Highway to the danger zone

There are small differences in how the campaigns play out across the two titles in the set, but you still get to experience the variety of modes on offer across both. Starting out simply enough, you have to win a few races before power-ups are introduced. Then you get to have a go at time trials (standard) and speed laps… and then zone mode.

This is where the best of Wipeout is on offer. In zone mode, acceleration control is taken from you and you just have to steer your way through safely as the laps get more and more frantic. The first time you play this mode is usually early on, when you’re just used to the lowest speed class, so it serves as an early indication of just how fast these games can be. You’re likely to be bouncing off the walls before you get close to a decent score.

In many ways Wipeout was before its time here – it’s all about getting in sync with the music and clicking with the twists and turns, making it almost akin to modern rhythm games such as Thumper. Zone mode is the quintessential Wipeout experience, and looks just as impressive today as it did back then.