Import Tuner Challenge

Graphics and sound aside, this is one of the stronger racing titles available on the Xbox 360, offering a unique racing experience that can’t be found in Need for Speed, Test Drive Unlimited, or any other titles on the market, and is easy to recommend to any speed freak who thinks as much about tuning as they do racing.

Import Tuner is a fun affair that is better played with others than alone. You won't want to slow down once you get started.

Sadly Import Tuner Challenge doesn’t re-invent the wheel and feels exactly the same as "Tokyo Extreme Racer." This isn’t necessarily a bad thing although I do feel more could have been added other than the obvious graphical upgrade.

Import Tuner lacks either the impressive visuals we've come to expect from next-gen games (racing titles, especially), or a well-executed new feature that contrasts it from other offerings in the genre.

Import Tuner Challenge does few things right and faces stiff competition from other racing games, but if you sink enough time into it, it can grow on you.

It has a decidedly limited range of licensed cars, an unsatisfying handling model, a dull course and a difficulty level that's way out of whack.

The customization options and cool way of racing don't make up for the fact that this game is poorly presented and extremely thin on the course selection, especially when we've seen all of this plenty of times before.

Gives you vaguely authentic import street racing, including real Tokyo streets, licensed import cars and an immense array of parts and manufacturers to customize your ride.

Some better graphics and sound, along with more track diversity could have gone a long way towards making this title a must have for race fans.

Despite its lack of personality, variation or depth, Import Tuner Challenge isn't a terrible racer, and Japanse driving fanatics might get off on multiplayer duels and the realistically non-descript office buildings that pass for scenery.

Not a real good racer. Tuning your car will give enough variation, but you will notice that the gameplay isn’t that great and won’t really give you a challenge. What bothers me most is the fact that the overall presentation of the game gives the impression of a budget game to me, instead of a full featured product worth 60 bucks.

The game design is pretty cool for a next-gen console, but the meat and potatoes of a real exciting street racer got checked at the door.

Tuning the numerous parts of your car provides for some decent variation, but you’ll soon figure out that the actual gameplay just isn't very good.

If this were a $20 budget title, then it'd be worth a purchase. But at the Xbox 360 standard $60 at the register, there's no way you should bother with Import Tuner Challenge. Wait for "Need For Speed Carbon," instead.

Though it's fun to earn enough credit points to pimp your licensed Mazda, Toyota, or Nissan into a serious ride via performance upgrades, ITC's featureless concrete racing environments, detached driving physics, MIA damage modeling, and dated graphics bleed too much air from the tires. [Holiday 2006, p. 80]

An utter waste of time and you money, please ensure this unambitious racer never enters your 360. [Issue 13, p.88]

If you enjoy customising your car, however, you'll quite possibly wet your pants with excitement. [Issue 17, p.67]

Petrolheads and tuning fans will probably get a kick out of it for a short while, but the lack of any sense of speed, the monotony of doing the same thing time after time from the beginning of the game to the end and the fact that the development team have forgotten to add the slightest bit of personality means that you probably shouldn’t bother.