Despite the fun that I've had with Sony's ATV Offroad Fury franchise, I wasn't sure if I wanted to play another one. The company's done a marvelous job crafting these extreme sports games, but for the most part, they all look and feel the same, so as I picked up a DualShock 2 and cycled through some of ATV Offroad Fury 4's menus, I prepared myself for yet another experience that, once fun and refreshing, would feel old and worn out, like a beat up stuffed animal that's got some of its spongy innards oozing from its neck.

Because I was anticipating this gameplay session to be less than stellar, I wasn't paying much attention to the options I was selecting, so as soon as I saw my trophy truck at the finish line I became instantly intrigued. Actually, that's not entirely true. I became far more interested when I targeted some chump on an MX bike and ran him over.

For the first time in this respected franchise's history, Sony has poked its way outside of the box and injected an ATV game with more than just ATVs; buggies, bikes, and trucks, to be exact. There are 30 new vehicles to choose from on top of the standard issue ATVs, so there's probably 60 or so. Plus, there are 72 different tracks to explore as well as several different game types, point-to-point being my favorite because I can ride around at will without the threat of going out of bounds. I can literally take a short cut, barrel through a lush, green forest, and then explode onto the track without fearing the game's wrath. No more "out of bounds" warning signs, no fade to black, and no being gently dropped back onto the track.

In addition to point-to-point there's rally cross, super cross, national, hill climb, circuit, freestyle, and head-to-head. And since this is an ATV Offroad Fury title there's a wide selection of tricks to perform, 30, to be exact. But the most interesting feature of the lot is the game's story mode. You play as a male or a female rookie rider with a mysterious past that's trying to rise to the top of the professional circuit, and complementing the many challenges that you'll face are a bunch of FMV sequences that'll provide the story with some depth.

Actually, depth is really the key word here. Sony could have just shoved all of that stuff into the game, wiped its hands and call it a quadrilogy, but Climax Group (the game's developers) took things five steps further by adding a track editor that allows PS2 and PSP owners playing ATV Pro to share these tracks. Furthermore, there's a tuning system that'll let you alter tire type and gear ratios, vehicle customization that'll allow you to tinker with your ride's brakes, suspension, intake, exhaust, gearbox, and engine, and then you can customize your rider, although this option isn't nearly as option heavy because all you can do is mess around with different colored outfits and logos.

Being able to trade created tracks with someone on a PSP or a PS2 is definitely cool, but there's much more to this game's multiplayer component. Offline, you can play against another opponent via split screen or challenge three other people using a multi-tap. That's all pretty standard issue stuff. But online is a whole other matter entirely. Not only can you race against up to seven other people, but you can participate in tournaments, communicate to them using a headset or a keyboard, exchange vehicles, check out news groups, and hang out in chat rooms.

On top of all this, the game plays just as it should. The handling feels just right, the fast pace provides some thrills, and the off road racing makes the overall experience much better than what you'll find in the previous games. And as for the visuals, well, they're just all right and nothing to cry home about. There's a slight improvement in rider/vehicle detail, but I also feel that if you've seen one ATV Offroad Fury game then you've seen them all. Some jaggies, some sparsely populated forests, some mud. Check, check, and check.

The visuals are not outstanding but the game's frame rate appears to be quite stable, and that, combined with an enormous amount of content makes ATV Offroad Fury 4 a very attractive package that'll hopefully please fans of the series as well as attract new ones. Look for it this September.