The long-running Test Drive franchise has been all over the map the last couple of years, going from developer to developer while covering everything from high-class exotics to demolition derby junkers. The latest incarnation, Test Drive Unlimited, sends the auto action to an accurately modeled sunny Hawaii, adding motorcycles and customizable avatars to the mix for a true open road feeling that's near perfect for those who want to cruise or race around online or off. Where games like Project Gotham 3 box you into great looking courses that leave you wishing for a way to drive off the beaten path, Eden Studios gives you the entire island of Oahu to play with while creating a new genre, the MMORG (Massively Multiplayer Online Racing Game). This works marvelously for the most part, as it's an incredible amount of fun to just drive around for hours and check out the scenery or get together with your friends for some team races. Although you're guaranteed weeks or longer of an all-road vacation, the game does have a few hitches here and there that keep it from perfection.

Rather than just set you up as the usual invisible guy or gal who gets to buy and race a garage full of expensive rides, you need to create a male or female avatar then get your first house and car before you even hit the road. There's a mandatory tutorial that gives you a taste of the handling model, but after that the gorgeously rendered game would is all yours to explore. This sort of freeform play might seem odd to those of you used to structured racing events, but you'll soon find that the simple act of just driving around can unlock a few great bonuses. In addition to earning Achievement Points for reaching different distance milestones, there are 220 different driving challenges to tackle in both offline and online game modes. While most of the challenges are pure racing bliss, there's a multitude of tasks, from picking up hitchhikers (hey, isn't that illegal in Hawaii?) to delivering a car to its owner with as little damage as possible. Your GPS soon becomes your best friend as you explore the nooks and crannies of Oahu.

The car handling here is a mix of the arcade and simulation aspects that developer Eden Studios is known for and there are also a few driving aids that can be toggled off if you don't need them. If you're more used to either end of the scale (Gran Turismo or Ridge Racer) then you'll definitely want to spend a lot of time learning how to nail sharp turns and blaze though traffic at high speeds without collisions. These skills come in very handy in many challenges and the game isn't shy about docking your Driving Points when you start smashing into the scenery. If you're one of those folks who always goes for the automatic transmission option, definitely give manual shifting a try; you'll not only learn to appreciate these exotic cars and bikes better but you'll also see improved race times as you get used to the different vehicles. Of course, not having to worry about shifting means that you can concentrate on avoiding the super aggressive police force who can make your speed life a financial hell if you're caught. You should also try playing in either an in-car or a first-person view in order to get a more exhilarating sensation of speed.

You earn cash, shopping coupons and driving points during your time in the game world, each serving a different purpose. Cash is used to buy, rent or customize rides, pay off speeding tickets and buy new houses. Shopping coupons, available from certain Challenge races, allow you to outfit your character at the islands' name brand retailers, such as ecko unlimited, Ben Sherman, Red Rabbit and more. Granted, you don't need to upgrade your nice looking starter wardrobe with these fancy duds, but having the option to wear expensive clothes that fit the expensive vehicles you're zipping around in makes the game more fun aesthetically. Racing points are the meat of the game, however; while the majority of events earn you cash, Time Attack events allot you a set amount of driving points that are knocked down as you collide with other vehicles or objects - and going off-road strips away more points. Running out of points is a bad thing, as you then have to retry the course until you nail it and win, or quit out to try something else.

Running out of money is also a bad thing, as it limits the number of cars you can obtain and can leave you stranded in the same 'lowly' house with a four-car garage until you can earn your way to bigger digs with space for more cars. The amusing thing here is that even on your worst day you'll probably have a better car in the game than you do in real life. That and, heck, you're living in Hawaii for cryin' out loud! In terms of cars and motorcycles, there are ninety to take for a spin, eight of which are hidden away until specific challenges are completed. There are classic muscle cars like the '69 Stingray and Shelby GT500 '67 on the road, with a few Ferraris, Lamborghinis and Aston Martins. The great part about this is that you can rent or test-drive many of these cars before you unlock or buy them, allowing you a taste of what you're working hard for. In between tackling the main game, I spent the better part of a week or so taking as many of the faster cars as possible for brief test drives or renting them for missions to earn cash and shopping coupons. Atari has also released a few updates over Xbox Live that bumps the car roster up considerably, but even if you don't use the service there are than enough out of the box.

As you advance from Rookie to Pro, new items are unlocked, such as a paint shop that allows unlimited color possibilities and custom parts shops where you can modify your rides and make them even faster. One of the coolest bonuses is an editor that allows you to create single or multiplayer challenges for offline or Xbox Live usage. You can set up single or multiplayer courses and collect virtual entry fees from live players who think they can beat the challenges you set. This is a good way to make a bit of game cash on the side, but you need to be prepared to lose a chunk of change if you make your courses too easy. You're allowed to set how long a particular challenge runs, but you can only upload one at a time. There are definitely some very skilled course makers out there who drop in a few devious time challenges that require perfect laps to complete. You can spend weeks offline before you even touch the online aspect of the game, but when you do log on, expect to face some stiff competition no matter where you go.

