R: Racing Evolution

R: Racing Evolution
European GameCube cover art featuring protagonist Rena Hayami and the BMW McLaren F1 GTR
Developer(s)Namco
Publisher(s)
Director(s)Hideo Teramoto
Designer(s)James Lisle
Kazuya Maruyama
Hisashi Kawamura
Masaya Kobayashi
Kazuo Yamamoto
Fumihiro Tanaka
Programmer(s)Satoru Ouchi
Artist(s)Yoshinori Wagatsuma
Kiyotake Fujii
Shoji Imamura
Writer(s)Masaya Kobayashi
Composer(s)Yuu Miyake
Hiroshi Okubo
Akitaka Tohyama
Platform(s)GameCube, PlayStation 2, Xbox
Release
  • JP: 27 November 2003
  • NA: 9 December 2003
  • EU: 2 April 2004
Genre(s)Racing simulation
Mode(s)Single-player, multiplayer

R: Racing Evolution, released as R: Racing in PAL territories, is a 2003 racing simulation video game developed and published by Namco. It was released on the GameCube, PlayStation 2 and Xbox. It is a spin-off of the Ridge Racer series, released over three years after Ridge Racer V; unlike the main series, R: Racing Evolution is a simulator or simcade, and uses licensed racecars rather than fictional vehicles. The game centers around the character Rena Hayami in her career as a professional racing driver, and her rivalry with veteran driver Gina Cavalli, in a cinematic and story-driven plot. It received generally mixed reviews from critics.