MOTORSTORM: ARCTIC EDGE

AFTER RACING THROUGH the fictional cliffs of Monument Valley to the sunny beaches of the Pacific, the MotorStorm series now invades the freezing Alaskan winter in MotorStorm: Arctic Edge. However, unlike the first two games in the series MotorStorm: Arctic Edge won’t see release on the PS3. The franchise has now moved onto the   PSP and PlayStation 2, with more of the fast and frantic action that made the series so popular with PS3 gamers.

One of the new features is the ability to create avalanches by beeping your horn at certain parts of the track, causing  your opponents to crash and tumble off a cliff. But bear in mind that this can happen to you too if you’re not careful!

Two new vehicle classes have been added to better suit the sub-zero conditions, including the agile snowmobile and the  monstrous snowplough. Another cool feature is that you can now customise vehicles.

The photo mode introduced in MotorStorm: Pacific Rift makes a welcome return. Personally, I would have preferred a  replay option, since devastating crashes happen almost every second while playing this game. Upon saying that, the crashes aren’t as spectacular as in the game’s predecessors with its graphical limitations, but you’ll inevitably see a lot  of them.

‘Festival’ is the game’s career mode, where you can unlock more vehicles and drivers. Multiplayer is also represented  with online play for the PSP and splitscreen for the PlayStation 2. Another neat feature is ‘Time Attack’, where with preloaded ‘ghosts’ of the developer’s times set the pace on all the tracks. I’m sure this will be a challenge to many  gamers, as their times are fast. There is also an option to upload your own times too – if you’re fast enough, that is.

It may not be revolutionary but, boy, is it fun. If you’re seeking an arcade racer to play with some mates, look no  further than this title.