1st Impressions: PGR3 is an outstanding racing game that shows style, poise and what the 360 is capable of.
The Bad: Hard to earn achievements, no damage to vehicles, single player is much harder than you'd think.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Project Gotham Racing was an Xbox launch title who's goal was to dethrone Gran Turismo from it's seat of power regarding realistic driving sims. PGR3 was an Xbox 360 launch title that turned out to be very well done, but not quite perfect. For starters, PGR3 get's the racing simulator part right. It features tons of licenced, real world cars as well as tracks set in real world cities. The collision detection is very good as well as the control mechanics, which makes controling the car feel realistic, but cars take no damage, which lowers that grade just a bit. One feature that makes PGR3 feel like it's part racing sim, part arcade racer is the inclusion of Kudos. You gain Kudos for driving wrecklessly. Doing things like drifting, passing cars quickly and getting close to but not touching a wall can gain you Kudos, which are needed to complete certain races in the single player mode.
In the single player mode of PGR3, you select a basic car, then race through a series of tournaments. The more races you win, the more Kudos you get and the more cars you can buy to race in new tournaments. It's very simple, yet in many ways unexciting. The graphics of PGR3 are superb, it clearly shows off what the 360 is capable of, along with the style and poise of the cars featured in the game. The sound effects are also outstanding, featuring realistic sounds recorded from each of the cars included in the game. PGR3 also features several online racing modes where you can challenge your friends to see who's the best driver. Overall, PGR3 is recomendable for those looking for a solid, more realistic racing game for the Xbox 360.
Gameplay: Solid racing mechanics and licenced cars help PGR3 feel like a racing sim, with Kudos helping to make it feel more arcady.
Graphics: This was the best looking launch title from Microsoft and still looks great today.
Sound: Outstanding use of sound effects to make the cars sound very realistic.
Value: This game can be discovered for under $20, so look out for it.
Final Thoughts: Start your engines...