Bizarre Creations' decade of designing strong racing games has culminated in Project Gotham Racing 4. With graphics nothing short of amazing—shiny cars, impressive motion blur, dynamic lighting—and 12 elaborate cities to race in, PGR4 is by no means a racing sim. But fun, arcade-style racing is what the game is after—and for the most part, it succeeds.

Sporting over 120 cars and motorcycles, including the DeLorean and Tesla Electric Roadster, the game relies on a "kudos" system to help propel you through the various races; earning rewards for driving style and speed, the player can then spend accumulated points to earn more cars and tracks. While the lack of damage and crashes is a disappointment—and having bike racers get right back up after a crash that should've turned them into meat sauce is outright ludicrous—this flaw is glossed over by the sheer enjoyment of speeding your vehicles around the game's tracks. PGR4's new weather system also offers an impressive challenge, as conditions change in the middle of races, with sudden fog, wind, and rain complicating your game plan. Driving the Nuremberg ring, for example, can be a nihilistic exercise in icy futility.

As you'd expect, online racing is much more fun than challenging the game's AI. During a couple of sessions, I found myself racing against Italians driving Ferraris and Britons behind the wheels of Aston Martins. You can also upload virtual photos and share recorded races, adding a theatrical scrapbook element to the game.

Though Microsoft has produced a $130 racing wheel for Xbox 360 racing games, the normal controls are more than enough to get your blood pumping. The addition of motorcycles mixes a whole new level of dimension into an already solid game. Cars and bikes face off in the same race, but bikes are much less forgiving and require planning to stay upright in turns. Losing control and tipping is a painless inevitability.

While it's not as extravagant in scope as PlayStation's future behemoth Gran Turismo 5, PGR4 delivers the best racing experience of any Xbox game this year—a rewarding, adrenaline fantasy of racing unaffordable exotic cars at insane speeds. Fully realized and polished, it showcases everything great about the series and shines with quality at every level. I expected to be impressed and wasn't disappointed one bit.