It's the first true reason to own a PS3, not because it's the deepest game, but because it's an amazing showpiece
For those that complete the single player and wish for more challenges and custom events, they will likely spend the remained of their time in the online multiplayer. It's exactly like the SP except the host can customize the race, selecting the course, number of laps, vehicles available, etc. It's virtually lag free and the most fun when you have a full grid of 12. Compared to games like Burnout and Ridge Racer, Motorstorm may feel a little skimpy on the content, but there's plenty in here to keep you busy. And if you enjoy the game, you're likely not to care.
Graphics: WOW. just wow. if there's one game graphics whores will be drooling over for months to come it's this one. There are alot of great looking games out there, but Motorstorm is the first game, on either the PS3 or 360, that absolutely looks real. There was alot a controversy over the target render from E3 2005, but this is as close as you could hope to get this early in the generation. The vehicles have more detail than any other racer, exploding into (literally) thousands of pieces upon impact. The tracks are gorgeous and varied, and all of them have moments where you are almost hypnotized by the level of detail. The lighting is also amazing, making sure that every object casts a shadow and washes everything out when riding out of a canyon into the sun. Flags and banners wave in wind and the color palette is suprisingly bright, for a game made of mud and rocks. And speaking of mud... best. mud. ever. You're vehicle and rider will be drenched in it before the end of a race, with every vehicle leaving it's own tracks causing the terrain to deform differently each time. It's flys everywhere, even onto the screen, which can be distracting, but this is off road racing, it's comes with the territory.
But for as good as everything is, some things which got less detail stick out. Some shadows are pretty low res, and some textures look pretty bad, the crowds are static and pretty low in the polygon count, if not 2D at times. You most likely won't ever notice these things during the races, as you'll be too busy trying to keep from flying off a cliff or into a giant rock, but if you ever do stop to admire the finer details, you'll see some things that can really suck you out of the realism.
Sound: Vehicles sound great, crashes have enough ompf to them to make you believe they were recorded from actual collisions, but every once in a while I notice a missing sound. Like my car slamming down on a wooden ramp after a jump or into a rock, and there was no sound to accompany the impact. Maybe they were just muffled underneath other more prominant sounds and the music, but it just seemed alittle odd. As for the soundtrack itself, it's a mixed bag, the developers followed the something for everyone method and for the most part pulled it off. You've got heavier bands like Primal Scream and Slipknot, more electronic and industrial sounds from Pitchshifter and Elite Force, there's some Seattle in there from QotSA and Nirvana and some of that indie rock stuff that's been gaining popularity in recent years. All in all it's a pretty decent sound track, spanning genres and mixing in old and new songs, all of which seem to work for the setting.
So that's Motorstorm in a nutsell, it's an experience to say the least, even if it is a short one with fewer features than most games that are currently available. All of the complaints for the game are likely because expectations were so high, and because there's so much detail that any short commings stick out. Given the drought of games for any console really, between the holidays and now, Motorstorm should be enough of a thrill ride for anyone with a PS3, and maybe even enough to get people without one to start considering making the $600 purchase.