PGR returns to the xbox 360, and what a return it is, simply brilliant.
Yes bikes are one of the many new additions to the classic PGR formula. The other big addition is a fully integrated weather system.
You will now be racing round new and familiar tracks in all sorts of weather conditions ranging from dense fog, where you cant see the next corner ahead of you, to blizzard conditions where snow drifts and ice make that difficult hair pin corner that much more difficult.
Other new additions include a separate arcade and career mode to the single player portion of the game.
The arcade mode has so many different chapters with each chapter consisting of so many different races and challenges requiring you to succeed and gain a medal to advance to the next chapter.
Each challenge can be attempted in either a bike or car, and each one has its own medal. All the challenges are the same sort of thing you'd expect from previous PGR games.
Those who are new to PGR though will find regular street races, one on one races, elimination races and more unique challenges such as knocking over a certain amount of cones
or racing round the track as stylish as you can racking up points for your style.
The career mode is slightly different, where you will find nearly all the same events as the arcade mode except they are put into a season
and you get to play them as you advance through the season. A great thing about the new weather system is that when your racing in December you will know your racing in December because of all the snow on the track.
The aim of the career mode is to advance up the leader board until you are number one in the world. Both the career mode and arcade mode are are great to progress through, with much re-playability involved with different
difficulty levels and the different experience of racing a track in a car and then going to do it in a bike. As well as the single player game there is also a worthy online multi-player where you can race with your friends
on your own or as a team with many of the race types from the single player portion of the game. There is also daily world-wide tournaments which require you to qualify first and then be entered into the elimination stages.
Of course there is no real prize for winning such a tournament apart from self satisfaction and your name put on the PGR website but they are fun to enter nevertheless.
The bikes really do offer a different experience to driving in PGR 4. Bizarre have done a great job in balancing out the cars and bikes racing together, however I found the game slightly easier using bikes.
There is a huge range of cars and bikes to choose, from old formula one cars to brand new super cars, and each one handles and controls differently. Each also looks stunning. The graphics in PGR4 are a slight upgrade from PGR3 but are still very impressive.
The environments are beautifully designed filled with buildings and spectators and are a marvel to look at, especially the Las Vegas track at night. The car and bike models are also pretty good and it is awesome to see them chance with the weather, such as seeing each individual drop of rain on the hood of your car.
Add all of this together and you have one of the best racing games of the year with enough content and options available to you to satisfy you for a long time to come. Fans of older PGR games shouldn't have to consider getting this game, they just should.
New comers looking for a quality racing game should definetly check this one out.