The goal, of course, is to not let the sun set in the horizon, and to keep racing in pursuit of continuously seeing the sun. The race is futile. But this isn’t about catching the sun, it’s about how long you can challenge it.
There’s no need to accelerate because your vehicle will just go. There are power-ups such as point multipliers, speed bursts, and one that gives you the ability to jump. If you level up, you’re given certain abilities such as being able to grab power-ups at a short distance away as well as double jump.
The real star of the show is that procedural generation which gives every game something unique. Certainly, there’s the “tried and true” path that’s somewhat predictable. But once you step off that path, that’s when the environments become incredibly fun.
What keeps me engaged are continuous challenges. For example, jumping a certain amount of distances during a run or increasing your multiplier to 15x.
I can’t help but feel that if this were an arcade game, Race The Sun would be incredibly popular – games like this are really what arcades were all about. You get your quick fix, but also enough motivation to continue.
Race The Sun reminds me a lot of both Star Wars Arcade and Star Fox. It requires quick reflexes and lots of concentration. If your timing is off just a little bit, the game is over.
Another great aspect of Race The Sun is the level editor. If you want to make your own game, you can! This gives the game lots of additional replayability if the procedural generation bores you.
I really love the graphics. Yes, for a 3D polygon game, it is very simple. There are no textures. But the aesthetic is just so right. There’s a strong focus on geometric shapes but also great lighting that gives this wonderful ambience and mood.
The sound effects are spare. You don’t really hear much unless there’s a collision. And that makes the stakes all the more apparent.
The music is likewise simple. It reminds me of something Middle Eastern, though I can’t put my finger on it precisely. It tends to repeat, but I don’t mind since the repetition is tasteful. This is an excellent use of the Unity engine.
Because this game is so minimalist, most PCs can run this Race The Sun fine. You need a dual core CPU, 2GB of RAM, and 150MB of space. As for graphics, anything integrated will run fine. Race The Sun has native compatibility with Windows, Mac, and Linux. This game is incredibly playable on Steam Deck.
There’s also a VR mode, and while I’m not a fan of most VR games, this is something that’s really appealing for VR.
In addition to PC, Race The Sun has also been ported to PS3, PS Vita, PS4, iPhone, iPad, Xbox One, and Wii U. It’s too bad modern consoles didn’t receive a port, but hey, this is why I prefer PC gaming: old games work on PCs.
In addition to the base game, there’s also two DLCs that are available: the soundtrack as well as “Sunrise” which removes leaderboards and the setting sun.
Flippfly is the developer of Race The Sun, and they’ve made two further games: Evergarden, which is a puzzle game; and Whisker Squadron: Surviver, which is an on rails shooter. They have two other games that are currently in development.
On Steam, Race The Sun has a 95% positive rating. Criticisms are that it’s too minimalist, casual, and lacks story. You know, for me, those aspects about Race The Sun are a selling point.
I understand that to many people that deep, involved narrative-driven games are what many people regard as “true gaming”. Being the elder millennial that I am, this makes me laugh because I remember when it was the arcade that was the setting for “true gaming”.
It used to be that both console and PC gaming aspired to deliver the arcade experience at home. And, of course, the arcade didn’t tolerate long involved tutorials and equally long-winded dialogue from NPCs. In the arcade, you better have skill, or you better get out of the cabinet – someone else was waiting with their quarter.
What others see as “casual”, I see as “hardcore”. Are you good enough to make it beyond the first few stages of Race The Sun? Currently, I can only manage three stages, but I’m ready and willing to give it a shot.
Go ahead and play Race The Sun. Sure, it might be calming and “zen”. But also, it will test your skill – proverbially put hair on your chest.
