Xbox Gaming in South Africa

While XG has already previewed the multiplayer side of Bizarre Creations' upcoming arcade racer Blur (and we were mighty impressed), yesterday saw the opportunity of seeing the single-player campaign first hand in a regional exclusive.

Blur's single-player is all about using fast cars to earn Lights and Fans; Fans are awarded based on how much you please the crowd in a race, and Lights, a sort of star rating, are awarded based on your finishing position. Fans unlock cars, and Lights will unlock more races. In the single-player game you have three modes to earn these in; Career, One on One and Destruction.

Career sees you completing various challenges from 9 AI rivals. Achieving each rival's requirements unlocks their One on One, where you take them on in a fight to the finish, ultimately winning that rival's car as an option in all races if you manage to cross the finish line ahead of them. The requirements are varied and cover different aspects of the game, ranging from completing a set number of power ups of a specific type, to reaching a specific number of fans or achieving a specific number of Lights. This necessitates the use of various vehicles on different tracks, and will see you getting to grips with all the power up options in your attempt to unlock the One on One challenge. Your progress on each of these challenges is updated in-game at the bottom left of the screen as you inch closer to meeting them, which is a nice touch as you constantly feel like you're achieving something in your race as opposed to the general "must get to end first" feeling on most racing career modes. Even if you're not on pole position, there is no such thing as a wasted race; everything you do will count towards your career progress in some way.

Destruction mode (not shown at the preview) is apparently set in an arena with power ups scattered everywhere – your sole aim is to survive. Your car takes damage from crashes and offensive Power Ups hurled by your rivals; take out your rivals first or you'll be out of the game.

The AI is always of concern in any single-player mode, and thankfully Blur's AI does not disappoint. As an example, in the LA Docks Pacific Reach race, sections of the track are barrier free - your rival will line you up next to one of these sections and use a well timed Shunt Power Up to shove you into the water. There are also different difficulty levels to choose from in Career mode so you can set your desired challenge level accordingly.

Power Ups are naturally Blur's main feature that sets it aside from other racing games out there and are a vital component of the race. The Power Ups can be offensive (a well timed barge can send a rival careering into a stack of containers), defensive (Shield makes you invincible for a limited time to rival's Power Ups and even your own crashes) or performance based such as Nitro which will give you a speed burst. Better yet, some Power Ups can be used even if you cannot see your intended victim – use the heat seeking Power Up and it will travel as far along the track as it needs to until it finds a mark. So, even if you're dead last, things in Blur can change in a second. And thankfully the Power Ups are very easy to gain and access; simply drive over a power up to collect it, use X to choose the one you want (maximum of 3 Power Ups can be held at any given point), and use A to use the chosen Power Up. The game also allows you to discard Power Ups – picked up three Repair Power Ups in a row? No problem, discard with Y to free up a slot for the Bolt Power Up. Also, being in last position doesn't mean your rivals will get all the Power Ups leaving you defenceless and unable to attack – Power Ups re-spawn at an impressively rapid rate, so you will always have something in your arsenal.

Aside from the challenges there are additional features to keep you entertained. Mini games feature within the races themselves that are activated by driving through them, same as the Power Ups. Drive through a Fan Run icon and you'll activate a Fan Gate challenge. This involves racing through a series of gates on the race track as quickly as possible, resulting in a boost to your Fan Base if successful. Other features include the ability to share your results via Twitter; you can do this as a general Tweet or you can direct your results at a specific friend on your friends list to challenge them to achieve the same or better. This brings a great social aspect to the usually isolated experience of a Career mode that goes beyond the standard leader boards. You can even go one step further and set specific goals for your friends. Just finished a  race without using one Shield Power Up? Set the parameters and see if your friends are capable of finishing first without using defense as a winning tactic.

In Career mode every time you start up you are given a synopsis of where you are and how you're tracking on all levels, and how you performed on your last play. Loading times always being an issue for me (and everyone else I'm sure), I also liked the fact that you don't have to return to menus to retry a race – you can retry directly from the last race results page and even change your vehicle without having to sit through the loading menus all over again. It's quick and easy to get back into the action.

It has been said previously in discussions on Blur, but it must be said again. Blur is arcade meets serious racer – it has the charm of an arcade title with the realism of a driving sim, but at its heart it's fun and easy to play. Don't have the l33t driving skillz to get you in and out of corners without removing some paint work? Use attack Power Ups to take down those who do. Have the l33t driving skillz? Use the over 50 licensed cars each with their own specific track specialities such as Drift or Speed to your advantage. Whether you're a die-hard PGR fan or a nostalgic Mario Kart racer, Blur is easy to get into and really is pick up and play. And while Blur will no doubt shine brightest in multiplayer, from what we've seen, the career mode offers enough challenges and AI intelligence to make you forget you aren't trying to take down lesser mortals.

Not much longer now - Blur is set to hit local stores in just 3 weeks, on 28 May. Expect our final verdict with our review in the coming weeks.