"It is up to you to save civilisation as we know it... in cars." That intro line will remain with me until I die XD
I realise it's 2006 now, and there have been many racing games since. But none have approached Carmageddon's subject matter, not even close. Grand Theft Auto? Don't make me laugh; GTA is about random senseless violence, with later ones having "missions" thrown in to break the mindless monotony.
Carmageddon was infinitely better; it was about the race, always the race. The physics engine was a joke, but reliable - after getting accustomed to it's quirks you would rely on it to pull off hilarious over-the-top stunts, from squashing as many pedestrians flat in one jump to causing massive pileups involving every other racer on the track. Frequently you had so much fun driving around or knocking the others about that races were almost always won because you were the only one left standing. And despite it all, it was always fun.
Of course, it's been a long while since I've played Carmageddon, and the sequels were not quite up to par (the one with timed missions, 3 I believe, was pretty much a disaster) - but this game, the original Carmageddon, has left such an impression on me - pun intended XD - that no other racing game has ever been able to duplicate, let alone surpass.
I've always sneered at GTA, and I'll say again, it always gave the impression of trying to be "real", like the manufactured tough boyband look - all flash and no substance whatsoever. The GTA series is nothing but a glorified endless run-around-the-level-doing-nothing-for-no-reason. Carmageddon, on the other hand, was FUN with a capital F - something most developers now tend to neglect in their race to appeal to the masses fixiated on the latest graphical one-hit-wonder, inevitably sinking to the lowest common denominator.