Wipeout (stylised as wipE′out″ or WipEout) is a series of futuristic anti-gravity racing video games created by Psygnosis (later known as Studio Liverpool). Sony Interactive Entertainment owns the series and publishes most of the games.
The series is characterised by its fast-paced gameplay, cutting-edge 3D visuals that maximise the resolution capabilities of the game's console, and its association with electronic dance music, particularly big beat-infused techno and trance. This includes collaborations with prominent electronic artists such as The Chemical Brothers, The Prodigy, Leftfield, Orbital, Underworld, Fluke, and the in-house composer CoLD SToRAGE. Additionally, the series’ graphic design identity—crafted by The Designers Republic for the first three games—helped establish its signature futuristic rave aesthetic.
The concept of Wipeout was first discussed during a pub conversation, when a Psygnosis staff member, Jim Bowers, envisioned creating a futuristic racing game which featured anti-gravity ships. Some game design elements were influenced by Matrix Marauders, a 1990 Amiga game developed by the same Liverpool-based studio. A beta version of Wipeout appeared in the cult film Hackers, in which the protagonists are shown playing the game in a nightclub. This appearance is cited as a catalyst for Sony's acquisition of Psygnosis in the months following the release of Hackers.
Power-ups come in the form of offensive or defensive weaponry, ranging from machine guns, missiles, mines and rockets to energy shields, autopilots, and turbo boosts. These power-ups are usually collected by flying over coloured X-shaped pads on race tracks. Chevron-shaped speed pads also feature prominently on race tracks: once flown over, the player's ship receives a momentary boost.
Every ship featured in a game is owned by a different racing team, although the number of teams and ships will vary throughout the games. Each ship has different characteristics; for example, ships will vary in handling, thrust, top speed, shield strength, and occasionally firepower. Every ship is equipped with a compulsory shield that absorbs damage sustained during a race; energy is lost whenever the player's ship collides or is hit by weapon fire. If damage is sustained after the shield's depletion, the ship in question will explode and the pilot is consequently eliminated from the race.
The games' campaign modes usually consist of single races, time trials, and tournaments.
- Standard single races involve the player competing against opponents to finish first and win a gold medal. As scoring is podium-based, silver and bronze medals are awarded for second and third place, respectively.
- Tournaments typically contain four or eight single races each; points are scored based on position for each race, and the pilot who accumulates the most points wins.
- Time trials and speed laps have the player obtaining the fastest time on a track in either a predetermined number of laps or an individual lap, respectively.
- "Zone" mode has been featured in every game since Wipeout Fusion and revolves around survival as the player automatically accelerates to extreme speeds. The mode will only end upon the destruction of the player's ship.
- "Eliminator" mode was introduced in Wipeout 3 and centres around pilots gaining points for damaging competitors and finishing laps.
- "Combat" mode is a slight variation of Eliminator and appears only in Wipeout 2048. The difference between the two is that in Combat, energy is restored through item absorption as opposed to completing a lap.
Games
Wipeout
Wipeout (stylised as wipEout") is a futuristic racing video game developed and published by Psygnosis. It is the first game in the series and was originally released for the PlayStation and PCs running MS-DOS in 1995, and for the Sega Saturn the following year. It was also a launch title for the PlayStation in Europe and North America. Set in the year 2052, players compete in the F3600 anti-gravity racing league, piloting one of a selection of craft in races on several different tracks around the world.
Wipeout featured music from well-known electronic artists such as Leftfield, The Chemical Brothers, and Orbital. A prototype version of the game appeared in the teen cult film Hackers (1995), in which both protagonists were playing the game in a nightclub. A marketing campaign created and launched by Keith Hopwood and graphic design studio The Designers Republic included an infamous promotional poster featuring a bloodstained Radio 1 DJ Sara Cox, which was speculated by some of representing a drug overdose. The soundtrack featured a wider array of high-profile electronic music artists. Tracks by The Prodigy, Fluke, Underworld, and Photek were included, alongside returning contributors Leftfield and The Chemical Brothers.
Wipeout 64
Wipeout 64 is the third installment of the series. It was released exclusively for the Nintendo 64 in November 1998 for North America, and later in 1999 for Europe. The game is set one year after the events of Wipeout 2097 and shares the same anti-gravity racing league.
Wipeout 64 reuses most of the race tracks featured in the previous games, albeit with mirrored layouts and different locations.
