Ridge Racer

Ridge Racer is an arcade racing game developed by Namco and published in PAL territories by Sony Computer Entertainment Europe. Originally running on Namco’s System 22 arcade hardware, it was one of the first games to demonstrate the PlayStation’s polygon rendering capabilities and served as a launch title across PAL markets on 29th September 1995.

Five PAL variants are currently catalogued, distributed across the UK, Netherlands, Spain, France, Germany, Italy, Denmark, Norway, and Sweden. All releases are single-disc and English-language only. The original launch editions appear in two case formats, Full Jewel PAL and the larger Multiway Jewel Two Disk, both without a hologram on the case, and include a Namco single-sided thin flyer as loose paperwork. A Platinum budget re-release followed in March 1997 in a Mini Jewel Black Bordered PAL case with a hologram. A rental edition was produced concurrently with the original launch, housed in a dedicated Rental Case with no hologram. A later Value Series Black Label pressing, carrying a revised serial, appeared in January 2001 in a Full Jewel PAL case with a hologram. As one of the PlayStation’s most prominent launch titles in PAL regions, Ridge Racer remains a key piece for any serious collector of early PlayStation releases.