Edge writes: Impossibly shiny cars, breathtaking speed, blue skies and roaring engines: racers were once videogaming's ultimate expression of realism crossed with escapist fantasy. But while other genres have rapidly evolved, from the thunder and bluster of modern FPSes to the vast scope of RPGs, racers seem stuck in the same old routine of race upon tournament.
Even the biggest sellers don't seem to be performing as well as they used to: once a perennial fixture at the very top of the UK Christmas chart, Need For Speed managed only fifth place as 2007 turned to 2008. Buried in the blizzard of last year's big releases, Project Gotham Racing 4 has failed to ignite the same fervor as its predecessors. And can Gran Turismo's luster really sell PS3 the same way it once did PS1 and PS2?
