Star Wars Episode 1 Racer:
| Rating: | Gold |
| Release(s) Tested: | Steam |
| Application Version: | N/A |
| WINE/Proton Version: | GE-Proton 8.1 |
| Test Scope: | All races, attaining first place in each |
| Input Method: | Controller |
| Launch Options: | |
| Date of Report: | 3 June 2023 |
Summary
Unessential movie audio is missing and a few tweaks may be needed for controller setup, but this game otherwise offers a Platinum-level experience.
Installing & Running
Installs and runs out-of-box on Steam.
Resolution settings must be accessed by clicking the "Play" button for the game on Steam, and then choosing Display Settings when prompted. You will not see this option when launching from a shortcut!
The game may not recognize your controller at launch. If this occurs, it can be resolved by accessing the following Steam settings page:
Steam -> Settings -> Controller -> General Controller Settings
From here, select your controller name and choose "Hide This Device". Applying this fix did not negatively affect any other controller-based games.
Results & Issues
When opening the game at 1080p, there was a black rectangle that repeatedly resized itself for a second or two before the game actually launched. This only occurred during launch and did not interfere with my regular desktop environment.
Vibration did not work for my controller on this game; however, it didn't work on Windows either.
The game did not always fully exit. The window itself would close, but the game would still be seen as "running" in Steam. When this occurred, the only way to fully quit the game was through Steam itself.
I could not pause the game with any button on my Xbox One controller, and needed to use the Escape key instead.
The prerendered movies were entirely silent. Ordinarily, this would warrant a Silver rating as the issue could not be fixed by any means I attempted. However, these movies are not at all needed to enjoy this game, contain no story or gameplay elements, and were easily skipped. All game-rendered cutscenes—the ones relevant to the game itself—played correctly.
Notes
Game progress will not be properly saved if you use the default profile, or any profile with the name "Anakin". To avoid this, you must create a new profile with a different name. This bug is present on the retail version in Windows as well.
The "early start" boost—where you hit the gas right before the race begins to get a head start—is significantly harder to achieve than when playing on N64 or an emulator. This is a design choice (or bug?) that also applies to Windows.