Wipeout HD Fury

🎮 Overview

• Title: WipEout HD Fury

• Platform: PlayStation 3 (available via PlayStation Network)

• Release:

  • WipEout HD launched in 2008.

  • WipEout HD Fury expansion released in 2009 as downloadable content, later bundled together as a single package.

• Developer: Studio Liverpool (formerly Psygnosis)

• Publisher: Sony Computer Entertainment

• Genre: Futuristic Anti-Gravity Racing

• Style: High-speed combat racing featuring sleek, anti-gravity ships, neon-lit futuristic tracks, and electronic music.

📖 Concept & Setting

• Set in the F3600 Anti-Gravity Racing League of the mid-22nd century, players pilot ultra-fast anti-gravity racing craft across futuristic circuits.

• The series is known for its blend of racing and vehicular combat, with ships equipped with weapons, shields, and speed boosts.

• WipEout HD Fury is not story-driven but instead expands on the sport’s competitive and high-tech setting.

🕹 Gameplay

Core Mechanics

• Anti-Gravity Racing:

  • Ships hover above the track, banking sharply at insane speeds.

  • Mastery involves learning to use airbrakes to glide around corners without losing momentum.

• Weapons & Power-ups:

  • Players can pick up offensive and defensive weapons from track pads.

  • Examples include homing missiles, rockets, mines, plasma bolts, shields, and turbo boosts.

• Speed Classes:

  • Multiple speed classes (Venom, Flash, Rapier, Phantom) determine difficulty and intensity, with Phantom being blisteringly fast.

WipEout HD (Base Game)

• Contained content from WipEout Pure and WipEout Pulse (PSP entries), remastered in HD.

• Included 8 tracks (16 with reverse variants) and 12 teams to race with.

• Campaign mode featured progression through time trials, races, and zone events.

WipEout HD Fury (Expansion)

• Tracks & Content:

  • Added 8 new tracks (also with reverse versions), 13 new ships, and a redesigned user interface with a darker, more aggressive style.

• New Modes:

  • Eliminator: Combat-focused mode where the goal is to destroy opponents rather than finish first. Points are awarded for hits and kills.

  • Zone Battle: A strategic mode where players build up "zone energy" to boost forward through the track. Winning requires tactical use of acceleration versus survival.

  • Detonator: A solo mode where players clear mines and enemies from a track using a cannon, blending racing with a shooting-gallery experience.

• These additions dramatically expanded the game’s replayability and shifted its focus toward combat.

🎨 Presentation

• Graphics:

  • Full 1080p resolution at 60 frames per second, one of the PS3’s smoothest-looking titles.

  • Sleek futuristic ships, neon-lit cityscapes, and techno-industrial tracks.

  • Motion blur, high dynamic range lighting, and reflective surfaces amplified the sense of speed.

• Sound:

  • Iconic electronic soundtrack, featuring artists like The Chemical Brothers, Kraftwerk, DJ Fresh, and Stanton Warriors.

  • Distorted, futuristic sound effects for weapons and ship collisions.

• Style:

  • Fury expansion used darker, more aggressive menus and ship designs, emphasizing combat.

📝 Reception

• Praise:

  • Stunning visuals that pushed the PS3 to its limits.

  • Perfectly smooth framerate, even at high speeds.

  • Deep gameplay combining technical racing skill with combat strategy.

  • Fury expansion’s new modes and tracks were highly praised for adding variety.

  • Zone mode (and Zone Battle) stood out as visually hypnotic and challenging.

• Criticism:

  • High difficulty curve, especially at faster speed classes.

  • Learning curve for new players could be frustrating.

  • Not heavily story-driven, which some players might find less engaging compared to narrative-heavy racing games.

✅ In short:

WipEout HD Fury for PlayStation 3 is a definitive futuristic racer, blending breakneck anti-gravity racing with tactical combat. The base game offered remastered classics from earlier WipEout titles in beautiful HD, while the Fury expansion injected new tracks, ships, and modes that leaned into combat and experimentation. With crisp 1080p visuals, 60fps gameplay, and a legendary electronic soundtrack, it’s remembered as one of the best racing experiences of the PS3 era and a showcase of the console’s power.