MotorStorm review

Mud pluggers? We'd never heard of them but they sort of look like car-shaped buggies. They're our least favourite. They feel slow and twitchy and prone to rolling over. But, as the name suggests, when it comes to deep mud they're a godsend; allowing you to slice through oceans of the stuff like a hot knife through butter.

Big rigs are a mixed bag. As much as we dislike their woeful lack of speed, ploughing through the starting block and sending bikes spiralling to their doom is a twisted thrill. As for the rally cars, Evolution Studios is the developer behind the excellent WRC games, so they feel fantastic to drive. Like the mud pluggers they flip easily but they have an even spread of weight and feel huskier than the other vehicles. Finally, the redneck's favourite, the ATV. They're basically four-wheeled bikes and we hate them. They're too bouncy and waifish.

And part of the game's strategy is choosing the right vehicle. The dusty canyon corkscrews of Sidewinder Ridge benefit from being at the handlebars of a bike, while sticky slop-fest The Mudpool suits big rigs and buggies down to the filthy, grimy ground. Another element of strategy comes in the form of boosting. By pressing X you can steadily increase your speed, flames spewing from your exhaust pipe. But you have a temperature gauge so if you boost for too long you'll literally explode.

The tracks on offer are all - as the screenshots suggest - desert-based. It's a rhapsody in orange and red, with only the time of day helping to shift the colour palette. Moonlit night races are particularly atmospheric, and the scorching auburn sun of the early evening really shows off PS3's sophisticated light rendering.