Although there have been a few attempts at trying to revive the Wipeout series, it’s quite unfortunate that one of most iconic racing game series is getting such an unfair treatment. The last Wipeout-branded game is an idle title made for Android and iOS, so it’s not even a full-fledged racing game.
In case you’re wondering why I’m talking about Wipeout when I should be telling you my thoughts about Gravity Chase, it’s because I can’t do that without first talking about the former. Gravity Chase, like many other games in the past, heavily draws inspiration from the popular futuristic anti-gravity racing game, and tries to give its own twist.
Developed by a small studio based in the UK, Repixel8, Gravity Chase has a bit of a strange history. The game should have been released a few years ago, but due to the health crisis, development stopped completely for about a year.
In late 2021, Repixel8 revealed that they’ve managed to revisit the project and finish it, so racing game fans should be able to get the game on January 22, 2022. For whatever reason, Gravity Chase still hasn’t been released on Steam, and there’s absolutely no communication regarding the title yet. This is a little bit of a warning before we get into the juicy part of my review.
Gravity Chase is small project done by a small indie developer, and that’s quite fine. You shouldn’t expect anything grandiose from Gravity Chase, but if you’re thirsty for some Wipeout action, this is likely to quench your thirst for a little bit.
Photo: autoevolution
Borrowing the same futuristic anti-gravity arcade racing formula from Wipeout, Gravity Chase challenges players to compete on tunnel tracks in zero-g conditions. The game has ten ships that you can upgrade with in-game money that you gain after each race.
The only twist here is that there are three-speed classes that you can compete in, so depending on what ship you choose before the race, the faster you’ll have to be to take it home. All ten unique ships are unlocked right from the start, so you don’t need to spend your hard-earned in-game money to do that.
However, you will spend your money upgrading these ships to fly faster or handle better. Also, all the customization options are unlocked from the beginning, but don’t expect too much. The only thing that you can actually change at a ship is the color.
Gravity Chase features 16 unique tracks across multiple themed environments. To master a racing track, you must win first place in all speed classes. Unlike everything else in the game, these aren’t unlocked from the beginning and are, in fact, gated behind points.
Photo: autoevolution
When you reach a certain number of points, you’ll unlock a new track. It’s not hard at all to unlock new tracks, although it can take a little bit more time because points are also used to upgrade your ships, so you’ll have to find a balance between unlocking new tracks and upgrading your ships to perform better.
There are three race types available for each track: Arcade, Combat, and Eliminator. The latter is the most interesting because you have to be one place ahead of the last racer at all times. If you remain more than 30 seconds in last place, you are automatically eliminated from the race.
As far as the action goes, race is very chaotic if we’re talking about speed class 3 and Combat or Eliminator mode, or pretty chill if you’re racing in a speed class 1 ship. The vast majority of tracks in Gravity Chase are cylindrical, but that doesn’t mean you can’t get off the track if you’re not careful.
Unlike similar zero-g racing games, this game actually has “gravity” as a gameplay mechanic, which means that your ship will always be pulled down. You can actually get out of the track, in a manner of speaking, if you spin around in a single direction while racing very fast.
Everything else is very basic with a few speed boosts that you can pick up on the track and powerups that will fill up your “boost” gauge that will allow your ship to fly very fast for a limited time. There are also some red pads on the tracks that will slow you down, so you have to avoid these. In combat mode, the only difference is that you can pick up ammo for the only weapon in the game, and shield powerups.
Photo: autoevolution
Conclusion
Despite its troubled development cycle, Gravity Chase ended up being a decent game. Granted, everything screams low budget, but it does exactly what it’s supposed to do: entertain. Its main mission is to keep alight the spirit of the zero-g racing genre rather than movie it forward through innovative gameplay and ingenious takes on an old formula.
Although there’s enough content to keep you busy for at least several hours, the game can and will become repetitive (including the soundtrack). In a sense, Gravity Chase is a poor man’s Wipeout, though that might sound harsher than intended.
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