Project Gotham Racing 2

Until now John Gillooly thought 'Cone Challenge' under the Sydney Harbour Bridge was a teenage rite of passage.

Project Gotham Racing 2 is the third in a series of very different driving games that began with Metropolis Street Racer on the Dreamcast. The series has differed from the pack by focusing upon stylish driving rather than purely on lap times. Outlandish driving is rewarded by kudos points, which can be used to purchase cars as you progress through the game.

Even though it was one of the most popular Xbox launch games, Project Gotham Racing had some major flaws that were a hangover from Metropolis Street Racer. Its focus on scoring kudos points meant that successful drivers were those who were masters of the handbrake rather than of the driving line. While it was an enjoyable way to play, it kept PGR from greatness.

Project Gotham Racing is an infinitely more mature game. Gone is the sideways fixation, you can still take every corner staring down the straight through your side window, but the kudos system now rewards technically correct driving just as much as it does hoonery.

It simply makes the game more rounded, allowing different players to focus on the driving style that they enjoy the most. In fact, this customisability permeates the entire game.

Every single player race can be played at varying difficulty levels, each of which has a different goal and amount of kudos awarded. This allows for everyone from novice to expert to be able to proceed through the game without feeling like it is too easy or too hard.

But it is not just the game structure that has received a revamp. Graphically PGR 2 is crisper and cleaner than the original, with immaculately reconstructed tracks from around the world. Rather than do the usual driving game thing of spreading all the races over two or three cities, PGR 2 has a huge number of locales, including Sydney's Rocks area.

It is unusual to race in familiar streets, but it gives a remarkable insight into the level of detail that goes into the PGR 2 environments. It is spot on, from the curve of the road as it goes under the Harbour Bridge to the accurately modelled pubs on the route (one suspects that a large part of the research work by the designers was done in said pubs).

The only thing lacking is the queue of heavily made up teenagers trying to scam their way into Jacksons on George.

PGR 2 is not only a well rounded single player game; it is a shining example of what Xbox Live is capable of. You can forget single player and complete the entire game online, progressing through the championships against real people, earning kudos and buying new cars if you want.  Live also features in single player, where you can download not only content but also the world's top times for each race, and even the ghost of the player who set that time, so you can set yourself a real challenge.

Bizzare Creations has outdone itself with Project Gotham Racing 2. It has rounded and polished the game into one of the finest driving games out there (and certainly the best of its kind on the Xbox) while simultaneously delivering an online experience like none other. There is simply no better driving experience on the Xbox.