The series is characterised by its fast-paced gameplay, cutting-edge 3D visuals that maximise the resolution capabilities of the game's console, and its association with electronic dance music, particularly big beat-infused techno and trance.

This includes collaborations with prominent electronic artists such as The Chemical Brothers, The Prodigy, Leftfield, Orbital, Underworld, Fluke, and the in-house composer CoLD SToRAGE.

[1][2][3] The concept of Wipeout was first discussed during a pub conversation, when a Psygnosis staff member, Jim Bowers, envisioned creating a futuristic racing game which featured anti-gravity ships.

[6][7] Power-ups come in the form of offensive or defensive weaponry, ranging from machine guns, missiles, mines and rockets to energy shields, autopilots, and turbo boosts.

[12][13] Chevron-shaped speed pads also feature prominently on race tracks: once flown over, the player's ship receives a momentary boost.

[37] Wipeout 3 (stylised as wip3out in Europe and Japan) is the fourth title in the franchise and was first released in September 1999 for the PlayStation, where players race in the F7200 league.

The Sheffield-based company, known for its underground techno album covers, provided "visual candy" to Wipeout 3's graphics, designing the game's icons, billboards, and colour schemes.

After the success of the previous games, the development team wanted to target Wipeout Fusion at an "older, savvier crowd" by making it stand out from the F-Zero series, which some critics had often compared it to.

[41] Wipeout Pure (stylised as wipE'out pṳre) is the sixth game in the series and was released simultaneously with the launch of the PlayStation Portable in 2005.

Throughout production, the Liverpudlian studio created new user interfaces and other algorithms that helped speed up the development process in time for the PlayStation Portable's launch.

[44] The game features sixteen licensed music tracks from techno artists, including Kraftwerk, DJ Fresh, and Skream.

The game was released as a launch title for the PlayStation Vita in early 2012 and centres around players competing in the first Anti-Gravity Racing Championships.

[55] When the staff of the Liverpudlian studio were given development kits for what was then dubbed a "Next Generation Portable", a group was set up within the team to brainstorm ideas.

From starting from a conversation in a pub, to a test video for a movie, to a piece of unknown hardware documented only in Japanese, to then, twelve months later having a working game on the shelf – it was an astonishing achievement.

[a] The conceptualisation of Wipeout revolved around Psygnosis designer Nick Burcombe's idea of creating a racing game using the same types of anti-gravity vehicles featured in Powerdrome, a title first released on the Atari ST in 1988.

[6][64] After the beta version of Wipeout appeared in the cult film Hackers, Sony expressed interest in Psygnosis due to the "impressive work" the studio had produced with 3D graphics.

[67] Subsequent development of Wipeout 2097 spanned seven months, and a nightclub tour in conjunction with Red Bull was set up to advertise the game.

Lead artist Nicky Westcott wanted to make the game look like a "believable future" to retain a realistic sensibility.

[39] Wipeout 3 also featured a curated electronic soundtrack to complement its style, further cementing the franchise's reputation for integrating music and gameplay.

The team received development kits of the then-upcoming PlayStation Portable the following year, and was made aware that Wipeout Pure was going to be a launch title for that console.

During development, Studio Liverpool created user interfaces and custom plugins for 3D computer graphics software entirely from scratch in order to help speed up the process.

[55] The development of the game influenced the design of the console itself; staff from the Liverpudlian studio were sent to brainstorm ideas to senior management at Sony.

[6][7][46][87][27] Upon release, the first Wipeout game was widely praised for its electronica soundtrack, originality, and outstanding visuals;[88][89] however, a critic at the time questioned its longevity and potential to hold a long lifespan in comparison to Super Mario Kart.

[99] The fourth instalment of the series, Wipeout 3, was positively received upon release; critics lauded the graphics, fast-paced gameplay, and music,[100][101][102] although many reviews felt that the game's steep learning curve was a major fault.

[111][112] The final instalment in the franchise to be developed by Studio Liverpool, Wipeout 2048, received generally positive reviews despite it being the lowest ranked game overall.