Platform: PlayStation Vita

Developer: Playrise Digital

Publisher: Ripstone Games

# of Players: 1 (1 – 4 online)

ESRB Rating: E (Everyone)

Score: A- (90%)

If there was ever a no-brainer purchase, it would have to be Table Top Racing, the former iOS racer now making a splash on the Vita as a better-looking and more polished product. Featuring speedy 60FPS gameplay, plenty of cars and customization options plus some nifty tracks and events, for a mere $7.99 you’re getting one of the best portable racers on the handheld. While all is peachy keen on the speed and accessibility front, perhaps a track editor of some sort and more control options would have made this one even better than it already is. Then again, as it is, it’s a fun and fast gem that needs no manual reading at all. Just pick up and play, pick up those power-ups and zoom your way to victory and new upgrades for your growing garage of cool little toy cars…

You get two somewhat basic rides to start out with, an ice cream truck and a sort of VW-looking van, both of which can get you past AI racers and racking up a wins with relative ease in Quick Race and some of the Special Events. The real challenge comes from Championship Mode, as its assorted race events require cars that run faster or have better tires, upgrades that need to be bought with earned coins (which can also be purchased for real money if you like). In Championship Mode, there’s an assortment of events from straight-up racing with no on-track pickups, races with limited pickups, solo events with speed boost assists or an event where you need to catch up to and hit a single car that’s racing ahead of you before a timer runs out.

Gameplay is dirt simple one button acceleration, lots of power-slides (which come into play in some excellent Drift events) and one-touch item usage. While the controls are excellent, those gamers with larger hands may find themselves accidentally looking backwards thanks to the rear touchpad being used as the rear view camera. If customizable controls can be patched in (use that D-pad, Playrise!), the game would be perfect. You really don’t need to look behind you at all since races blow by so quickly and any distraction can send your car flying off a track or crashing into something along the side of one of those courses. Most races are three to five laps, there are a few single lap challenges and you don’t need the rear view for solo events at all.

Visually, TTR is excellent, offering a choice of three viewpoints including one Micro Machines fans will love. It takes some getting used to steering this way if you’ve never played one of Codemasters classic top-down racers, but it’s nice to see this viewpoint here because the game is more or less a loving homage to that series. The eight tracks can be raced in forward or reverse variants and pop with side track items (all collision hazards) and the occasional shortcut (sme of which require special tires to reach). Food seems to be a popular item on some course, so don’t be surprised if you’re hungry as hell after a few races. I know I wanted a hot dog, hamburger, soft drinks of assorted size and some good sushi and teppanyaki about twenty minutes into the game. Sounds and music are simple stuff that get the job done and no more. You’re not buying this to listen to techno beats and realistic engines for each car anyway, so deal with it.

As a solo game, TTR is addictive and quite the time eater. As noted, races blaze by quickly and you’re constantly earning coins to afford new upgrades. Progression isn’t TOO fast, mind you. You’ll win new cars by coming in first in Championships or by buying them outright with coins you’ve earned. There’s a light progression hit in that you NEED upgrades to win races, so unless you grind away on easier events you need to balance what you earn against what you buy, as just having enough to snap up a fast ride doesn’t guarantee you’ll win a lot. Of course, you can indeed zip through early to mid-game events with a speedy car and make coins in the process. But the game also drops a few money wrenches into your plans by giving the AI better speed and tricked out tires that make beating them difficult.

Yes, there’s also a bit of rubber-banding going on, but this keeps things tense and always close until you get really good at the game and can outpace anyone by careful item usage. dropping some EMPs at the right moment to stop cars and missiles, hitting the pack of cars behind you with a mine or the one in the lead with a guided missile as you blow past it and score a last-minute win is quite satisfying, especially if you were in last place as the last lap began and you were thinking of a restart. You’ll also lose plenty of races this way and you’re only rewarded by placing in the top three slots. In other words, practice makes perfect, folks.

Online play is here in local and wider range options and as with any online game, your connection speed and which mode you pick will define the experience. In local matches (I had a friend buy the game when it dropped onto PSN today), things run fast and smooth. On the other hand while it took us a few minutes to find an online game, we noticed some lag and stuttering that’s probably due to us not being close to our opponents. We decided to try playing separate matches without each other in races, but encountered the same thing. Again, this is probably due to the other players being so far away rather than a problem with the code, as a one-on-one MP match ran fine.

While this is absolutely worth the eight bucks, it’s too bad it’s not cross-play, as I’d love to see this running on the PS3 or PS4 in split-screen mode for local couch co-op or even on the Wii U’s GamePad. But that’s what sequels are for, right? Anyway, if you’re in the mood for the best casual racer on the Vita, zoom on over to PSN, buy Table Top Racing and get your fix. This one’s a keeper you’ll go back to on a regular basis.