It’s a pricey car, not an eraser so there is no need to rub everything in sight. And this isn’t a carnival, so forget bumper cars! As for the grinding, well, the walls weren’t the only thing receiving attention; there was some teeth grinding as well.

Lotus Challenge, an Xbox release from Kuju Entertainment and XiCat, is a race program that is brimming with great cars, real-life tracks and solid graphical elements. But one big factor prohibits this Motor Trend title from accelerating into the winner’s circle – some of the cars handle like bulldozers.

Having never been behind the wheel of a Lotus, the price tag alone would lend one to think that these cars are tight-handling, high-speed machines. The game purports to have a realistic driving model, “tested and endorsed by Lotus test drivers.” The languid turning physics are not limited to the analog controller alone – even with a wheel, this control sensitivity was in the ‘crank and hope it turns without overturning range.’

However, some of the higher-end automobiles – in the game’s defense – did perform reasonably well, most notably in the challenge areas of the game.

But while the steering was less than highly responsive, and the accelerator seemed to lack a quick punch, the brakes were touchy. Slam on them and you are in a spin or slide, bound for the wall or other cars. You can go from first to worst in the blink of an eye.

Lotus Challenge does have a very nice variety package. The game sports 38 cars from vintage to concept cars designed specifically for the game. There are also 15 tracks based on real-life locations. The game can be played as a racing game, or in challenges and story mode. Can you get the pregnant woman to the hospital before she delivers the baby? It is anything but a straight-through, no-obstacle course. And then there is the stuntman challenge – jumping a car through a boxcar on a moving train. Beating a lap time is par for the course. But drivers need to find that fine line between gas and brake to successfully manage the challenges.

That seems to be the recurrent theme with this game. While some racing games allow players to put the peddle to the metal and drive madly, Lotus Challenge requires constant but soft controls on the accelerator, and a light touch on the brake.

The game does allow players to set up the car to withstand minimal damage at the novice level. But the more skill you get, and the more you advance along the difficulty plane, the tougher and harder the challenges become.

The program also feature the standard array of camera angles, for either the arcade feel, or to put you in the driver’s seat. It was likely pure imagination, but the drivers in the cars sit on the right side of the vehicle, while the “driver’s seat” view is from the center, or – seemingly – the left side of the vehicle.

Car models are well designed though the game sound is merely average for the genre.

Motor City Presents Lotus Challenge looks good but has some problems with control elements, which can only be described as sluggish in some instances – like the lap race in Tokyo. It is not a bad game, but is not capable of playing with the bigger racing games until it works out the steering woes, or at least gets some consistency in that area.

The build of the game received stated that a final rating was pending.

Gameplay: 7
The tracks are well rendered and once you get past the sluggish turning controls, you will be treated to a high speed thrill ride through realistic courses. The load times are negligible and you will be up to your steering wheel in racing action relatively quickly. However, should you flip, it is race over.

Graphics: 7.4
The environments are superb with dynamic lighting, and the car details are excellent. There are a few minor clipping problems, which are most noticeable when you flip a car in the first-person perspective.

Sound: 7
Average for the genre.

Difficulty: Medium
The sometimes-sluggish controls make this a game that will challenge. It takes a light touch on the brake, and – at times – decelerating, or easing off the gas, is preferable to tromping on the brake control.

Concept: 7.2
The range of cars, tracks and story mode combine to make this an options-rich game. The game does break down though in other aspects, which diminish the overall experience.

Multiplayer: 7
The game features a two-player race option that doesn’t deviate from the standard for the genre.

Overall: 7.3
The game has some very solid aspects, but the steering needs to be tweaked to mirror that on a high-performance vehicle. And considering that driving is at the core of a race game, Motor Trend Presents Lotus Challenge needs a little work under the hood to vie with the top titles in the genre. Graphically, and with the force feedback to allow players to feel the road, this game does hold its own quite well.