Table Top Racing. A Playstation Vita Review

A Playrise Digital game
Published by: Ripstone
Price: £4.99

Table Top Racing is a colourful and fun combat racer in which you pilot a range of miniature vehicles across a series of table top (as the name suggests) tracks. Think Mario Kart, Micromachines and Crash Team Racing et al, and you know what you are dealing with.  You compete across a series of Championships and other single events in a variety of race types. You win races to earn the wonga to buy new, funky vehicles, and upgrade existing ones.  Depending on the race type you are currently in, there are crates scattered across the track that, when driven over, will equip you with one of several weapons that you can use to scupper your foes' plans. The weapons include, bombs, homing missiles, and a local radius EMP attack. Alternatively, you may pick up a boost, which, when triggered will give you a second or two of extra speed depending on your current vehicle status. These weapons can also be used defensively. A well timed EMP for example, will negate a foe's incoming homing missile which adds a nice level of strategy.

The game was developed by Nick Burcombe who interestingly was the lead designer for the original Wipeout game that launched with the Playstation 1 in 1995 amongst other things.


Ooosh! Just missed that EMP blast radius!

As you can see from the screenshots, the environs are really pretty and vibrant and you can view the action in a traditional behind the car view, or as a top down racer, a la Micromachines. This is a lovely option, and really adds to the overall appeal of the game I would think.  There are also a number of really nice graphical effects employed too, and overall, the visuals are really good, and make some decent use of the Vita's power which is often forgotten about it seems lately.



Table Top Racing is perfect for the Vita.  It's ideal for having a quick blast as it is so simple to get into, but it's also great for prolonged sessions. Progressing through the campaigns/championships in racing games can often be quite a grind at times.  I didn't find that to be the case with Table Top Racing though.  Each championship has a series of different kinds of events, as I mentioned earlier. These range from the standard battle race, to Time Trials and also chase events, where you have to catch and nudge another car within a time limit. It really varies things up, and you find yourself doing just one more event.

In addition to the grouped event Championships, there are a series of Drift events and a whole wad of individual special events to blast through too, and you will really want to try and get three stars in them all.  Ad hoc and Online multiplayer modes are also provided for those who want to play against real people.  There is plenty of game here for your hard earned.

The other component to the gameplay is the unlocking and upgrading of new vehichles.  In game currency allows you to improve the stats of your rides, including speed, handling, acceleration and armour.
You can also buy paint jobs and different tyres.  The various tyre types can add quite a bit of strategy to proceedings as there are tyres that allow you to bounce, which allow you to access certain shortcuts on the tracks. There are also tyres that nulify your opponents' weapons, and ones that stop anyone foolish enough to try and pass you at close quarters.  Choosing the right tyres for a particular track or event type can certainly give you an edge, or improve your chance of a three star performance.  There is the option to purchase in game coins via micro transaction, but thankfully this is not a necessity to game progression. Hooray for that!!



Overall, I found Table Top Racing to be a lovely little game. The customization is surprisingly deeper than I expected, and I can see myself returning to the game for a quick blast for years to come. The only criticisms I have are that more could have been made of the tracks. I would have liked to have seen some environmental hazards provided. Certainly some static ones, and perhaps even some animated or real time hazards. Spillages, holes, collapsing features etc.  It's all a wee bit lifeless despite the beauty of the things. I would have also liked to have seen maybe some more expansive tracks, such as you find in Mario Kart to complement the tight, hectic ones. Wider areas that might have allowed for different strategies perhaps. I know they are set on table tops which is by nature going to mean small tight spaces etc, but every race is always very tight, narrow and compact. Your opponents are always breathing down your neck and you know that if your opponent has an EMP or a missile then you are more than likely to get hit. This is not necessarily a negative but I just would have liked to see that strategic variety in the game.  On the plus side, this does make for superb nerve wracking combat racing and the lead can change over and over in the space of a few seconds. I would have liked the difficulty to have been set slightly higher though too, but those are the only real negatives I can find here.

A highly recommended game. Much better than I expected. Takes a little while to get going but it really grows on you. For £4.99 this is another essential new game for the Vita. Go and geddit!