There are mainly two types of racing game available for todays consoles the 'simulator' style (Gran Turismo,Forza Motorsport etc.) and 'arcade' style (Ridge Racer,Burnout etc.).The first are usually technically very competent but mainly pretty dull.While the second type throw all laws of physics out of the window for an over the top,totally unrealistic racing experience.The PGR games have been pitched somewhere in between.Aiming neither for total realism nor insane arcade style action.

Its seems strange writing a review for a game I have owned for over 6 months but I have recently decided to revisit it.After an evening at my friends house playing 'Gran Turismo 5 : Prologue' on his PS3 something got me thinking?.There was something seriously missing in it,and that was that it wasn't really that much fun to play.Sure,it looked great on his 40 odd inch HD TV.But it played exactly the same as all the old 'Gran Turismo' games that I had grown so tired of on my PS2.

Apart from the rubbish and infuriating cone sections I always seem to have a smile on my face when playing PGR 4.Taking corners at increasing rates of speed by dabbing the brakes,drifting the back end of the car out and racking up those 'kudos' points is all great fun.Until,that is that you overcook it and undo all your hard work.The career is mode is great and you can race/tackle challenges on either cars or bikes.There is a large selection of both to try and earn or you can download extra ones off Xbox live (some are free).The bikes however are an acquired taste and take a fair bit of practice to master (they are much easier than playing the Moto GP games though).Once you have mastered the vehicles and learnt the tracks its time for the real fun to begin.

Its predecessor PGR 3 was an Xbox 360 launch title and one I always felt showed signs of being a little rushed.While it looked great and played really well in its career mode it was rubbish online.Because of this once I had completed the career challenges my copy simply gathered dust.Thankfully  this area is where PGR 4 is a different beast altogether.Get a few of your 'live' friends on this and it is a real blast.Select evenly matched vehicles and the races just fly by.However,you need your friends to have decent internet connections to get the most out of it.There is nothing more infuriating than running nose to tail down a long straight,ready to pick your braking point with inch perfect precision.Then all of a sudden the car in front of you disappears then reappears behind you due to the fact the player has a poor internet connection.Some games like Call Of Duty 4 can be pretty funny when someone is stuck suspended on a window ledge and you can take all the time in the world to kill them!.On this game though it pretty much ruins the gameplay for the other players.

There are a couple of things that I personally don't really like.The cone sections as I previously mentioned and the bikes.The latter though is just my personal choice.There is nothing actually wrong with them.It was interesting learning to use them and earning their 'kudos' points (for doing wheelies,stoppies etc.)I just personally prefer the cars.That said it doesn't distract from the fact that this is my favourite racer ever.It looks amazing,with superb graphics and no slowdown.But you really need to get it online to get the most out of it.Having gone back to it after a few months I love it just as much as the first time I played it.

Great 9/10 (would be a straight 10 without the bikes or cones !)