Cars 2

Games that are tied to movies have traditionally been awful so when we received a copy of Cars 2 for review, we approached it cautiously. That said there was a glimmer of hope in our minds because game developer Avalanche Software and publisher Disney Interactive Studios have previously delivered a thoroughly enjoyable title in Toy Story 3: The Video Game.

The game makes the assumption that you've seen the Cars 2 movie and, as a result, there's a wafer-thin storyline on offer. The game simply gives you a little bit of training on how to become a C.H.R.O.M.E agent by completing simulations and challenges and then quickly turns into a fun little kart racing game. It's safe to say that this game comes within striking distance of being as much fun as the legendary Mario Kart.

You can play Cars 2 on your own and although this isn't the best way to have the most fun with this game, you won't find yourself complaining. There are plenty of tracks to race on, there are a solid selection of weapons and you can perform a variety of cool looking tricks to help build up your turbo boost meter. The tricks are genuinely fun to watch on-screen; you can drive backwards, perform spins and flips, drive on two wheels and much more. Performing tricks will take a bit of practice but, if you wish, you can skip them altogether and rely on your driving skills only.

The game's controls work well and thanks to spot on kart-racing mechanics you'll be able to have hours of fun. Tricks as we said earlier take time to master but you won't find yourself getting frustrated with this game. The only change we'd make would be to add a map system that shows your position on the track. As it is right now, the game only makes you aware of what position you're in at present but doesn't tell you how close your opponents are or how far you are away from them.

As fun as Cars 2 is when you're playing alone, you'll have an absolute blast when you're playing one of the game's many local multiplayer modes. You can game with up to four players and because you're racing with real life opponents the stakes and thus the fun is so much more intense and palatable. It's just a shame then that Cars 2 doesn't offer online play. This is a feature that most racers offer as standard today.

On the presentation front Cars 2 doesn't put a foot wrong. The visuals are solid and the animation, when it comes to car movement is spot-on. Like the movie you'll be able to see cars lift their tires while turning and you'll see body work deform as they talk and express emotions.

Cars 2 is also strong on the audio front with most of the voice actors from the movie lending their voices to the cars here. The only voice actors who don't return are Owen Wilson as Lightning McQueen and Michael Caine as Finn McMissile.