Ride 4

RIDE is the only racing game series dedicated to real motorcycle races on natural tracks. The franchise has been around since 2015 and continues to live to this day, and its latest part to date was RIDE 4.

The developers promised that the fourth part would be a real breakthrough: they wanted to finally move away from arcade simplicity towards more realistic driving. Updated graphics, reworked physics, new modes – all this was supposed to raise the series to a new level. Before this, players often criticized RIDE for weak physics and graphics, which even at the time looked outdated. So let’s see if RIDE 4 managed to live up to its loud promises.

Ride 4 Free Steam Account

With the release of RIDE 4, players were expecting not just a continuation of the racing series, but a real breakthrough. Especially after the loud promises of the developers, who assured that this time the physics of tire wear would be as close to reality as possible. The icing on the cake was the announcement of cooperation with Yamaha. This seemed like great news – after all, a brand with a world name, and especially their legendary Yamaha YZF-R1, inspires confidence. It seemed that we were in for a deep study of the bike’s behavior, where every turn, every hundred meters of the track would be felt by the body, like in a real race. However, as often happens, in reality everything turned out to be much simpler – and, unfortunately, disappointing. All the “realistic” physics that we were so colorfully told about before the release came down to one effect: if you race for a long time, the rear wheel begins to skid more often. And that’s probably all. No temperature changes, no impact of asphalt, no complex dependence on weather conditions – none of this is in the game. And this was promised. It turns out that instead of depth of simulation, we got a decorative layer, behind which the same mechanics are hidden as in the previous parts.

Speaking of content, there are not as many updates as we would like. The main innovation is the structure of the career mode. The player now starts with regional leagues: Asia, Europe, America. As you progress, access to the world series opens. This sounds like an interesting system that could motivate you to study different driving styles and customize your bikes for different conditions. But due to the general monotony of the gameplay, motivation disappears after a couple of dozen races. You can go through a career in two ways: participating in short, dynamic sprints or immersing yourself in endurance races. And here comes the most controversial part. Marathons are those long races that can last 20, 30, and sometimes even more minutes. They are equipped with animations of entering the pits, changing tires, and refueling. Sounds cool? On paper, yes. But in reality, you just watch your bike “go” to the workshop, change tires, and come back. And everything would be fine if the opponents somehow helped to maintain interest.

But, alas, here you will find 11 opponents with extremely strange AI. They can go too slowly or, on the contrary, inadequately fast, completely not reacting to the player’s actions. There is no talk of fighting for positions, maneuvers at the limit of adhesion, and real tension. Instead, you race for 20 minutes on an empty track, alone, with small episodes of “racing” that quickly lose their drive. Boredom and monotony – that’s what truly characterizes these races. Even a cyber athlete in training would hardly be interested in this. Can this be compared to real endurance racing, for example, with Le Mans? Only with a stretch. In reality, if you remember, for example, Le Mans Moto 2020, there were about 40 riders at the start, and the track was filled with life: a constant change of leaders, a fight at every turn, tension that lasts until the very finish. And yes, that very “Le Mans-style” start, where riders run to their motorcycles – it is implemented in the game, but as an automatic scene. No interaction, no participation – just a short cut-scene, so that the “realism” checkbox is sort of checked.

And even if you don’t expect a simulator at the level of MotoGP from the game, you want at least an atmosphere. You want to feel that you are in the thick of things, that the fight goes on until the last lap. And here everything resembles a training run on a closed track, where there is no one else except you and robots with minimal intelligence. As a result, RIDE 4 is not a step forward, but rather marking time. Good graphics? Yes. Beautiful bikes? Of course. But the liveliness, excitement and promised realism – alas, were not delivered. And although the developers tried to show cooperation with Yamaha as a significant contribution to physics, in the end we received only superficial changes. You can’t fool players: behind the beautiful facade is the same old house, slightly repainted for the next release.

