Rockstar's rock-solid import-tuner out-styles its predecessor and its brethren. Full review.
Rockstar San Diego aims the third game in its series away from the relative cheesiness of Midnight Club 2 with its goofy characters, unlicensed cars, and limited customization. The studio adds in a mid-sized customization system to the mix, brings more than 50 fully licensed trucks, SUVs, tuners, exotics, muscle cars, and motorcycles into the fray (all of which take heavy damage, mind you), and brings to the game a sizeable and compelling online component. There are real reasons to explore the vast trio of cities, plus effective if not super-arcadey super powers that add a whole new layer of strategy to the racing itself. And while the MC3 isn't the fastest, nor the prettiest racer around (it's just a hair short on both ends), it's incredibly stylistic, long-lasting, and deep.
As a starting bonus, you'll get all of the powers you earned in MC2 right away (Drift/Powerslide, In-Air Control, Nitrous Boost, SlipStream Turbo, Two Wheel Driving, and Weight Transfer). The new moves, Agro, Zone, and Roar, also add a wild arcade element to the competition, though at first they seem simplistic and silly. They're especially key multiplayer modes. And once the competition toughens up in Detroit, these moves play a more crucial role.
Similar to the previous games, players instantly can dig into Arcade, Career, Networking, or Race Editor modes. Arcade mode enables you to play any of the three cities you've opened in Career mode (San Diego, Atlanta, and Detroit) using the vehicles you've won or bought. It's a nice cruising mode, made valid by hidden stashes and secrets through the three huge cities. Career is the meat and potatoes of the game, offering a substantial (18-plus hour) single-player mode built on a unique progression system and incorporating a three-tier customization system. Networking offers Xbox owners eight-player SystemLink and Xbox Live play, while PS2 players get a straight eight-player online experience. Both the Xbox and PS2 online modes are tightly wired to provide a slew of good racing games that function technically well on both consoles. The new Race Editor is more interesting looking than before, using a fly cam to zoom players across the urban streets, but it's not as functional as before despite its graphic appeal.
It's the Career mode you'll want to sink your teeth into. Players familiar with the series will quickly see and feel subtle changes. Right away you're provided with a chunk of cash to buy a decent car (I bought a VW Jetta, for instance). You're left with enough money to make superficial changes to the exterior and to upgrade a part or two. You'll return multiple times to Six-One-Nine Garage to upgrade your vehicle, sell or buy cars, and when new parts are won, buying them enhances vehicles' top speed, acceleration, and handling. After upgrading, exploring the city and looking for special icons (there are about 12 Rockstar icons in each city) can be a nice side-tour from straight races. The new handy map trains your go-to arrow to find another race, a transport to cities, or to head to the garage. Like MC2, each competition is indicated with a giant bonfire of blazing red that beams into the night sky for high visibility. Unlike EA's Need For Speed Underground 2, this open city is packed with interesting and cool things to find, which gives the vast area a reason to explore. In that way, it's like GTA.