The whole premise of the game is to drive from point A to point B through traffic and other obstacles in order to finish first in the race and unlock a short video of one of the lovely Hooters Girls doing what they do best. The action is all arcade-style, so you'll have plenty of opportunities to do some pretty crazy things that you normally wouldn't get away with if playing the Colin McRae Rally series. Pitted in several races that span the continental U.S., you'll travel from California to Florida and back in order to garner your prize of top racer. One thing that Hooters excels in is car selection, with over 16 to unlock when you win your races.

Unfortunately for gamers picking this title up, that's where most of the good stuff ends, and where the pain begins. First up are the controls, which are pretty atrocious if you're using anything but a controller or racing wheel. Even with these accessories, the controls are a little too loose for my liking. Tweaking the controls in the options takes care of that, but it's unfortunate that one would have to go through that just to ensure the controls are "right."

When you first begin the game, you'll start with a couple of cars to practice on tests courses before the real deal. It is possible to set the difficulty in each race as well as the amount of traffic in each course, but what really bites is that, although it does play like a rally game, you can't actually venture off the beaten path in order to explore or find shortcuts. The game is literally a case of getting from start to finish on a pre-set track, which rally isn't about.

The real nail in the coffin with Hooters is the lack of any multiplayer options whatsoever. With so many racing games featuring online play, it's amazing that this game is limited only to a single player adventure, which really kills any replay value at all.

I didn't have high expectations going in, and I can say that I wasn't disappointed. Hooters is basically everything I thought it would be: a mediocre racing game that no doubt will only interest the perverse.

· · · Reno