritatingly long loading times, this might well be the best launch title for the PlayStation Vita Sony has in store for us. The feeling of speed still provides a satisfyingly big wow-factor, while the cross-platform options turn this title into a handheld pioneer. A must-have for every Vita-owner.

Wipeout 2048 isn't just one of the best launch games (an achievement in itself, as the standard is very high), it's also one of the best games in an excellent series.

I definitely think Wipeout 2048 is worth checking out, and from what I've seen it seems to be the racing game to beat amongst the Vita launch titles. I've heard and seen dubious things from both Modnation Racers and Asphalt (and Ridge Racer is MIA at the moment), so if you need to get your racing fix this seems like the way to go. It's a legitimately great experience on the new handheld, and looks absolutely fabulous on the OLED screen. I highly recommend picking it up.

Despite the long loading times (typically 50 seconds before each track) and the excruciating learning curve for non-pros, WipEout 2048 offers a tactically exciting, rewarding and challenge campaign mode with some gloriously-designed tracks and nice variety of events.

This WipEout 2048 is a true technology feat. Visually sublime, fast as hell, it's a comprehensive game as well. If the 3 seasons of the solo campaign will not challenge much until the last races, they will make a good training for the enhanced strategic elements, before heading into the multiplayer campaign. A splendid title, perfect for nomad play.

This is the best Wipeout in a long time, and the best introduction to the series a newcomer could wish for.

Great visuals, sounds, controls and overall gameplay make for a remarkable experience on a portable device.

Everything about 2048 oozes class, screams quality and does more than enough to force the hardcore to take a serious look at Vita.

Easily one of the best looking launch titles available.

There's an inevitable faltering in the fact that this is 'merely' WipEout again – there's not too much that can be done with the formula, but to be honest there's little we'd want to see done to change things up. Though a crossover with PSone's Rollcage, thus adding wheeled vehicles, would be pretty nifty. All the same, this does mean you're getting a game made up of a very good experience – but a very good experience you've played through seven times before. Eight if you had an N64. WipEout 2048 still comes with an unconditional recommendation.

There's plenty of content, it's flashy and pleasing in so many ways, the presentation is singularly appealing, and the gameplay is rock solid. The load times are oddly slow and visibility can be a problem but for the most part, this is a highly enjoyable experience.

Fast, fluid and stylish scifi racer. The multiplayer mode works very well.

It is the same Wipeout formula we have enjoyed before both on the PS3 and the PSP, but with outstanding graphics and a much better control thanks to the use of the dual analog sticks. The motion sensor use is an extra mode that is not that good, but the use of the touch screen is perfect. It might not be the best Wipeout in the series, but is one of the best titles in the launch of PSVita.

WipEout's core experience – fast races, awesome music, and incredible graphics – are better than they've ever been in WipEout 2048. However, the game's more experimental features like motion controls and touch interface fall flat.

WipEout 2048 may not have a particularly challenging multiplayer campaign, and it may have particularly challenging loading times, but that's not to say it's a failure. The singleplayer component alone is worth the time and money, easy to access, difficult to master, and deeply satisfying to play; combined with stunning graphics and the surprising presence of a pervasive artistic statement – rare in video-games generally, let alone racing games – 2048 is a fascinating and entertaining beast.

Deploying a series of a deadly mines and hearing that soft, distant bang behind you when your opponents run into them is still as satisfying as ever. The same goes for taking the top spot in the final seconds of a race thanks to a conveniently placed speed pad.

WipEout 2048 hardly surprises, but it doesn't have to, because the WipEout formula still works very well. A good multiplayer mode, a few smart adjustments and additions alongside the fantastic graphics, delightful soundtrack and superfast and tight gameplay make WipEout 2048 possibly the best launch game for the PlayStation Vita.

Despite the load time issues, the game is a great option for either ten minutes or two hours of playtime. Diversity of genre is important to have at a system launch, and in a crowded early library for racers, Wipeout clearly stands out as the best of the pack.

It's fast and it's beautiful - but mostly it's classic WipEout.

Still a class product - gorgeous, playable and supremely fast, though it hasn't changed much.