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It's surprising just how much cats and racing cars have in common. I sat down and drew up a list o similarities this morning and came up with loads of them. For a start there are 'laps' - they both do those. And then there are legs. They both have 4 legs. [No they don't. - Ed] Don't they? [No. - Ed] But they both drink milk. [They don't, actually. - Ed] Oh. Er, one similarity, then. An impressive list nonetheless.

You've probably already guessed that they've given me another driving game to review. (The basts.) The screenshots are a bit of a giveaway for a start - the track, the cars, the roadside obstacles, they're all in there somewhere. And the name is very 'driving game' too, perhaps with faint overtones of an afternoon quiz show on BBC1. So what's so different about Championship Run, then? Well, um, I'm still working on that one. Meanwhile, in case you haven't encountered this sort of thing before (which, quite frankly, seems unlikely), here's what it's all about...

You're the driver of a racing car and you've got to drive round a track (one of 6, in fact) as quickly as possible without crashing. Unfortunately there are lots of other cars trying to do the same thing, so a little push and shove is inevitable. After 4 laps the race is over and, unless you've managed to reach a predetermined 'qualifying position' you're out of the running. So it's essential to overtake enough cars to get you into the next race. While doing this you have to be careful not to take too many 'hits', otherwise a time wasting pitstop will be called for. Either that or your car will fall to pieces.

Pretty standard stuff, then. Graphics any good? Not really. They're very simple and more than a little repetitive. And the game is generally very un-feature-packed. It's really just the basic essentials required to get a racing game off the ground and no more. About the only thing it's really got going for it is that it's fast. Your car really flies round the track - 'good impression of speed' would be a deplorable understatement. Fluid it's not, though.

So, if you're into rather dodgy racing games which make up at least partially for their lack of refinement with speed, Championship Run should be more than enough to plump your pillows. Otherwise you'd be advised to slip into something a little more comfortable.

An ordinary (and slightly crap) driving game.