Over Xbox Live you can take on the 98 multiplayer challenges alone or with friends, but in order to play with them you need to either join a club they're in or create one and send out invites. Since creating a club costs a bit of money (a minimum of $250,000), going online means hitting the road with a wide range of players from novices to hardcore experts. You'll find some all-car or all-bike clubs to join, challenges to tackle and additional content to add to your 360's hard drive. Forming a club at higher skill levels allows you to filter out unwanted players, online matches out of your area or even certain car types. You can also deactivate player-on-player collisions, which can help keep matches friendly. Although there are tons of players online, you won't see them all if you log on during a heavy period; the online component is designed to allow for less congestion on the highways, as only a set amount of cars are onscreen at any given time. It would take a pretty powerful game system with a ton of memory to show thousands of cars online in a game world so massive, but Eden has done a solid job of keeping things running pretty smoothly.

Test Drive Unlimited also looks great, with excellently rendered car models that feature intricately detailed exteriors and interiors. Every time you get a new car you'll want to switch to cockpit view and use the right analog stick to pan around and get that new car feel. Since the only chance most of us are going to get to drive the likes of a Saleen S7 Twin Turbo or a Caterham CSR 260 is through games like this, it's absolutely grand to see up close and personal what we're missing (or can't afford more like!) Bikes are also amazing to look at, so don't pass up the chance to hop on a couple when the time comes (you need to as part of a few challenges). As for the game world, well, my first flight to Oahu was back in 1992, so I recognized a few roads and was amazed at how well Eden have captured the beautiful spirit of the island. Forget about some of those other racers with their made-up roads and Hollywood-style speed effects - what's here is more impressive just due to the sheer dedication of Eden in getting Oahu right. Try playing around with the map screen, zooming all the way out and back for some eye-popping detail that makes you wish they'd do a game based in New York, Tokyo or any other major city around the world.

With the entire island's roadway system at your disposal, it's a total pleasure to drive all over the place for a few hours, feeling as if you're actually there. A small amount of objects pop up on occasion, but overall the illusion works brilliantly. Expect to see a fair amount of traffic programmed to drive safely (which makes some races really tricky). There are no pedestrians onscreen at all, probably for two good reasons - one, adding a ton of strolling citizens would bog down the frame rate significantly and two, the developer would have had to give them all AI routines for those cases where players 'accidentally' went off course into some locals or tourist types. Either that, or have the cars clip through them (which would have just looked terrible).

The folks who give you missions are represented as icons that you drive up to that switch to potential polygonal passengers or package givers when you need to speak with them. Eden isn't quite as skilled with rendering people as they are with cars, so you'll see the occasional strange-looking character model once in a while. While playing with a friend who got pulled over after a crazy crash-packed chase, as the female cop was handing him his ticket he started laughing and said, "No wonder these cops drive so crazy - she looks like a female Terminator!" I thought that was a wee bit too harsh though, especially since you'll see some nice looking folks at the airport when you start up the game for the first time.

While the sound is solid, purists will notice that all of the car exhausts and such may not have been sampled. A few too many engines sound alike, but the sound design is spectacular, particularly when you're switching viewpoints and hearing the changes. Whether you're in a car or on a bike, at some point you'll get that Zen-like moment when you hit a long straight section and everything clicks. With the windows rolled down, the engine roaring, wind whipping through your virtual hair, a big ol' grin will get stuck to your face that lasts a good long while. You may not really be in Hawaii but you'll certainly feel like you're on a vacation. The in-game soundtrack is okay and yes, you can use your own music in up to four programmable radio stations. Personally I prefer shutting off the tunes and concentrating on the road and overall beauty of the game world, but to each his or her own.

I suppose I could complain about the lack of damage modeling here or how fierce (and cheap) the police can get when you get swarmed and slammed, but these are minor gripes at best. Considering how much work went into making Test Drive Unlimited, it's definitely one that will grow on you the longer its played. Atari is also planning to bring this to the PS2 and PSP sometime in 2007, so it'll be really interesting to see how those two versions turn out. I'd imagine a PS3 version with enhanced features is also in the works, but we'll have to see what happens with that as the months go by. In any event, if you're a 360 owner in the market for an awesome racing experience that truly lets you hit the open road and live the dream life, you've got nearly Unlimited possibilities with this latest Test Drive.

Reviewed by Greg Wilcox for AceGamez (All Rights Reserved).