Fans of the cult classic racing video games by Japanese developer Genki, rejoice. After a long hiatus, the Genki Racing Project team has announced a new Tokyo Xtreme Racer game, set to release in 2025.
Simply titled as Tokyo Xtreme Racer in English, the new teaser video confirms that this follows the direct lineage of Tokyo Xtreme Racer series.
The original Tokyo Xtreme Racer was released in 1999. The follow-up, Tokyo Xtreme Racer 2, in 2000. The following game, Tokyo Xtreme Racer Zero released a year later in 2001. And the final entry, Tokyo Xtreme Racer 3, was in 2003.
Outside of one mobile game entry in 2017, the series has since laid dormant.
In Japan, the game is called Shotoku Battle, just like the 1999 game was in Japanese. Both the Shotoku Battle and Tokyo Xtreme Racer logos for the new 2025 entry pays homage to the original incarnations.
Tokyo Xtreme Racer also has a spin-off series called Tokyo Xtreme Racer Drift (Kaido Battle in Japanese), which focuses on the winding hillclimbs of the Japanese countryside rather than the highways of the metro areas.
In Tokyo Xtreme Racer (2025), players will be racing in customised cars along in a “sealed-off future Tokyo”. Screenshots on the Steam page shows parts of the Tokyo highway (one image shows part of the C1 loop) albeit with no traffic in sight.
Tokyo Xtreme Racer is a peerless racing game in that its races are structured more like a fighting game match rather than simply being the fastest to the finish line. These “SP Battles” are usually a 1-on-1 battle where the leader must outrun the chaser. The further the gap the faster the SP bar drains. Collisions also drain the bar, but if the racers are running neck-and-neck, the bar won’t drain. It’s a unique gameplay mechanic that has never been faithfully replicated in any major racing game. The closest you can get is the indie racer Nightrunners.
The new Tokyo Xtreme Racer is set for release in 2025. And for the first time for the series, it will be available on PC (Steam).