Ridge Racer Type 4 is, for many people, the shining apex of Namco's legendary arcade racing series.
Combining the infectious drift-based gameplay of the franchise with a surprisingly gripping narrative involving rival teams, Type 4 has plenty of fans, which is why the lack of official model kits for its cars is so puzzling.
That's not to say there haven't been any – Kyosho produced kits which were sold in small quantities in Japan – but these are now worth a small fortune, and I've always been on the lookout for an alternative way to show my love for the game in kit form.
Lego builder StudWorks has now given me that outlet, via a series of custom builds which accurately reproduce four cars from the game (thanks, The Drive).
"My LEGO Speed Champions MOCs of the Assoluto Bisonte (complete redesign from 2022’s MOC), Terrazi Troop, Lizard Detector, and Age Solo Dirigeant from Ridge Racer Type 4, complete with a custom minifigure of Reiko Nagase," is how the builder introduces the quartet of vehicles, before adding:
"Previously, these cars were only available as models in 1/43 scale polystone form, which were all handmade by Kyosho and sold in unbelievably rare quantities in Japan, with full sets valued at well north of $1000 US. Now, you can build all four in ~1/24 LEGO Speed Champions scale, without having to sell a literal kidney for the smaller (and easily-breakable) unobtainium polystone models. It has taken me more than 6 months to replicate each car in unbelievable brick-built detail, including the high-quality stickers designed by Brickstickershop that bring their liveries to life."
Assoluto Bisonte
Terrazi Troop
Lizard Detector
Age Solo Dirigeant
You can purchase the instructions for these kits here, and the stickers will be available here in a few days.