The all new vision for the Ridge Racer franchise, which is called Ridge Racer Unbound, has finally received confirmed release dates from Namco Bandai. The game will be released in North America on March 6th, 2012 and in Europe on March 2nd, 2012. In addition, the game is now confirmed for release on the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and PC platforms.

The release of Unbound represents a radical departure from previous Ridge Racer titles, with the new entry into the franchise being developed by Bugbear Entertainment (which is best known for the FlatOut racing titles). Unbound is said to combine elements from many recently released racing titles to fuse together to very unique racing experience that is much different than what players might be used to seeing.

While the title in various previews does present itself as an arcade racer, it offers driving as well as both vehicle and environmental destruction and physics. Perhaps the most interesting component of the title could be the new City Creator, which allows players to create and build an unlimited amount of tracks and then share these with their friends. This feature alone could be a very winning part of the equation for this title.

The game will feature both a single player as well as online modes for players to hone their racing skills. Namco Bandai has high hopes for this franchise reboot; and they are hopeful that they are able to generate success where other racing titles died trying to find an audience. With the addition of the City Creator, this just might be the silver bullet that sucks players in. We will have to wait and see how this title does, but several analysts we spoke with have high hopes for the title.