The year is 2052 and Anti-Gravity Racing is the hottest thing on the planet. Winners of these races walk home with fame, fortune, and glory. The losers stagger home with a bad case of whiplash. Fortunately, you’ve got your pick of the four fastest sleds on Earth. It will take all the skill and timing you can muster to finish high enough to be the circuit champion.

WipEout will take you through six different race courses located at all points of the globe. Each track is unique in look, feel, and racing surface, and you’ll want to figure out which sled works the best with your own style of racing. In addition to simply turning left or right, you’ll sometimes have to incorporate your left and right air brakes to make the tight turns. Also, you’ll have control over the up and down tilt of your sled, which should be used when you are going up and down steep hills.

Without the shackles of gravity, your sleds will reach speeds previously attainable only in your dreams. The sleds move fast all by themselves, but the courses are also riddled with boost pads which will thrust you forward so fast you can almost feel the skin stretching back on your face. Be careful, though, because if you hit a boost pad while from the wrong angle you might be rocketed right into a retaining wall.

You job will be to finish ahead of the other seven racers on the track. In addition to fancy driving you’ll be able to grab some power-ups that can put you one step ahead of the competition. There are dumb fire missiles, two types of homing missiles, and mines you can use to smite your foes. There is also a shield for protection purposes, and a super booster which, when properly used, can shave some major seconds off of your time.

The game on its own is 1-player, but if you happened to have the PlayStation’s link cable you can play head to head against a friend. If you can’t get enough high speed action, wipeout is definitely a game you should try.