Wipeout Pulse is the greatest game ever created for the PSP, go out and buy it...

Still here? No, seriously. Stop what you're doing, go to your nearest store and buy this game right now (you could go online but that will take too long).

I'm not joking! Go on, do it!

Okay, I can see you may need a bit more convincing than that. I suppose I can tear myself away from Wipeout Pulse to do that - but just remember, you owe me one!

Wipeout Pure was one of the first games released on the PSP way back in 2005 and one of the best things about the release of its sequel, Wipeout Pulse, is that during my research I have once again rediscovered this gem of a game that got lost in the shuffle over the past three or so years, which is still one of the greatest games created for the system. I would say the greatest, but that accolade has now been stolen by its successor.

Now, just like Ridge Racer 2, I could complain about how little has actually been changed, but I won't. Because, as with my review of Ridge Racer 2, I will not judge this game based upon its past, but rather the here and now. And from this perspective, all I can say is that I am amazed. I kept flicking through the menus, convinced that I was watching a downloaded film of a new PS3 game. The PSP should not be able to do all this. The PSP is not powerful enough to achieve all this. And yet it is! If you thought that the graphics, the music, the gameplay and everything else was amazing in Pure, then you will be stunned into silence when you view what Sony have achieved with Pulse.

Wipeout in itself is a fairly simple concept; piloting a futuristic ship you must race against similar crafts around a track in a number of different event types. As you speed around the track you can pick up bonuses that allow you to use weaponry, shields and speed boosts. Nothing new so far, right? You would be right for thinking that this sounds like every other racing game that's been created for the past decade, but the difference between Wipeout Pulse and all those others is simple: Wipeout Pulse is so much better.

As you start to play, you enter certain grids from the sixteen that become available as you progress. Each grid includes a variety of race types that are not just your typical race where you must place third or above, but a variety of different modes. Single is a simple race on one of the many tracks available to reach first place, Head-to-Head is a race against a single opponent, Tournament is a series of races in which you gain points based on your finishing position, Time Trial is your typical beat the clock mode, Speed Lap is similar except that it's based on you beating the preset lap time, Zone sees you racing around a track with an increase in speed every ten seconds and the longer you stay in the race without crashing the more zones you go through and the more points you gain, and finally Eliminator is all about destroying as many opponents as you can or reaching a set number of kills to take the victory. None of these modes are particularly innovative, apart from Zone, which I haven't come across before, but by offering such variety you will not be getting bored of the same old races anytime soon.

As you progress, gaining points and medals, you open more and more grids, which open up more and more for you to do. To say the game is huge would be an insult, as it has 236 levels (or rounds) within it - and that's not even including all the sub-rounds within these either! It is doubtful that you will complete all of this in a few weeks, or even in a few months - and even if you do then you will still be coming back for more.

The main reason for this is that Wipeout Pulse understands the importance of multiplayer, and its implementation of online and wireless play is flawless. Even if you don't know anyone who owns the game, you can go online and play against up to seven other peoplewhich is just amazing. I was stunned, writing this at 4am, to be able to stop and race against someone from Utah and another guy from Brisbane; it is at points like this when I cry over some of the abysmal (or non-existent) online components of some other PSP games. Even wirelessly the game is easy to set up and go without the endless loading and searching and then loading again, before the connection is lost and you have to start all over again. All PSP games - no, scratch that - all games should take Wipeout Pulse as an example of how to implement online gaming properly. Once again, the developers have also embraced the expansion aspect of having new ships and tracks available to download, which increases the already insane longevity of the game even further.

Graphically, Wipeout Pulse is what Leonardo DaVinci would have produced if he was alive today and working as a games designer. The ships are futuristic and because of this we can throw the "oh they don't look very realistic" comment out of the window, as we are presented with some of the most bizarre vehicles outside of The Flintstones. Each one has a unique balance of handling, speed, acceleration and so on, so the game isn't bogged down with the usual 'pimp my ride' nonsense that can sometimes be so badly integrated or simply confusing. Tracks are awash with colour and light that will dazzle you as you whiz along at breakneck speeds that your PSP should not be able to achieve. The music is again just beautiful; there is no other way to describe it. Featuring music from the likes of Aphex Twin and Kraftwerk, I panicked that this would be my lowlight - but it's not, as every piece of music captures the frenetic feel of the gameplay that makes me want to listen to it and makes me continue riding along at speeds that once again I must stress the PSP should not be able to achieve, which makes me shiver with anticipation at what the PS3 will pull off for its Wipeout debut later this year.

Wipeout Pulse is undoubtedly the greatest racing game on the PSP, if not the greatest game ever made. I cannot convey just how much this game gives me hope that there are still designers, creators and producers who are working hard to create games that will have players on the edge of their seats and playing until their hands bleed. In this age of playing for two or three weeks and then trading a game in for something else, I can safely say that anyone who purchases this game will have this in their collection for a very long time - probably even after the next Wipeout game is released. So, what are you still waiting for? Go and buy it already!

Reviewed by David Simpson for AceGamez (All Rights Reserved).