Wipeout 3

About Wipeout 3

Wipeout 3 (1999) is Psygnosis's anti-gravity racer, styled by The Designers Republic, running in high resolution and widescreen to a soundtrack chosen by DJ Sasha.

Wipeout 3 in Depth

Players race futuristic anti-gravity ships from eight racing corporations around eight circuits. Each craft has an energy shield that absorbs damage, and if it fails, the ship is knocked out of the race; shields recharge in a pit lane apart from the main course, more fully the longer the ship stays in it. Airbrakes help through tight corners, and Hyperthrust adds speed at the cost of shield energy, leaving the ship more vulnerable. Weapon grids across the tracks hand out random items, with new weapons joining the five carried over from earlier games, from rockets, missiles and mines to defensive shields.

There are six modes. Single races award medals to the top three, checkpoints must be reached in time or the racer is ejected, and consecutive gold medals unlock new tracks and craft. Time trials and challenges are joined by Eliminator, a deathmatch-style mode scoring points for destroying rivals and completing laps, and Tournament, which totals standings over several races, plus split-screen racing for two. The Designers Republic gave menus and courses a simple colour scheme to create what one Psygnosis staff member called "a believable future", and it is one of the few PlayStation games to run in 16:9 widescreen and high resolution. DJ Sasha selected the electronica soundtrack, including Orbital and The Chemical Brothers.

Making Wipeout 3

Psygnosis, by then owned by Sony and fresh from Wipeout 64, began work in 1999, three years after Wipeout 2097. Lead designer Wayne Imlach recalled that the tight schedule made the team conservative, refining what 2097 had established rather than changing the formula; many developers from the original were retained, early courses were kept easier for newcomers, and later ones toughened for experts. It averaged 87 on GameRankings and 89 on Metacritic, and GamePro called it "hands-down the best futuristic racing game to ever come on the PlayStation". Critics praised its graphics, music and minimalist design, with some calling it the series' best, but its high difficulty and lack of new content disappointed others, and The Times felt the programmers had focused "more with the overall look and feel".