Cosmic Race Pro Tips

[Princess Rescuer]

Cosmic Race is an infamously maligned PS1 game. It's one of the earliest ones, coming out in January 1995, being the first game outside of the launch library to come out for the famous console. Since then, it's become an easy target for negative reviewers, who make easy jokes about the unusual controls, then proceed to point out how long and tedious the titular cosmic races are. Indeed, the tracks could have used some editing, but despite being an "asset flip", it's still a game that required at least some effort to make. And it's not nearly as horrible as many other games on the system. It's certainly playable and has a nice visual style and soundtrack. Unlike many other PS1 games, it's also short.

In Cosmic Race, you do not accelerate with the X button. Instead, you use R1. In order to turn, you use the D-Pad to turn and the face buttons to rotate, so you're turning by pressing a D-Pad direction and a corresponding face button together.

There are five different vehicles to choose from- a motorcycle, a robot, a car, a propeller, and a flying van. Although you may think top speed is what matters (and it does when it comes to time trials) you want a balanced vehicle that turns well too for safety. The problem with the fast vehicles is, it can be difficult to steer them out of the way of incoming obstacles and turns. You don't have unlimited chances like in Mario Kart- there are limits on both the damage you can take or the course out timer. The slow speed of some of the vehicles doesn't necessarily harm you when you have the ability to more easily fly low towards the magnet road, making you go much faster.

The first world is a typical well-vegetated "grasslands" type world, with lakes and mountains. These races are pretty linear, so they won't be too difficult. Use this as an ample opportunity to learn how to stay low and move up and down when needed. Also learn how to prepare or react when things suddenly appear and you have to go up to evade them. The draw distance is very bad in this game, so get used to it in World 1. Your focus should be on speed, which you gain by staying low to the ground and making the most of the magnet road. Enough speed will give you a generous lead which will allow you to slow down when the goal is near. Not only can you miss the goal, but turning around to get it puts you "off course" and takes away those precious course out seconds. Being well in the lead buys you some time to slow down and approach the goal more carefully. Also, when you finish a course, you are presented with some menu options- one of which lets you save and another lets you repeat the race you just finished. This may seem unappealing, but I suggest replaying some of the races in the first world to get you used to the controls, draw distance, mechanics, and the length of most of these courses. You might not be motivated if you haven't built up the patience. In worlds 2 and 3, the tracks get much longer, and you may not be motivated to continue if you haven't gotten used to how long they are. You need to have gotten into a state of mind where the track length doesn't bother you and you don't mind memorizing long, boring tracks. If that doesn't sound appealing to you, then just do repeat playthroughs and play consistently.

In World 2, you have new things to contend with: currents, big leaves that get in the way, and sharper turns. This is quite a step up from World 1. Here's how to deal with it: for the currents, go low to the ground and come back up. For the leaves, go around them not above. For the sharper turns, cut some corners. It's okay to waste some course out seconds on them. In one of the tracks, the goal is behind a rock, so slow down before approaching it.

World 3 is a lava world. You will have to do lots of moving around in this world. Not just turns, but up and down for all the pyramids and lava flows. It's generally fine to stay high since the ground will raise up to reach you and maintain your speed. Focus on survival over speed. There isn't much risk of losing these races once you've done them a few times. Most likely, you'll bump into flying objects and run out of energy. Stay out of their way and focus on cautious progress. Don't lose your way with the turns either- the lava world is visually dense and it's difficult to find your way back.

You're almost finished! The final world is a space world. It's a nicer place with better music, but you still have some difficulties to contend with. There are sharper turns than ever, and if you go too far out of course, it's nearly impossible to find your way back in. Not only that, but the short length of World 4 courses means your lead opportunities are slimmer than before. Just memorize these courses. Have a good balance between speed and being prepared for strange turns. These tracks are short, don't have many obstacles, and are at the end of the game, so just don't give up. And that's it- you can now watch the credits. That game wasn't so bad, was it?