Ridge Racer 2 is not so much a sequel to the early PlayStation Portable title Ridge Racer, but rather an update of the existing game that features several enhancements and a lot of new content. Released about a year after its predecessor, the changes and additions in Ridge Racer 2 include:
A new opening and ending CGI movie.
Many new tracks and songs from previous Ridge Racer games.
New SPECIAL class cars to challenge in duels and win.
Survival mode: In a four car race, after each round, the car to be in last place is eliminated from the pack.
Duel mode: A race against a single AI car.
Single Race mode has been replaced with an Arcade mode in which the player races not only against the pack of 11 cars but also has to reach checkpoints on the track to stay in the game. The options menu features a new setting to adjust the difficulty of Arcade mode.