Project Gotham Racing (Microsoft Xbox, 2003)

Taking its cue from predecessor Metropolis Street Racer, Project Gotham Racing offers players objective-based racing centered on the acquisition of Kudos. Though broken up into three modes: Kudos, Quick, and Arcade, it's the Kudos mode that provides the meat of the gameplay. This mode is made up of 12 challenges, which in turn house a varying number of sub-challenges. Standard races against one or multiple cars, and timed runs in which you need to best a predetermined time and driving with unwavering precision are just some of the tests offered. The ultimate goal, and the purpose of these tests, is to earn Kudos. A set number of these points are required to obtain bronze, silver and gold medals in each of the challenges, with unlockable extras -- such as cars, paint jobs, and helmets -- rewarded for optimum performance.

Over and above the Kudos awarded for doing well at a particular task, the game also provides Kudos for various outlandish driving techniques whether they be power slides, riding on two wheels, overtaking other cars or spinning in a full circle. A momentary delay is provided after completing a trick, allowing more adept players to combine a number of tricks into high-scoring combinations. If you make contact with a trackside object however, any points not yet added to your total will be lost. The Arcade and Quick Race modes provide standard racing and style challenges and can be used to increase your existing Kudo tally or even unlock certain cars. Much like Metropolis Street Racer, the courses in the game take place in four different cities, namely, San Francisco, New York, London, and Tokyo.

A total of 29 cars are featured in the game, with the notable inclusion of the Ferrari and Porsche licenses. In addition to the pre-existing licensed songs from artists such as the Chemical Brothers as well real DJs from the four cities' local radio stations, players can create their own customized play lists consisting of music and songs they've copied to the system's hard drive.