Billy O'Keefe
McClatchy-Tribune

"FORZA MOTORSPORT 2"
For: Xbox 360
From: Turn 10/Microsoft Game Studios
ESRB Rating: Everyone

"Forza Motorsport 2" has a problem, and that problem's name is "Forza Motorsport." Microsoft Game Studios' first attempt at a hardcore driving simulation was such a knockout, there's precious little for the sequel to do to improve on the formula.

But improve it does, particularly if you have an Xbox Live Gold Account.

While "FM2's" single-player component is wonderfully deep, its online community is giggle-like-a-schoolgirl incredible and likely will remain so until the day "Forza 3" releases. The insanely deep car customization features practically comprise a game in their own right, and it's a thrill to race your creations against the world's best armchair drivers and mechanics. The paint and decal options allow your artistic juices to run absolutely wild, and you can even sell your cars on a live auction block in exchange for in-game currency, which can be used to purchase new cars within the game. How brilliant is that?

Elsewhere, the improvements are more subtle but equally important. Team 10 has tweaked an already-incredible physics engine, further bridging the gap between the game's 300 vehicles and their real-life counterparts. The difference in how vehicles and even various parts perform is tangible even to casual observers. Such dedication to realism isn't for everyone _ success in "Forza" demands a much more subtle touch than a game like "Burnout" requires _ but those who crave it will reap almost endless reward from "FM2's" attention to depth and detail.

All that content and detail _ along with a fantastically smooth framerate _ has its drawbacks, at least visually speaking. While "FM2" produces some gorgeous car designs, the tracks don't look quite as good as what other Xbox 360 racers have produced. Worse is the omission of an in-dash camera: It's wholly understandable (good, even) that recreating 300 car interiors wasn't at the top of Turn 10's priority list, but a few generic options for us less picky sorts would've been nice.

Those issues aside, "FM2" is a monster of a game, and there's so much more to it than a 375-word review can cover. Just know that if you love cars and love a good, exciting driving simulation, few games will spin in your 360 as long and as frequently as this one.

"THE DARKNESS"
For: Xbox 360 and Playstation 3
From: Starbreeze Studios/2K Games
ESRB Rating: Mature (blood and gore, drug reference, intense violence, sexual themes, strong language)

Arguably no game developer is experimenting with immersion quite like Starbreeze Studios, which most recently was responsible for a movie-licensed game ("The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape from Butcher Bay") that was immeasurably more interesting than the movie that inspired it.

The concepts that surfaced in "Riddick" go into overdrive with "The Darkness," which drops you into the shoes of a 21-year-old mobster who finds himself doing battle with both his crime family and a demonic possession that gives him some seriously scary powers. Fundamentally, it's a first-person shooter, and much of the action that takes place is not unlike what might take place in any other FPS. But the devil is in "The Darkness'" details, and it's the sum of these details that set the game so far apart from its peers.

Case in point: You're looking for a certain building, but there's no arrow or in-game display pointing the way _ only a few "You are here" maps on various street corners. Even when you calculate (in your own head) the directions of your trip, you literally have to read the street signs in order to find your destination. That's assuming you don't need to take the subway, which you'll have to learn in similar fashion.

It's like being a tourist in a new town, only with half the locals out to kill you. This lack of hand-holding _ and this is just one example _ will feel excessive to some, but that's more an indictment of gamer tastes than Starbreeze's creativity.

To reveal too many details about the demon possession would be to spoil parts of a very story-driven game. Just know that the powers it grants _ which include a number of stealth attacks and the ability to create black holes and summon demonic (and surprisingly funny) underlings to do your bidding _ are almost universally awesome. "The Darkness" is home to a number of terrific and very challenging shootouts, but it's these special powers that will truly drop jaws.

"The Darkness" comes equipped with an enjoyable multiplayer mode that allows you to play as one of the aforementioned underlings, but it's more of a bonus than a chief selling point. That's fine. It's pretty clear where Starbreeze's heart lies, and it's refreshing to see a first-person shooter that not only heavily prioritizes its single-player component, but is so thoroughly able to do so in the first place.

© 2007, McClatchy-Tribune Information Services.