![]() ![]() Such accidents are probably partly realistic at these immense speeds, but the kind of track knowledge required to remember all the individual pieces of otherwise undetectable tarmac that will probably buck riders from their bikes in this game is out of my reach. ![]() Tiny bumps also have a regular tendency to high side riders in the blink of an eye. The bigger problem is that the low-speed handling is still a bit shonky, making acute hairpins and extremely narrow low-speed sections of track unnecessarily troublesome (Snaefell’s Governor’s Bridge hairpin and the subsequent skinny section, right at the end of a lap, is a particularly notorious offender). The chase view leaves something to be desired, unfortunately, sometimes making it appear like the bike is swinging beneath the rider’s head like a pendulum. A dose of gravel rash is the only reward for cack-handed cornering, and a lapse in concentration at 200 miles per hour will send you spearing into a stone wall like a sidewinder missile. There are several layers of assists to lean on should the punishing pro handling prove an insurmountable challenge but know that, even on the simplest settings, Ride on the Edge 2 requires rapid reflexes and an extremely deft touch. Smaller bikes have obviously benefited from the handling tweaks too but I don’t find them as fun to ride as they’re considerably twitchier. The heavier bikes in particular now cling to the road far more realistically and, while still quite nimble, their bulk is communicated well via their far longer braking distances. ![]() The handling is definitely an improvement over the original, which felt a little more slippery overall. The open roads are peppered with typical open-world racing challenges and are adequate for a quick blat, but Ride on the Edge 2’s handling model is much better suited to full throttle racing as opposed to general exploration. A modest free roam mode is also included, though it’s basically the fictional courses stitched together. They’re adequate but a bit plain compared to the far more densely-detailed Snaefell course. Like the first game there’s a smattering of other, fictional tracks available too – scattered across the UK and Ireland. There’s some pop-in now and then, but not enough of it to really detract from the experience. I haven’t spotted any especially major visual differences between the version of the course here and the version that debuted in the original 2018 game but, even if there were any, they’d be fairly hard to absorb at speeds regularly tickling 200 miles per hour. I’ve never been to the Isle of Man but, based on footage, KT Racing’s version of the course is an admirably authentic facsimile of the real thing. The top-notch sound is an integral part of the sensation of speed, particularly the way wind noise thuds through the speakers as your bike whips past trackside objects. In fact, there are times when Ride on the Edge 2 seems to share more in common with something like WipeOut than a contemporary motorsports sim, such is the startling velocity, amplified by the cramped roads. Navigating the narrow roads of the course at truly sphincter-shrivelling speeds is an immense and unforgiving challenge, and the amount of crashes I’ve had while on maximum attack has made it abundantly clear why the real TT is infamous for its sadly-extensive list of casualties. The star of the show remains the complete 37.73 mile Snaefell Mountain Course itself, with its tree-lined corridors, ancient city streets, and beachside blasts. ![]()
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