A racing game based on the Italian Superstars Championship isn't exactly going to be able to go head to head with the likes of Forza and Gran Turismo in terms of brand awareness here in the UK, but it does allow for a few things that we don't see very often in racers. Superstars V8 Next Challenge features circuits you won't be used to racing in a car, and the TOCA-style suped up road cars will take you back to when the Codemasters series ruled the roost. Milestone's latest Superstars game might be a little too similar to last June's effort for some, but it's still a decent racing title.
Straight off the bat it's clear that V8 isn't the most content-packed title you'll play this year. The single-player modes are essentially a collection of what we've come to expect as the norm in every racing game. There's Quick Race, Time Attack, Race Weekend, Championship and Superstars Licences. Of these, it's Championship that is the meat and bones of the game, placing you in a Superstars championship season, competing in each event, complete with all the pre-race warm ups and qualifying you'd expect.
On the track cars handle pretty well, but just as in last year's game, they have a tendency to snake side to side once you slightly lose control of your backend. The 19-car races are well contested, although not nearly as rough and exciting as races in Forza 3 and GRID, and the 11 tracks all take time to master - they are real-life race tracks after all.Superstars V8 Next Challenge is so similar to its predecessor that it's hard to recommend to existing fans. For newcomers it's competent in key areas, offering a solid handling model and smart visuals, but compared to the best on the market it falls some way short of what's required.
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