Riders Republic Review

An excellent, arcadey extreme sports sandbox with bonkers multiplayer events and an impressive open world.

Riders Republic is a fresh entry in the extreme sports genre of video games. Once a dominant force in the gaming landscape, the genre has been largely neglected over the past decade as a glut of online shooters and open-world action games have flooded the market.

In that regard, Riders Republic feels like a welcome throwback. It’s the type of game you might have expected to see on the PS2. However, it contains more than enough modern gameplay sensibilities to play like a current-generation title.

The game is a spiritual sequel to Ubisoft’s 2016 snowboarding title Steep, and it takes its predecessor’s formula and runs with it. Riders Republic adds more than additional things to do, but a welcome level of customization that is almost unmatched in the genre.

Riders Republic’s combination of a massive open world that you can explore at will and strong gameplay variety is a compelling one. The career mode can become a tad repetitive as you progress deeper, but the game never punishes you for switching gears and doing something else when tedium creeps in.

Developer Ubisoft Annecy has confirmed that more content is coming, and with such a promising foundation already in place, Riders Republic could be built into something really special. They don’t really make games like Riders Republic anymore, but I’m thrilled that Ubisoft has.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FtSjW_1BM1U

PROS	CONS
Vast open world	Tedious tutorial
Strong gameplay variety	Repetitive core events
Highly customizable controls
Mass Races are brilliant fun

Riders Republic Specs

Platforms: PC, PS4, PS5, Amazon Luna, Stadia, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S

Price: $60

Release Date: October 28, 2021

Genre: Sports action/simulation