Wipeout Pulse

Wipeout Pulse is a racing game set in 2207, ten years after the events of Wipeout Pure. As with its predecessor, the game revolves around players competing in the FX400 anti-gravity racing league. Players pilot anti-gravity ships owned by racing corporations (collectively referred to as "teams" in-game). There are eight teams in Wipeout Pulse, with one ship available for each – although the player eventually gains the ability to change the appearance of their ships. Each ship has different characteristics; depending on the team chosen, its ship will vary in terms of handling, speed, acceleration and shield strength.

Every ship is equipped with an energy shield which will protect the player from damage sustained from weapon fire or colliding with walls, although energy is taken away if this happens. If the shield completely runs out, the ship will explode and the player will be eliminated from the race. In addition, the player's ship is equipped with air brakes which can be used for manoeuvring through difficult corners at high speed. The game features a number of weapons which can be utilized to destroy other opponents or for self-defense.

Wipeout Pulse was developed by Studio Liverpool. Colin Berry, the lead designer of the game, stated in an interview that the team had received a lot of positive feedback from Wipeout Pure, and was willing to use parts of the feedback to "help shape some elements of Pulse". According to Berry, some people had felt that the previous game was too difficult; the ships were considered too fast and the artificial intelligence (AI) too advanced, whereas others thought that the game was too easy and they wanted "something more challenging to keep them coming back". The development team also took steps to decrease the feeling of repetition, which was often cited as one of the main complaints of Wipeout Pure.

In addition, the team altered the game's difficulty settings so that players were given the choice to change the speed of the game at any time, in the event that they "got stuck". Reflecting on this, Berry said: "We want the people who buy it, to see all the game, we do not want to lock them out".

The game received positive reviews upon release. It holds an average score of 82 percent at Metacritic, based on an aggregate of 40 reviews.

Critics unanimously praised the game's visuals and presentation. Jeff Haynes of IGN stated that the game was "Wipeout at its purest", praising the visual presentation of the courses, cities, and other environments. Gabe Graziani of GameSpy thought the graphics were beautiful and also commended the design of the tracks. Eduardo Zacarias of GameZone stated that Wipeout Pulse was a "very visually pleasing game with some solid visual effects", and also praised the detailed tracks and ships.