one of the best racing games ever and easily the peak of this franchise. it feels amazing to get the hang of, the tracks are great, the sense of speed is phenomenal, and the story mode is pretty sick although a bit annoying to progress in due to the whole ticket thing. it also aged absurdly well and still looks amazing, with an incredible and exhilarating soundtrack throughout. loved this game and it feels good to finally beat it after years and years of giving up on it cause i sucked.