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. 