Three Hours: Should You Play ‘Riders Republic’?

Three Hours is our new series that will look to offer a recommendation on games. The average person usually doesn’t need too much time to understand if they want to keep playing a game or not. While many games have a moment where everything clicks, and the player decides if they’re going to go all the way to the finish or not, there’s usually a moment far earlier where we decide if we’re going to continue playing the game altogether. While there isn’t exactly a set amount of time that this happens, we’d guess that for the average game it’s probably about three hours in. By that time, players have had time to test out mechanics and make a decision on if they want to try and see the game through.

We want to try and help players understand if the games they’re interested in are worth giving a chance. As game prices increase, the decision to purchase a game is more important than ever, and we don’t want someone to potentially put down $70 for a game that they’re going to realize quickly they don’t like. As a result, we’re always going to put a minimum of three hours into a game we play. If we feel that we need more time to understand what a game is about (JRPG’s are infamous for this) then we’ll continue to play it until we feel we have a strong understanding to give a recommendation on if a game is worth the time or not.

Riders Republic

What is Riders Republic?

Riders Republic is a spiritual successor to the Steep series of games. The player is put into a large open world with terrains varying from forests to snowy mountains, to cliffs as far as the eye can see. This world is known as the Riders Republic and it’s an extreme sports playground where Riders can Bike, Snowboard/Ski, or Rocket Wingsuit their way around. There are competitions that players will compete in as they look to become the top rider in the world, but alongside those competitions are varying side activities such as stunts, collectibles, scenic viewpoints, and mass races.

While the “plot” of the game is going to push the player towards competitions, it’s more likely they’re going to be spending their hours exploring this huge world. It’s really fun just going around and seeing what new things you can find. The competitions shouldn’t be completely avoided though, because doing them unlocks new gear that makes traveling that terrain a little easier and more fun. It will also lead to new competitions as well, so it’s worth doing them whenever you feel like racing.

That equipment will come in handy when the player is competing in multiplayer events. While there’s some standard player vs. player multiplayer trick events such as racing or trick battles, the best event by far are the Mass Races. Usually, when the player is exploring the world they’ll see ghosts of other players riding around and doing their own thing. These ghosts are good, because they help the world feel alive and filled with people even if the amount of people on any given server is usually far smaller. However, competitions are usually against ghosts as well so the amount of player interaction in this open-world is pretty minimal without a strong group to play with. The Mass Races on the other hand are always real players and they are huge. 64 people all in one race vying for the top spot. It’s pure chaos.

That chaos is where Riders Republic is at its best though and it exemplifies the best, and worst, part of the game. Riders Republic is at its most fun when interacting with other players. That includes when exploring the world. While players are free to go off and do whatever they want on their own, with a party of other people you can compete against one another and that adds more stakes to those races. The “plot” of the game doesn’t do a very good job of adding motivation for the player and as a result it can get a little dull sometimes on your own.

Why You Should Play Riders Republic

-Huge open world
-Plenty to do
-Mass Races

A good group of friends can put a ton of time into Riders Republic. The open world is begging to be explored and anyone that is looking for a game to chill out to while they hang out with friends in a party or discord call will find this to be the perfect game. Players who get really into it will have a great time competing in the Mass Races. They’re chaotic but just skilled enough to make players feel good when they find themselves at the top of the leaderboard.

Why You Should Not Play Riders Republic

-Single player experience lacking
-Bad dialogue
-The fun won’t last forever

Riders Republic is a tougher sell for anyone that wants to play it on their own. There is fun to be had in this game, but that fun won’t last forever because the plot doesn’t do enough to push the player forward. Even with so much to explore, it’s just more fun as a multiplayer experience. Maybe wait for this one to hit Game Pass or drop in price before trying it out.

Our Take

We had a ton of fun with Riders Republic when we previewed it back in August. A lot of that same joy was still there, but it felt a little more muted the second go around. It didn’t feel as fresh and it was screaming for some friends to play with. That said, it was still plenty of fun and a game we put well over three hours into — not because we needed more time, but because we wanted to keep playing.