Midtown Madness 3 - Xbox

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Viewed: 3D Combination Genre:
Racing
Media: DVD Arcade origin:No
Developer: Digital Illusions Soft. Co.: Microsoft
Publishers: Microsoft (GB/US)
Released: 2003 (US)
27 Jun 2003 (GB)
Ratings: 3+
Connectivity: Xbox Live
Accessories: Memory Unit

Summary

Not, as you may think, anything to do with going crazy whilst doing a bit of shopping, Midtown Madness is all about racing. Madcap, over-the-top street racing across some of the world's most notable cities, to be more precise.

This third instalment has made its way over to the Xbox and, in true sequel style, has taken the concept of its PC predecessors and improved upon it, adding more features and generally appearing bigger, better, faster...etc. More specifically, we're talking loads of licensed vehicles, diverse game modes and faithfully recreated environments.

The main career mode sees players work their way through more than 50 missions across 14 different careers, which include such vehicular vocations as limousine driver, pizza delivery guy, taxi driver, police officer, and secret agent. New careers, vehicles and challenges are unlocked as you complete the various missions and progress through the game.

Throughout the game you get the opportunity to get behind the wheel of a wide assortment of fast and fun vehicles. There are over 30 in total, including licensed cars from top manufacturers and other vehicles such as city buses and taxis.

With regard to the game's environments, there are highly detailed, fully researched renditions of both Paris and Washington DC to explore, complete with ambient traffic and animated pedestrians. In each case a wealth of hidden routes, shortcuts and hideouts are to be uncovered, lending quite a respectable level of depth to the proceedings.

With the inclusion of both a split-screen two-player mode and support for up to eight players via Microsoft's Xbox Live service, Midtown Madness 3 has plenty of hours worth of gameplay on offer. It looks pretty darn lovely as well.