The Porsche Boxster. One of the finest automobiles ever made. That's proabaly true, but the fact remains that it's a great lookin' car. Who wouldn't want to be seen driving around in one? Now, you finally get your chance!

First off, Porsche Challenge is less likely to appeal to the Rage Racer brigade and seems more suited toward players of Need For Speed 2. The central point here is all-out realism. It makes sense. If you're buying a game about Porsches, you want to feel like you're driving a Porsche, and not just playing another arcade driving game.

This simulation-first feel has its up and downs. For a start, you are restricted because you are always driving pretty much the same car. But when that car is a porshe, who cares? There are slight differences between the models as well.

There is also that curious heavy-handed half-realism you sometimes get from certain games though, in truth, this feels perfectly natural after a few hours at the wheel. The turning radius is especially strange, when compared to other racers. But when compared to an actual car, it works.

Sony obviously understands these limitations and has added a few extras which will add challenge to the simulation. Competitive drivers have different habits and it's worth learning them. And the courses are tough. Forget about winning the moment you start the game. The shortcuts that open up after wins make this one worth playing for more than one day.

Because this takes more thought than simply sticking your foot down and steering, the two-player mode can be extremely taxing, but unlike simple arcade games it works best when both players really have a feel for the cars. Even more fun is the ghost mode which allows you to play your own best times.

Porsche Challenge sets out to recreate the feel of one of the world's finest cars. Not only does it succeed as a simulation, but it's also a fun game experience. If you like your racers realistic, and can't get enough of German motoring, you owe it to yourself to check this one out.