"Project Gotham Racing 4," the newest installment in one of the better racing games on the market, isn't simply about racing down real city streets in some of the world's sleekest cars; it's about racing down those streets in style.
The game folds players into their world. The seconds slow down. Players are conscious that, at any moment during game play, everything they've worked for could go spin out of control - literally. That's kind of the point, though. Players ride a fine and dangerous line between racing and stunt driving.
The original "PGR" diverted from the traditional strain of racing by adding kudos, bonus points that the driver could win by pulling drifts, getting his or her car on two wheels or launching the vehicle into the air.
|
PROS
Graphics
Weather effects
Sweet career system
Tons of cars and cycles
Heart-pounding races
Smashing kudos system
Variety of races and tracks
Only time you'll break 100 in New York
CONS Soundtrack sucks Only used a few cars during career Slow start to the campaign "Where did my day go?" |
Bizzare Creations makes three major additions to "PGR 4." First off, players can now drive motorcycles. While some complain that cycles are too overpowered, they generate many more kudos from stunt driving but don't perform as well in a street race.
The second thing "PGR 4" adds is the best weather effects engine in any racing game. Rain makes roads slippery, and ice makes roads almost untenable. Players' cars will hydroplane realistically, or they will spin out if one is not careful on an icy turn. These new variables make the game incredibly dynamic. A player might easily make a turn during one race, but with different weather conditions, that same player might want to be a bit less reckless.
"PGR 4" has also completely revamped the career mode. Instead of a series of championships that have to be completed without any sense of time (as was the case with "PGR 3"), "PGR 4" builds your races off of a calendar. You'll hop from event to event and participate in championships whose series of events can range from the more kudos-based tasks to high-octane races and timed runs.
Likewise, instead of purchasing new cars and bikes with money or unlocking them, players can obtain them by either completing rare events or by buying "purchase packs" of vehicles or new tracks with kudos points earned from races.
"PGR 4" does what good sequels do best. It has taken a great design and not only thrown in a plethora of new cars and tracks, but also built and revamped the game design. It's added a life-like career, some of the sleekest driving on the market and gameplay that is bound to get your blood pumping.
