While let down by a poorly done end game that mostly revolves around grinding for money and being rewarded with radiant quests (more or less) and a handling model that is akin to a soap bar slip-sliding on a sheet of ice, the game makes up for it in spades with one of the best soundtracks in racing, and a Los Angeles that feels truly living and breathing, ironically, only beaten in virtual form by Rockstar creating a fake version of it in GTA V.