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RIDE 4’s Main Drawbacks: From Motorcycle Sounds to Neural Network AI

The first thing that confuses you is the sound. You launch the game, expecting the powerful roar of sports bikes, adrenaline in your ears, as if you were standing on the side of the MotoGP track… and instead, something resembling the sound of a choking moped comes from the speakers. And this is not an isolated bug – it is systemic. Why use audio files for expensive, high-speed bikes that are more suitable for a Chinese scooter for $ 50? It seems as if the developers have never heard what real motorcycles sound like. For a simulator, this is, to put it mildly, strange. Then there is the physics of control. Of course, we are already accustomed to the fact that in the RIDE series, bikes can fall from one knee to another in a split second. Yes, it looks like an action movie, but it has little in common with reality. Let’s say so. But what happens with braking is a completely different level of absurdity. Especially with the rear brake, which is normally used to correct the trajectory in turns. In RIDE 4, it seems to turn into a self-destruct button. Press it a little — and you spin around, as if you were riding on ice on racing slicks.

Moreover, the game simulates modern sportbikes, where dual-channel ABS has long been the standard. This system is supposed to prevent skidding and wheel locking. But there is no logic in the game. You do not touch the front brake at all, the weight does not transfer forward, the rear wheel does not unload … and it still goes into an uncontrolled skid. It feels like the entire braking logic works on the principle of “press – fall”. In general, the physics of the game looks superficial and outdated. The advertising materials talked about advanced simulation, taking into account the temperature of the tires, grip on different surfaces, weather conditions … In practice, there is none of this. Everything is limited to the simplest model of behavior, where the motorcycle reacts to the player’s actions in completely different ways depending on the selected difficulty level. In the “simple” modification, everything is too plastic and forgives any mistake, in the “realistic” one – on the contrary, you barely press the button – and you’re already lying down. There is no balance. All these tilts, breakdowns and accelerations look impressive, but they are played clumsily and unnaturally.

Actually, the main problems of RIDE 4 can be reduced to the following:

• The sound design of the motorcycles is puzzling and does not match the visuals at all;
• The physics of the motorcycle are primitive and full of illogical reactions – especially in terms of braking;
• The promised simulation of tires, track surface and temperature conditions is missing;
• The AI ​​of the opponents is weak, boring and does not give any challenge in the early stages of the career;
• The behavior of the bike is highly dependent on the difficulty level, creating the illusion of “realism settings” that do not exist.

And finally, Neural AI. If this is a neural network, then it’s clearly time for it to retire. The first ten tracks in your career, you just ride alone – no one is trying to overtake, no one is fighting for position. Opponents move along rails and do not even react to what you do on the track. Where is the declared dynamics, where is the adaptability? If this is a neural network, then it is very tired and boring.

As a result, we get a rather strange situation. Visually, the game is excellent: beautiful bike models, good tracks, a decent interface. But as soon as you start riding, listening, braking and competing – everything collapses. Instead of a simulator, there is a feeling of a cheap arcade game disguised as a serious project. And all this against the backdrop of promises of “the most realistic motorcycle physics on the market.”

Ride 4 System Requirements

How to play Ride 4 for free on Steam via VpeSports

Have you ever dreamed of feeling what it’s like to race along the track on a sports bike, when the whole world merges into a blurry line, and every second is worth its weight in gold? Ride 4 gives you this chance. This is not just a game – it’s a simulator for those who live for speed. Realistic motorcycle behavior, sudden weather changes, complex turns that do not forgive mistakes – not only reflexes are important here, but also a cool head. And yes, you can try all this absolutely free – through a free Steam account.

We have specially simplified the process to a minimum. You do not need to configure anything manually or spend hours searching for how to launch everything. Just go to our website, create an account, log in – and access to Ride 4 through a free Steam account is already open to you. We have prepared everything in advance: instructions, login, even a list of useful tips for beginners. All that remains is to click “play” – and you are already at the start.

It is important to us that you like everything. After the race, don’t forget to leave your feedback – we read every message. If the comment doesn’t appear right away, just rephrase it – and it will definitely appear. After moderation, you will automatically receive an email with login details for your free Steam account.

To stay up to date with new accounts and new features, be sure to subscribe to our Telegram channel. There you will find everything – from announcements to patches, from news to discussions with the same fans of speed as you. And if you have any questions – take a look at the “How to play for free – a complete guide” section or write to us in the chat. We are in touch so that you can always get back on the track.