Wipeout 3
Wipeout 3 (stylised as wip3out in Europe and Japan) is the fourth title in the franchise and was first released in September 1999 for the PlayStation, where players race in the F7200 league. An enhanced edition entitled Wipeout 3 Special Edition was released exclusively in Europe on 14 July 2000; featuring minor changes to gameplay, such as different craft physics, auto-loading of saves and artificial intelligence bug fixes. As with the first two games, Psygnosis once again hired The Designers Republic to assist in development. The Sheffield-based company, known for its underground techno album covers, provided "visual candy" to Wipeout 3s graphics, designing the game's icons, billboards, and colour schemes.
The game also featured music from Propellerheads, and with The Chemical Brothers and Orbital, returning from the first Wipeout. Psygnosis selected DJ Sasha to serve as the game's music director.
Wipeout Fusion
Wipeout Fusion (stylised as wipEout fusion) is the fifth instalment of the series and was first released on the PlayStation 2 in 2002. The game was the first to be developed by the newly renamed Studio Liverpool.
Wipeout Pure
Wipeout Pure (stylised as wipE'out pṳre) is the sixth game in the series and was released simultaneously with the launch of the PlayStation Portable in 2005. The game takes place in the year 2197, exactly 100 years after Wipeout 2097, and centres around players competing in the FX300 anti-gravity racing league.
Development of the game started in August 2003 and lasted until early 2005. Throughout production, the Liverpudlian studio created new user interfaces and other algorithms that helped speed up the development process in time for the PlayStation Portable's launch. The game was notable for showcasing the PlayStation Portable's graphical capabilities, and marked the first time a Wipeout game featured downloadable content—an aspect which had the potential to draw in more revenue for Studio Liverpool. The game takes place one year after the events of Wipeout Pure and has players compete in the FX400 anti-gravity racing league. Development of the game was centred around focusing on the feedback left by fans on the previous game, with many fans complaining of Wipeout Pures difficulty, thus prompting Studio Liverpool to improve on aspects where they had thought they failed. The game features sixteen licensed music tracks from techno artists, including Kraftwerk, DJ Fresh, and Skream.
Wipeout HD
Wipeout HD (stylised as WipEout HD) is the eighth title in the franchise and is the first to be released on the PS3 via PlayStation Network worldwide in 2008, although a retail version was later released exclusively in Europe the next year. A major expansion pack titled Wipeout HD Fury was released worldwide via the PlayStation Network in July 2009. This time, players compete in the FX350 anti-gravity racing league, set a year prior to the FX400 league, featuring a handful of race tracks from Wipeout Pure and Wipeout Pulse (although all content has been upgraded to render 1080p visuals in 60 frames per second).
According to the game's director, the team made the decision to release the game as a PlayStation Store exclusive title before development in order to stress that downloadable content did not have to be focused on "small games". Wipeout HDs expansion pack, Fury, received controversy over its in-game advertising, with many players complaining of extended loading times, as well as consternation about advertising being retroactively added into a game that had already been paid for. The advertisements were removed soon after several complaints were made by players. The game was also chosen as a free PlayStation Store offering as part of Sony's "Welcome Back" program due to the 2011 PlayStation Network outage.
Wipeout 2048
Wipeout 2048 is the ninth and final game in the series to be developed by Studio Liverpool prior to their closure in August 2012. The game was released as a launch title for the PlayStation Vita in early 2012 and centres around players competing in the first Anti-Gravity Racing Championships. It is set in the year 2048 and acts as a prequel to the first Wipeout game. Wipeout 2048 was developed alongside the PlayStation Vita console itself, and acted as a "testbed" for the device. When the staff of the Liverpudlian studio were given development kits for what was then dubbed a "Next Generation Portable", a group was set up within the team to brainstorm ideas. Among these included the proposal of a touchscreen device, which was not yet conceived by Sony at the time, and two analogue sticks—both features eventually made it onto the console. Wipeout Omega Collection was released in June 2017. It was designed to be run at 1080p on the PlayStation 4 and 4K on the PlayStation 4 Pro, both at 60 frames per second.
Wipeout Merge
Wipeout Merge (previously known as Wipeout Rush) was announced by publisher Rogue Games on September 16, 2021 for iOS and Android devices. The game initially soft-launched in several regions throughout late 2021, and launched in the United States in early 2022. The game features over 60 ships from the series as well as a full single-player campaign. Unlike previous entries in the series, the gameplay consists of being a racing "manager," and timing the deployment of weapons during races.