If you asked your average consumer about Rockstar Games, odds are strong that the words 'Grand Theft Auto' wouldn't be far behind. There is no doubt that the famed developer has made a career out of controversial games, with other headliners such as Bully and Manhunt. However, another series they are lesser known for, though for no lack of production values or polish, is Midnight Club. Easily the standard for racing games saturated in the streets, Midnight Club is known for insane customization, tight controls, amazing visuals, and smooth races. With three excellent titles preceding it, Midnight Club: Los Angeles has a lot to live up to - and does it all with neon to spare.
   
The narrative begins with a rather standard formula, and has you following the tracks laid by a hotshot driver new to the city. Unlike past titles, especially Midnight Club 2, it's clear from the beginning that voice acting has been improved tremendously. Not only is the voice-over convincing and genuine during the cinematics, but it's also well implemented throughout actual races, as opponents chime in frequently with taunts of their own. Most of these are entertaining, and while a few lines are repeated a little too frequently, most of them are at least comedic in nature. And while the voice acting is great, the music is more so. The soundtrack here is laced with just about anything you could ask for, from hard metal to smooth hip-hop, and most everything in-between. This is to be expected of a street racer, after all, but I was especially fond of being able to import my own songs via my 360 so I could listen to my own music. Screaming tires, crunching metal, and screaming pedestrians also filled the air - the game is almost as much fun to hear as it is to play.



As far as racers go, Club is very proud of its 'Arcade' status, and frankly, I wouldn't have it any other way. The city of Los Angeles has been more or less reproduced, and the result is a massive city to race through. I was astounded by the sheer size of the map, and even more amazed by the fact that I could drive along every inch of it. Such a large scope is very intimidating and made even more so thanks to Rockstar's menu-less approach to the game. Initiating races is also seamless ' simply chase down your opponent and flag them with a quick flash of your lights, and watch the challenge begin. Progressing through the story is accomplished via Respect Points, which can be earned by winning various races, outrunning the police, and completing errands for some of the other characters from the story. By using these earnings you can purchase different vehicles, with each one handling differently than the next, giving each ride a unique feel. Race types within the main storyline are pretty varied too, and online matches are just as unique. The transition is smooth and painless, and there's even odd match types such as Capture the Flag, which was surprisingly enjoyable despite the genre.

Of course, the entire experience would suffer if there wasn't an impressive list of real world cars to choose from, and it's here that Los Angeles delivers in spades. And while the lineup is staggering, the real fun begins when you take the automobiles into the garage for some customization. Every part can be upgraded and tweaked, and while it may not be as deep as the industry benchmark Gran Turismo, it's certainly pretty close. Paints, vinyl, rims and neon are all selectable - you can even customize the color of the interior, the seats, and even the speedometer. All of these can be changed in nearly countless combinations. This aspect of the game alone is worth sinking hours into, as several cars can be stored, and then completely remade to your liking.

 
Not everything is perfect, however. The lack of menus can be somewhat annoying while in the main storyline. Having to track down another racer is fun at fist, but sometimes you just want to a more streamlined approach, and without a menu that's hard to accomplish. The police also provide a complaint, as they seem to be waiting at nearly every turn. Since you're forced to navigate the city in search of potential opponents, you'll probably want to get there as quickly as possible, and therefore speed deliberately while doing so. If spotted, you have the option to pull over and pay a fine, choose to escape, however, and a chase ensues. The only real problem occurs upon being busted ' instead of continuing from the spot where you got pulled over, you're simply released back onto the streets at random, which may or may not be close to the race you were trying to activate. This amount of frustration is merely a gripe when compared to the unforgiving AI, however. Midnight Club: Los Angeles is incredibly difficult. This is mostly due to the rival cars scaling with you as you build up cars or purchase new ones. Even if you manage to get a high pedigree sports car near the beginning of the story, the inferior models will still keep pace, and they may even leave you in the dust from time to time. Anything less than a perfect race is usually met with disaster, and rubber-banding mechanics make it hard to keep the lead for very long. Thankfully the difficulty doesn't reflect progression, as Reputation Points are fairly plentiful, so that new car is never too far off, even if it isn't going to be all that useful.

All in all, though, the grand experience is solid throughout. It has a top-notch presentation, intuitive controls, a great soundtrack, and challenging AI. Letting yourself sink into the customization is always a great way to relax, and I'm sure the creations available online will keep the fan base busy for months to come. It isn't perfect, but then again, few games are. Midnight Club: Los Angeles is a solid racer that does an admirable job of building on the genre as a whole, and is a package that no street racing fan should bypass.