The Ridge Racer series, although dormant for several years now, is a celebrated title in Bandai Namco’s catalog, often paying several homages to previous Namco titles of the past. While the PlayStation and PlayStation 2 era of games were subtle, the later games beginning with the PlayStation Portable titles became more apparent.
Different variations of existing cars had performance upgrades and liveries named after existing Namco titles both new and old at the time. In Ridge Racer 6 and 7, manufacturer parts and sponsors followed these naming conventions. What’s cool about Ridge Racer, and by extension, most of Namco’s IPs, is the interconnectivity between titles, especially when connections between two unlikely IPs are more obvious than one considers.
In this instance, the worlds of Ridge Racer and Tekken are mentioned both in-universe and as a reference. In this example, I’ll look at both Tekken 6 and Ridge Racer 6 and 7. While both games are different numbered titles, the two Ridge Racer games are similar enough that the reference affects both.
Ridge Racer 7’s references to Tekken are fairly easy to point out, with sponsorships named after characters from the series. The two that stand out are the sentient tree fighter Mokujin and the academy schoolgirl, Ling Xiaoyu.
While Mokujin is featured as a selectable decal, both Mokujin and Xiaoyu are exclusive as a sponsorship package for Gnade’s Magnifico. Even Ridge Racer 6 features references to Tekken and various Namco titles, although the lack of customization compared to 7 makes these more of a complete package.
Ridge Racer 7 was the last console Ridge Racer to be developed and released. It would be three years later with the release of Tekken 6, that the series would be featured as a cameo. It’s a “blink-and-you-miss-it” reference but it is introduced as early as the beginning of Tekken 6’s scenario campaign.
Early on, the player will investigate a cruiser at Queen’s Harbor where they will fight through several enemies within the harbor. Eventually, they will come across Lili, who engages in a fight with the player, and upon victory, a cutscene will play involving Lars taking some wheels off of Lili’s hands. Lili is almost excited to get rid of the vehicle for, well, reasons.
While it’s uncertain to determine if Lili’s tastes have been refined over the years, it’s clear that she isn’t given much of a break in Tekken 8. The latest trailer featuring newcomer Azucena does show Lili having a dispute over whether coffee or tea is better. She turns her nose at large SUVs as well as coffee. Questionable choice of taste, mademoiselle.
I guess when you’re the daughter of Monaco’s successful oil tycoon, you can decide what’s a suitable gift and what isn’t. What’s unique about Lili’s car is that its manufacturer has been a mainstay in Ridge Racer for years, Danver.
Beginning with Ridge Racer 5, Danver would feature its cars beginning with the Toreador and Spectra. It has since made its appearances in every following title, including Ridge Racer 7 where there are three vehicles representing Danver. Danver specializes in cars with a more “American” design and the closest vehicle to Lili’s car is the Bass Cruiser.
Introduced in Ridge Racer 6 and returning in Ridge Racer 7, the Danver Bass Cruiser has two different stories to tell depending on the game. In Ridge Racer 6, it’s said to be the escort car of choice for a certain famous band, with looks, performance, and interior “fit for a king.”
Ridge Racer 7’s description praises it as a machine that has passed many endurance tests for a military car. Not only has it set new time records on rough terrain, but it is also the “ultimate SUV,” outclassing the average sports car.
The defining element of the Bass Cruiser is its exaggerated sound system, with subwoofers massive enough to rival an Escalade in Need For Speed Underground 2. I want to focus on the “military car” as it fits the description of the kind of car Lili received as a gift, which would be perfect for a military-minded person like Lars instead.
So this begs the question. A beefy hard-to-control yet faster-than-average SUV isn’t Lili’s cup of tea so what kind of car would Lili prefer to drive from Ridge Racer? A safe starting point would be something from Age or Assoluto, both French and Italian manufacturers respectively. Something like the Prohetie would capture her elegance while the Fatalita and Bisonte lean towards her beautiful aggression.
While there would be no doubt that she would have any one of these cars in her garage, there is one car that I feel she would love Sebastian to drive her around in. I give you, the Monstrous.
Debuting in Ridge Racer 6 and returning in Ridge Racer 7, this hefty limousine is armed to the teeth with space age technology including rocket engines that dramatically pop out of the trunk when using nitrous.
It’s one of the most surreal cars I’ve driven in a video game, racing or otherwise, but it’s a limousine first and foremost. Sebastian would probably take the car out for a joyride when she’s not around. Maybe she personally requests her butler to go faster when she needs to feel the need for speed—sorry.
This wasn’t the first time that Tekken was directly incorporated into Ridge Racer as players could unlock Heihachi Mishima as a DJ voice in Ridge Racer 6. After playing through World Xplorer mode, one of the prizes earned is the ability to replace the existing announcer that plays during races with Daisuke Gori, the original voice of Heihachi.
With Tekken 8 expected to release sometime in 2024, fans can expect more minor cameos from other Bandai Namco IPs. Now, whether or not fans get to see a return of said IPs is up to the developers themselves. Still, it’s nice to see subtly how interconnected the “Namcoverse” is to their respective titles. Tekken and Ridge Racer of course were two major examples.