  Tearing up asphalt in 'Project Gotham Racing' for the 360. |
Born on the Sega Dreamcast and raised on the Xbox, Project Gotham Racing has now reached maturity on the ivory tower that is the Xbox 360. And it was well worth the wait .
Like its predecessors Metropolis Street Racer and the first two PGR games, Project Gotham Racing 3 strikes a nice balance between the realism of Forza Motorsport or Gran Turismo 4 and the fun of Ridge Racer. It's not arcadey, but it's also not a simulation that requires you to fiddle with gear ratios, engine tuning and oil changes.
But you probably already know that. What you're wondering about PGR3 is in what ways, specifically, it kicks butt. Particularly compared to the Xbox's stellar PGR2.
Well geez, where to begin? Better visuals are a given, and while PGR3 isn't truly photorealistic, the tiny touches that have gone into making it look, feel and sound more like driving a real car through real city streets are astounding.
(And please, please, please don't play this game without spending some quality time with the in-car view mode, which has authentic recreations of each of the 80 or so exotic cars' dashboards and instruments. It's the most satisfyingly realistic driving experience in a video game to date.)
You now earn new cars much faster, and there's no ride that has a top speed slower than 275 km/h. The kudos system is more forgiving and rewarding, and progressing through leagues and challenges feels more natural and is even more addictive. Basically, every aspect of the gameplay that could be fine-tuned has been, with a whack of new features thrown into the mix as well.
One of the most interesting is Gotham TV, which takes PGR's already solid online integration a novel step further by letting you tune into races on Xbox Live as a spectator, switching camera views at will.
You can watch races that people on your friends' list are participating in, or switch to the "Heroes" channel to see the world's top-ranked PGR3 players compete in real-time. Just in case you need a tangible reminder of how much you suck.
Like Project Gotham Racing was on the Xbox, PGR3 is one of the Xbox 360's must-have launch titles. Granted, if you hate racing games, you still won't like it, and it's more of an evolutionary advance over PGR2 than truly innovative.
But if white-knuckle virtual racing is your kick, PGR3 will be the monkey on your back. Don't say you weren't warned.
BOTTOM LINE
A must-buy for Xbox 360 owners who love -- and live -- to speed. Virtually speaking, of course. Please don't drive like this in your own Lamborghini.
WHAM! Rating: |
9 out of 10 |
ESRB Rating: |
E10+ |
Official Web Site: |
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