My first car was an old light blue Ford Escort where gray duct tape held part of the seat together, had no air condition that didn't come from the windows being rolled down, and had tiny little X marks in the back from where I ran into a chain link fence. I drive a different car today, but for some reason driving a pollen caked Ford (albeit not that original anymore, yet still a hand-me-down) around North Carolina fails in comparison to driving a Mercedes Benz down the roads of Hawaii, which Test Drive Unlimited lets you exactly do in glorious fashion.

THE STORY SO FAR
Well, there isn't exactly a story, which is saddening considering the game starts off like there will be one, as you pick between one of several pre-determined characters in line at an airport waiting to get checked in, and these individuals are all of different genders and races, so chances are you'll be able to find someone you like. After you get on the plane bound for Hawaii, you eventually land, rent a car, go buy a house, go buy your first car, and then nothing – you make your own fun by choosing what you want to do next. I guess the package initially threw me for a loop, because it is a given racing games rarely have a story, but when you present a game in such a way as to give the impression things will be different and then don't deliver, it is a letdown; thankfully, for the most part, the game fails to letdown anymore after this initial shock.

SINGLE PLAYER: GAMEPLAY
The name of the game is to drive the fastest, most luxurious cars around, but to get there you have to build up your bank to afford some of these cars that go into the million dollar range, and the fastest way to reach that bank (and only way for that matter) is to compete in various race minded tasks.

When it comes to Test Drive Unlimited, there are several flavors of races, ranging from: races against three to seven other cars; elimination style races where the last place car after every lap is eliminated; time trials with traffic; time trials without traffic; challenges where you must reach an accumulated speed by passing in front of radar guns; challenges where you must get your car up to a certain speed; challenges where you must get passengers to a destination before your time limit runs out; and challenges in where you must drive a car from one point to the next (no time limit) and lose money for every time you hit someone or go off the road.

Out of all those, my favorites ended up being the regular races against other cars and the challenges where you simply have to drive a car from one spot to another and avoid damaging it (though the system is a bit flawed since I hit some cars and didn't lose anything, but once lost some money on an invisible bumper that appeared out of nowhere). As for the timed challenges, I despised them with a passion, not because of anything on their part really, but just because I hate the pressure they put me under since they make me do stupid mistakes time and time again. However, challenges involving traffic proved frustrating some times, because cars almost have a gravitational force to them, as I found my car hitting ones when they were going perfectly straight, and then when you should stray into the oncoming lane(s) of traffic, cars pop up too quickly in front of you for you to react properly, and when you do react, instead of just going straight, they sometimes veer in the same direction you are going.

One thing I particularly liked about the game, is that though you may be able to see where a race or challenge is on your map, if you haven't physically been by it, you can't yet play it and instead must trek out that way so you can discover it, which could take up to a half an hour in some cases. Sure, the method can be annoying when all you want to do is race, but it lets you experience the island and helps you get accustomed to the roads as well that you'll soon be racing on.

As you win races, you'll amass the cash you need to buy even better cars, which you'll also need since they come in ranks, so for a challenge involving A ranked cars, you must have an A ranked car or else you'll be unable to compete in that challenge. The problem comes, however, that as you buy more cars, you'll find that your garage isn't big enough, so you'll have to buy multiple properties across the island to help stash your rides. By competing some challenges, you'll also unlock shopping coupons, which you can use to buy clothes to dress your player up like how you want them. You can also purchase motorcycles at one point in the game to use, parts to improve your car's performance, etc.

When you aren't racing, you can simply cruise around these lush environments, checking out the landscapes and getting to ride in some of your favorite dream cars. Featuring several different view modes, they all present an accurate racing camera angle, and the cockpit camera is especially nice, as all the interiors of the cars are authentic, and it will really make you feel like you are driving these cars.

Given all that joy, there are a couple flaws. For starters, I absolutely hate the cops. Now, it isn't because they are in the game, but rather because the system is so screwy it doesn't present a real and accurate challenge. For instance, if you reach the level three wanted level, just turn off your game, because you won't shake them. As in other games that feature cops, when you get to level three they start to put up road blocks, and instead of the cars acting like real cars, they act instead like a cement brick (when I hit a car going over 100 miles per hour, when I crash in-between two cars, they should both fly away from each other and give me room to hopefully get through, NOT just sit there still and reacting in no way).

Another problem, which is both a blessing and a curse, is the fact that your cars show no damage whatsoever, but the police and other cars on the road will since they are a no-name brand that car manufacturers don't care if they get banged up or not. I like the fact that I don't have to pay to repair my mistakes since I do find myself hitting a great deal of cars, but yet when everything else feels so real to life, all you can do is laugh when you slam right into a tree at 100 miles per hour and not a dent happens.

MULTIPLAYER: GAMEPLAY
You are able to play the single player game online partly mixed with the multiplayer gameplay, as you'll be able to drive, competing in races and challenges, and buy new cars as others go about their daily lives throughout the game as well. If you should come across the car, they (or you) can challenge each other to a race, or even just have some fun like playing follow the leader, seeing if one can keep up the other. There are also multiplayer only races, where you can go, wait around for the competition to show up, and then see who get the bragging rights. The mechanic is downright fun, as it merges the two game types so well, and it was a blast to just cruise around Hawaii with various players. It sucks a bit when you don't have the right car yet for the job, but once you get set with your best car, the gameplay is infinitely more fun.

GRAPHICS
Truly spectacular, as the cars look true to life, but the real draw is Hawaii, which is rendered in such exquisite detail it is sometimes hard to look away (thus you crash into another car – trust me, I know from experience). Leaves dance and twirl across the ground, airplanes taking off and arriving fly through the sky, the clouds darken slightly over the horizon, and one time, as I was driving down a straightaway, there was one lone tree on the side of a mountain, and I thought it was one of the prettiest things I've ever seen in a game; there was simply something so profound and poetic about that lone tree way up on the mountain. The sense of speed is also incredible, as cars and landmark objects come zipping by with a blur. The only fault is that when you look off straight ahead of you, sometimes where the road meets the horizon will tear and turn white for the briefest of seconds, but otherwise there are absolutely no complaints about the graphics.

SOUND
There are a variety of radio stations once you learn to turn them on, ranging from classical to dance to rock, and the music all around is pretty good, as I really dug crusing around in an Italian masterpiece of automotive perfection as the "William Tell Overture" played through my speakers. Cars crashing, cicada (or some other likeminded insect) chirping, the start of your ignition, and the revving of your engine are all really well done as well.

IN CONCLUSION
There are a few frustrating gripes throughout the game, but nothing to seriously damper the score or most importantly your enjoyment of the game. Yes, it didn't receive a perfect score, but only for those reasons listed above. However, that doesn't mean you should overlook this game (far from it) as I must say it is one of the best racers I've ever played, and if I seriously sat down and checked off the negatives and positives of them all, it very well could be the best I've ever played. Test Drive Unlimited mixes arcade racing joy with sim like passion, and creates a wonderful game that will have you dreaming of Hawaiian days as you find yourself stuck yet again in rush hour traffic as you slowly crawl your way to work.

Rating:
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