MotorStorm - updated hands-on

In spite of all danger, MotorStorm delivers insane speed like few other games, especially if you switch to the first-person driver's perspective. You might not be a fan of it in other racers, but it's the best way to get a pure sensation of supersonic idiocy, as the hyper-detailed ground and rocks rush toward your rattling vehicle at impossible speeds, goading you toward an inevitable fiery crash. Of course, to get that sensation - and to win - you'll need to jam on the nitrous boost at every opportunity and learn to slam on the handbrake every time you see something that looks like a curve on the horizon. Your nitrous reserves are unlimited, which is awesome, but let your booster overheat and you'll turn into a high-speed rocket of spiraling wreckage.

The crashes are just as spectacular now as they were when we wrote our last couple of previews, with your ride (and often your rider) twisting through the air in a slow-motion ballet of fire and flying metal. The detail that goes into these sequences is breathtaking, with splintered axles, shredded side panels and spinning wheels all flying their separate ways. It's so breathtaking, in fact, that you'll hardly notice you just dropped back eight places while waiting to respawn.

Aside from its promising single-player racing circuit, MotorStorm will feature online play when it hits in spring - something we weren't able to try in our preview version. Judging by what we've seen so far, though, this is already looking like the best reason to drop $600 on a PS3 in the immediate future, and we're looking forward to seeing what else it can do.