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Bikes take time to learn, but fit well in the game.
Bikes take time to learn, but fit well in the game.Bikes take time to learn, but fit well in the game.

Over and above anything else that's new in PGR4, the biggest addition is motorbikes. I'll admit that I was sceptical, as I'm sure most PGR fans were, but Bizarre has managed to create a handling dynamic that once again treads the fine line between sim and arcade racer, giving bike fans a real alternative to cars. It's worth pointing out that for the majority of the game you can stick with cars if you wish, but you'd be missing out if you weren't to give them a try.

Bike novices will initially be put off, as a bike is nowhere near as forgiving as a car, even when racing using PGR's fabled semi-realistic physics engine. Cornering is tougher, with position on the track and timing into a corner being essential, but acceleration and top speed for the top bikes is excellent, making them a real contender in the right hands - although even those hands will probably struggle when playing online with collisions turned on. Bizarre has handled the rider excellently, with small bumps and scrapes not being enough to send you flying, but a full-on crash will see your virtual avatar eating some tarmac. Kudos is also handled a little differently, with tricks such as wheelies and endos being joined by poses and taunts triggered by pressing the B button.

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The most important aspect to PGR4 though is how much fun it is to play. Critics of the series have labelled it as dull and lifeless, but PGR4 has more spark than most other racers put together. The key to this is how you don't have to be a brilliant driver to feel like one, with the cars handling like you'd imagine, rather than how they really ought to. With just a little practice you can be screaming through a series of tight corners and looking the part, then upload it all for gamers around the world to see.

Online functionality in racing games hit a new high when PGR2 launched on the Xbox, and PGR4 continues the series' fine tradition. While I'm sure certain players will find reasons to moan about Bizarre's online offerings, it seems they've delivered just about everything a PGR fan would want. There's far too much to discuss in detail but a few things are worth highlighting.


The Time Trial mode allows you to pick and choose from numerous leaderboard and friend ghosts to race against, with race conditions entirely customisable for every single circuit in the game.

The Time Trial mode allows you to pick and choose from numerous leaderboard and friend ghosts to race against (so you could race against the 1st and 10th position ghosts if you wanted a top ten time), with race conditions entirely customisable for every single circuit in the game. The lobby system from Halo allows friends to stay together as you move from game to game, and every option imaginable can be tweaked to tailor your online games to your liking.

PGR die-hards will already know about the multiplayer game Cat and Mouse, but for those that don't, this single multiplayer game mode is worth the asking price alone. A team game for up to eight players, one player takes control of a slow car (we tend to opt for a mini) and the other team members pick fast sports cars. The goal is to get your team's mini over the finish line first, blocking the other team's car and preventing their fast cars from hampering the journey of your mini. With voice chat it's a laugh a second, with the leader changing all the time and games generally going right down to the finishing straight.

Racing has never been more excitingRacing has never been more exciting

PGR on Demand is Bizarre's latest attempt to get players sharing videos and pictures with the community. PGR3's Gotham TV didn't quite turn out as planned, but PGR on Demand already looks to be of far more interest to PGR players. To start with, you're able to upload any saved replays or pictures, and then other players can view them and vote with a simple yes or no over whether they like them. The highest rated can be viewed at any time, while all others can be found via searches or simply by looking for your friends' upped files.

Wandering around your garage in PGR3 provided a surprising amount of enjoyment and thankfully the garage system is back, along with the superb lighting that makes each location perfect for a few snaps. Your garage walls can be decorated with your pictures, or the pictures you've downloaded from Gotham on Demand, but the biggest attraction here is undoubtedly Geometry Wars: Waves. This new take on PGR3's Retro Evolved sees enemies coming at you in waves across the screen, with their speed and frequency increasing as you progress. It's intense stuff, and for many will see as much play time as the core game modes in PGR4.

The amount of content in PGR4 is deserving of thousands and thousands of words, but hopefully you get the picture: PGR4 is a brilliant racing game. It's got some issues still, with the lengthy load times and a fair amount of re-used content from PGR3 likely to turn away a few gamers, but it remains the Xbox 360's premier racing title. Whether you want to play alone or with friends over Xbox LIVE, PGR4 won't disappoint. Whoever steps into Bizarre's shoes for PGR5 has an almost impossible task as PGR4 could well be the best racer you'll play this gen.

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