Review: Wipeout Omega Collection

Wipeout: Omega Collection is the remaster of a remaster, and much of the content goes all the way back to the good ol’ days of the PSP. There’s tracks here I’ve now played through in four different iterations of the franchise, but the fact that there’s now a Wipeout game on PlayStation 4 is certainly nothing to complain about – especially considering that Studio Liverpool closed back in 2012. Although familiar, Wipeout: Omega Collection delivers a further level of refinement to an already masterful series, and that’s pretty great.

The total offering of the Omega Collection is three separate content packs; Wipeout HD, the ‘HD Fury’ expansion, and Wipeout 2048 – the 2012 PS Vita game. The HD/Fury campaigns were also released as DLC for on Vita, adding in the content from the ‘HD’ PS3 remaster, which itself was based on Wipeout Pure and Wipeout Pulse for the PSP. Phew.

This does indeed mean that a large amount of the content here has been released three times previously. Oh, Wipeout Pulse also got ported to the PS2, so four times – let’s not forget that one. As someone who’s played through all of these games I have mixed feelings about the same tracks being repeatedly recycled, and whilst it’s surprisingly fun to look out for the minute differences in Omega Collection, it’s also a shame that there’s nothing new beyond this.

The Omega Collection is primarily a graphical and audio enhancement over the original titles. The game now supports 4K output, essentially the star new feature as the PS3 version of the game already ran at 1080p/60fps. New visual effects have been added to the HD/Fury content, which now looks distinctly more vibrant and saturated than it did on PS3. I think this is an improvement, but it’s debatable.

2048 is a different situation entirely. Struggling to keep a steady 30fps on Vita, the remastered tracks fare a lot better on PS4, and the performance increase is substantial enough to make the content here feel fresh. Structurally however, 2048 feels a little weird when placed side-by-side with the PS3 campaigns. The track offering for HD/Fury is extremely strong; it’s a greatest-hits collection of the two PSP games and each course has a unique visual identity. In Wipeout 2048 every track shares the same near-future aesthetic. The courses are still well designed and they look amazing, but they’re all very similar to each other.

Meanwhile the improved sound design is one of the game’s strongest components. Striking audio and visual aesthetic has been a key component of the Wipeout games since the days of The Designers Republic, and it’s fantastic to hear the series sounding as good as it’s ever done. The soundtrack blends together old favourites with some well-chosen new additions, and the sound effects are infectious, immersive and maybe even a little hypnotic. The mechanics themselves further encourage a zen-like state, but it’s those soothing and robotic voices – y’know, the ones that go ‘ROCKETS, MISSILE, MINES… Autopilot Engaged’ – that induce the Wipeout-trance.

I’d have loved to see new games types, events and even a campaign structured around unifying the content into a single, consistent experience. Or some of the extra PSP tracks given the HD treatment. Or new tracks entirely, although perhaps that’s asking too much? Wipeout: Omega Collection repackages an existing experience and it gets away with doing this because the foundation it’s based on is really very solid. It’s great to know that Wipeout remains a classic, and Sony’s most enduring racing series isn’t quite dead yet.

8/10