Rockstar have created a reputation for developing games which have fantastically addictive gameplay, and the loyal fan base which always anticipate new titles in their Midnight Club series will expect nothing less from Midnight Club: Los Angeles.

Will they get the gameplay they crave, and expect? In short, yes they will, but not everything is brilliant in Midnight Club Los Angeles by any stretch of the imagination and a touch of fun which the previous titles in the series had to offer seems to have been lost this time around.

The story mode, which features in most Midnight Club titles in some form, is kept to a grass roots level and never goes into much real detail. It simply involves you jumping into a car and racing around the streets of Los Angeles - during off peak times apparently, as you will find the streets are practically empty as you tear through them.

Although there is no change of scenery, with all the tracks running around Los Angeles, you will constantly have a change of weather conditions which gives the game a nice bit of variety. You will experiences races in the bright sunshine, overcast cloudy skies and even torrential rainfall - with each set of conditions giving your race unique challenges, such as slippery roads when it’s raining. These conditions do not seem to affect the handling of your car quite as much as you would expect though, which is a good thing because the game is difficult enough to begin with.

There is a level of freedom too, as you are able to drive around Los Angeles looking for people to race against. When you come across someone you want to race, flash your lights and see if they respond - if they do, head to the starting line which will come up on the on screen radar and let the games begin! You can race in time trials, checkpoint based races, freeway races and even races from one place to another - in each case the route from start to finish is left largely to you. Spending a little time getting to know the streets will serve you well in the long run.

Your race performances will earn you cash rewards as well as respect, which combined will help you unlock new cars and tracks as you progress through the game. You are also able to customise your car with your hard earned cash, and we mean hard earned! It will take some getting hold of, and the time it takes to actually gain anything worthwhile is punishing and ultimately your effort is unrewarding, as the number of vehicles in the game is pretty low when compared to the likes of Gran Turismo, Need for Speed and even Project Gotham titles.

The graphics are nothing short of brilliant, though I am sure they could have been a touch better if given a little more attention, but that is just a matter of nit-picking - the graphics do a fantastic job and the frame rates keep up with the action which in itself is impressive.

If you are a fan of the Midnight Club series then I am sure you will find a way to squeeze hours of enjoyment out of Midnight Club Los Angeles, though casual racing game fans will be less likely to do so because of the extreme level of difficulty you are faced with. The multiplayer mode may be enough to tempt many racing gamers to buy Midnight Club Los Angeles, as it without doubt offers you more than the single player modes within the game. At least you will be able to compete against other human racers much better than you will the overly-talented computer controllers drivers.

Overall Midnight Club Los Angeles is a good racing game, with great graphics and fast action which can be fun for a while, however progressing through the majority of the game can take time because of the difficulty level being a touch too high. I would buy it, but would not recommend it to casual racing gamers who prefer fun gaming over competitive gaming.

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