"The other massive improvement to the franchise is based around the online side of the title.."

The other massive improvement to the franchise is based around the online side of the title. Up to eight players can compete against each other online (or take part in a hassle free cruise). Xbox live users can also take advantage of the clan functions which allows tracking of matches won (or lost) and how much influence their racing powers have against over clans. Single players without a clan can also make use of the stats that are included on the main menu, playing multiplayer will increase your statistics such as multiplayer matches won, flags returned and hours played online. It was also pleasing to see the different online matches that were immediately available. ‘Capture the Flag’ itself contained three different variations, ‘Track’ places racers on a set track and lets them do battle, and ‘Paint’ which has players (or clans) trying to capture different portions of the map. As if that wasn’t enough the more standard racing modes Cruise, Unordered, Ordered, and Circuit races are also available for anyone looking for more standard Midnight Club races. It was also welcome to see that multiplayer matches were not lost if the host goes AWOL as any abandoned (or cancelled) will transfer to the next player.

The controls have been perfectly fitted around the Xbox Controller with everything feeling in the right place. Acceleration and braking is handled with the left and right shoulder buttons respectively with the A button acting as the handbrake. The X button handles nitro’s and the slipstream bonus. Also new to Midnight Club 3 at the start of every race there is also a chance to get a “free boost” at the start, and this is achieved by holding down the handbrake while maintaining full acceleration. Time it just right and you’ll be able to keep up with the pack, time it wrong and you may find yourself playing catchup.

There was the occasionally frame rate hiccups but nothing that really spoiled the experience; it was more noticeable on the main menu but did occasionally transfer into the game. Some may also find that the majority of street races have that de-ja vu feel about them (in that you’ve played one, you’ve played them all). To be honest initially that thought had crossed our minds but once you’ve played a few hours something slowly draws you in and you vary rarely recover.

"Rockstar have managed to create yet another masterpiece."

MC3:DE is certainly a complete package, it has everything any serious racing fan would want but maintains that feeling of fun some other titles just failed to capture. It might not be the best looking game on the lot, but it’s probably the one you’ll find yourself playing the most for some time to come. It’s getting a little tiresome to announce that Rockstar have managed to create yet another masterpiece, but then again, would we want it any other way?