Rage Racer is the third title in the Ridge Racer series of racing games on the PlayStation. Developed and published by Namco, it was released in Japan on December 3, 1996, with releases in the U.S. and Europe following in 1997. It was the first game in the series to feature a CGI animated introduction, and introduced a new "mascot", Reiko Nagase. Though the game sold well, with praise from reviewers for its graphics and gameplay, it received criticism for its crash mechanics, relatively drab visual style and shortage of tracks. Overall Rage Racer was considered too similar to its predecessors, and as such its impact was limited. Rage Racer was followed by a sequel, R4: Ridge Racer Type 4 in 1998.