Ridge Racer 6

Ridge Racer 6 launched alongside the Xbox 360 at the end of 2005 and remained an exclusive to Microsoft's new console for two years - only later did the PlayStation 3 get its own reworked entry with different content, titled Ridge Racer 7. Namco gave the sixth numbered entry the role of a technological showcase: the game ran in HD resolution at a steady sixty frames per second, a benchmark that hardly any title could deliver right from the start of the new generation's launch, and reviewers at the time routinely placed it alongside the console's technical tech demos.

Gameplay-wise, the series sticks to its already established formula - no vehicle damage, no physics simulation, but a focus on smooth drifting that fills a nitrous gauge for a short boost. Ridge Racer 6 added to this the largest selection of cars and tracks in the series up to that point, a detailed bodywork color-scheme editor, and full online multiplayer over Xbox Live that let players race against people around the world - not yet a given for launch titles at the time. The campaign takes players through several cup classes toward unlocking the fastest machines, with progress gated by earning so-called Ridge Racer points for finishing position, drifting, and completing side objectives within individual races, which pushes players to return even to tracks they've already finished for a better score. The track selection also includes night and rain variants of the same circuits, which change visibility and how the car behaves in corners, so that even a seemingly familiar track demands different drift timing.

Why play: Ridge Racer 6 is for players who want to enjoy arcade drifting in one of its most technically polished forms of its era, while also experiencing what the Xbox 360 launch looked like from the perspective of an exclusive title with no compromises on frame rate.