Offroad Fury has stood out as the standard when it comes to capturing the fast-paced action of quad racing. The racing is fun, easy to pick up and forgiving, but not too forgiving. In all, the series has been known for being arcadey excitement while managing to not insult racing fans – a nice balance.

This third edition promises to carry that torch, but for the first time the responsibility has been passed to a new developer. The first two Offroad Fury games were developed by Rainbow Studios (who went on to produce the Moto GP games for Xbox), but this time it's Climax that's tasked with taking the series to the next step.

So the question is whether the change has been made to take the series to the next step or let the game stand on the quality of its predecessors. At first glance, and that means presentation and in-game graphics, its appears to be the latter. Not only is this game not a step forward for the series – it seems to be a slight step back. The graininess and lack of detail in the tracks and arenas has only gotten worse, and while the entire style is clearly a new take on this particular world of racing, there's nothing about it that represents a move up. If fans of ATV Offroad Fury 2 were looking forward to another level of eye candy, better shadows, use of color, dirt and dust-up effects – anything to make it look more realistic and less like an old game, they'll still be looking.

The game plays very similarly to the first two. The signature preload system is still there. (As you climb a hill, pull back on the stick and let go as you hit the air. If you time it well, you'll get serious hang time on your jump.) And the trick system is still very simple, revolving around combinations of three buttons and the left analog stick. You can powerslide into any corner by simply pressing R1, and because competition boils down to taking corners and jumping a little better than everyone else, that list represents all you'll have to master. Pulling off tricks are is at all necessary during races, but it will get you more points for unlocking goodies later, like ATVs, gear and tracks.

The last, and maybe most important, element in the gameplay is staying on your quad. This is where the game crosses the line between challenging and annoying a little too often. Of course, a price should be paid when a speeding ATV runs into a barrier, a sign or another quad, but the results in this game are too inconsistent and unforgiving. Hitting a barrier at a slow speed – just barely hitting it – can send you flying. And sometimes a solid collision with another racer will send one, both or neither of you into the dirt, and there doesn't seem to be much rhyme or reason for it. When a collision seems like it should be just a little jarring to your run, you'll find yourself stuck on a pylon or foam barrier for an eternity. It's even more disappointing when you remember none of these problems from the previous game.

Overall, ATV Offroad Fury 3 is a fun, challenging racer with solid online play. But when ATV Offroad Fury 2 is every bit as good – even graphically, and extremely inexpensive because of its age, there's very little reason to get this version. It's not much better than 2, but it's not exactly the same experience as 2, either. It's as if someone decided it was time to remake a movie that was only a few years old, and one has to be left wondering, "why bother?"