Lucky Xbox owners certainly aren't short of racing games to quench their need for speed. All tastes have been catered for, from rallying titles, arcade racers, technical challenges and even biking games. With the exception of Lotus Challenge though, there haven't been any driving games based around one manufacturer's product range. World Racing (previously known as Mercedes Benz World Racing) is here to change that.

If the game was judged on pedigree alone, then you'd have a strong contender for the next Crufts Championship. This title boasts more than 100 different types of Mercedes to unlock and play with - everything from vintage models that look like they've been driven from a museum exhibition to bonkers prototype cars that drive so quickly you expect to engage in a spot of time travel.

To compliment the cars you have some expansive and (above all else) incredibly long tracks to play with. If you choose to, you can go off-course at certain points and drive for miles. The tracks are diverse, encompassing cityscapes, a Mexican rainforest, the typical alpine pass, test tracks and off-road pursuits to name just a few. In fact, there's a bucketload of tracks - almost as many as there are cars, although many of them are variations on existing maps. Don't expect to be overwhelmed by new and exciting landscapes every time you rev your engine.

The map size and the manufacturer's brand are the key selling points to a racer that's already fighting for space in a crowded starting grid, but there are also loads of play modes available. There are more than a dozen different championships to compete in, missions to unlock and accomplish, multiplayer catering for up to four drivers (no Xbox Live though - boo!) in conjunction with the standard single race and free drive game types.

But this is where things start to go rusty, because the level of sophistication shown throughout this title is actually to the detriment of the game itself. For example, the menu system is an overly confusing and convoluted mess of multiple options that stands to hamper and confuse the casual player when they're just trying to get a race together.

After starting a race it quickly becomes apparent that this game takes a different approach to many of the norms of the genre. For a start it's not just winning the race that counts - you also get judged on your skill, discipline and fair play among other criteria. This means that every time you ram a car to gain an advantage you may get marked down, or every time you perform a good handbrake slide (which you'll need to do a lot of) you earn Brownie points for skill. This can be off-putting when you're going hell for leather for the finishing line.

Handling is also a formidable task. It's not that the physics are wrong, the cars feel weighty enough and the illusion of track traction is evident, but it can just be plain hard to keep the cars trackside without them bouncing off a barrier or spinning into the distance. This isn't really an arcade-style driving game that lets you make too many mistakes and get away with it. Although to World Racing's credit, there is an adjuster between Simulator and Arcade that allows for slightly less stringent driving physics - if you can find it hidden in the menu screens.

But the overriding problem with this title is that it just isn't as much fun to play as it should be. It feels more like an interactive advert for Mercedes. You can hardly damage the cars, a few dents on the bumpers and a hint of damage to the bodywork is not what 100 per cent damage should look like. It's obvious that Mercedes didn't want to see their shiny pride and joys look in any way tawdry and this does little to benefit the thrill of driving.

The opponent AI is also a real letdown. The competition is tough enough but the other cars follow the racing line like lemmings on a road trip and rarely show any personality in their very rigid manoeuvres. You also get a very poor choice of cars to start with and in order to get to the better motors you need to invest hours of game-time in successfully completing races. Graphically, there are no complaints. The cars are highly detailed and the tracks have enough going on in the background to keep you interested. The framerate also nips along adequately but it just doesn't disguise the sterile nature of the game when there are many more exciting racers to chose from.

Dedicated Mercedes fanboys will undoubtedly be polishing their bodywork with glee, but the rest of us will certainly need to think twice before spending the money on this technically competent but rather mundane racing experience.

1. Technically adept
2. Loads of cars to unlock
3. Tons of tracks

1. Boring AI
2. Poor menu navigation
3. Not as exciting as it should be

Power
The cars are well detailed and the framerate nips along at a decent pace. Quick loading times too.

Style
A very straight-laced racer that has complicated menus and lacks some much-needed va-va-voom.

Immersion
Due to boring AI the races can get tedious after extensive play and the missions use little imagination.

Lifespan
A good technical racer and four-player split-screen is fun. You'll have to love Mercs to unlock them all.

Summary
Mercedes fans will have found Nirvana, Lacks some of the pedal to the metal thrill that a racing game should provide.