AMN's Review Policy: Our reviews are written for you. Our goal is to write honest, to-the-point reviews that don't waste your time. This is why we've split our reviews into four sections: What the Game's About, What's Hot, What's Not and Final Word, so that you can easily find the information you want from our reviews. This review is for the Xbox 360 version of the game.

What the Game's About
The game is the modern sequel to the classic Sega Rally Championship 2 for the Dreamcast, and things haven't changed very much. We pulled out the old Dreamcast and played the original game. The game is basically the same, and that's both a good thing and a bad thing. It's the kind of game that anyone could just pick up and play and have a good time with.

What's Hot
There are a lot of little things that make Sega Rally Revolution a fun package. To start with, it's very pretty. The environments you run through are varied and each has a different feel and effect on your car. The Geo-Deformation in each track also adds another layer of complexity to the game. Geo-Deformation, simply put, is the grooves that your car leaves in the track as it tears up the natural roads. The first time you or another racer passes through mud, you carve out a track. These tracks remain throughout the whole race, and you can get your car caught in them if you're not careful. The good thing is that if it's a good line, it's a nice guideline to drive into. But if it's a poor line, getting caught in it could waste precious seconds. It's a brilliant natural evolution of racing games, and fits this game very well. Another nice feature is that the multiple types of tracks offer more than just mud. Water, ice, and snow all affect your car. Each requires a different kind of deft hand to drive through, and it makes for a fun experience. Xbox Live play is a nice addition to the game, as it is easy to setup a decent match type with similarly skilled players. The music itself has a lot of nice effects for the cars, road conditions, and animals you encounter outside the tracks.

What's Not
For all the good, there is some not-so-good. The racing in this game is shallow. Unlike some of the more recent driving games, like the magnificent DiRT and the excellent MotorStorm, SRR is pure arcade-style racing. It feels a lot like the old Crusin' games that you'd play in the arcade during their heyday. While this means that anyone can pick up and play the game, it also means there isn't a lot of reason to keep playing. The game is also fairly short, as we beat the main game in about 8 hours. The limited number of tracks (about 23, total) doesn't help the replay value, and some of those tracks are simply mirror versions of existing ones. The AI in the game also suffers from the same rubber band AI flaws that you encounter in many other racers – except it's even meaner than usual. Most AI cars try to ram you or pit you once you pass them, unless you get really far ahead of them. Once they ram you or get you back into place, they just resume their physics-defying race line and move on as if you didn't exist. It's a little mean and unfair. Also, as nice as the sound is, the music sounds like it came right out of an old arcade cabinet.

Final Word
Sega Rally Revolution is the kind of game anyone you know could pick up and start enjoying immediately. It's not the deepest game you'll ever play, but it is fun and an excellent way to kill some time on the weekend. A good rental, but save your purchase money for DiRT or MotorStorm if you're in the mood for a great racer.