I've got a soft spot for racing games that goes all the way back to Pole Position. The next time I can remember being blown away by graphics in a racing game was the original Wip3Out for PSOne, followed by a dead heat between Rockstar's Smuggler's Run and Midnight Club for the PS2 launch. Racing action hasn't changed all that much in 20 years, but graphics have certainly improved. Last year's Split Second captured some of the most visceral, cinematic moments yet seen in a racing game, and SkyDrift takes this kind of explosive action to the air. It's a great combination and extremely well-executed.

Starting out with a few planes, you progress through the Campaign unlocking new models and liveries, including some special designs that can only be earned through online play. The incredible speed of each track is matched by over-the-top destruction and accompanying sound effects. Pulsing music, exploding shells, the whine of an incoming missile, and the rapid beeping sound of a weapon-lock on another racer make each race a white-knuckle affair. Regardless of how you measure a racing game, you have to give SkyDrift props for grabbing the essence of what has made jockeying for pole position fun since we were doing it on the Atari 2600.

The trend lately seems to be toward mission-based Racers. It's not enough to race for the sake of racing, one has to have some overarching storyline or justification. We're fans of open-world racing games, but there's something to be said for competing against nothing but the clock and a cadre of aggressive racers. The collection of planes with their various liveries keeps things interesting as you progress through a series of equally varied landscapes. Thank goodness for a break from urban tracks! Rally racing titles aside, there's nothing quite like winging through tight spaces, banking to avoid wreckage in a ship graveyard, or swooping over the top of a dam with roiling water underneath. The goal is simple: Finish first, or try again.

One of the few disappointments in SkyDrift is the lack of local multiplayer. Online competition against up to eight other flyers makes for an exciting time, but we wished for a chance to do some split-screen racing at home. Whether in single-player or on XBox LIVE, SkyDrift adds weapons to the mix and ups the ante on most of the vehicular racing games we've played recently. Machine guns, missiles, and mines are matched by defensive items such as a shield and a repair power-up. All of these can be stacked to provide more power, or can be cashed in with the press of a button, in exchange for boost. Each track can be raced in reverse, or in one of several special events that test your speed and maneuverability.

There are quick toggles for the challenge level, so you can modify every track if it ends up being too difficult at first. There's not really an incentive for junior players to amplify the A.I., because you can unlock planes and earn achievements on any difficulty level. Sure, there are leaderboards and bragging rights to think of, but SkyDrift is highly accessible. You don't even have to race every event within a given stage; the game tells you exactly how many events you'll need to complete in order to progress. This isn't to say you won't have some heartburn trying to get first place in every event... Finding the right plane for a given track is the key. Unlike some games where you modify and tune up a vehicle, the planes in SkyDrift are raced stock. You get the stats you get, and have to make the best of them. Sure, there are some good all-around planes, but few go to glory racing an average machine. Sacrificing attributes like defense or speed in exchange for others may make the competitive difference because of the layout of a given track. Practice makes perfect, and each track is filled with shortcuts and special routes.

Flying games have that extra dimension of movement that puts some players off. If you're already comfortable with the physics of flying a plane, you'll feel right at home. SkyDrift is an arcade racing game first, so don't come expecting simulation. What you do get is a reasonable solid representation of flight mechanics, including the tight turns possible when you roll your wings and pull back on the stick. In this case, the "stick" is one of your analog sticks, which you can use to direct the nose of your plane in any direction. Pulling on the other stick banks your wings, useful for getting through those narrow spots in almost every track. One trigger fires your weapon, while the other applies your air brakes. You jockey around on the face buttons to toggle items or use them, so it's a busy time on the controller.

Seasoned players and especially seasoned fans of flying games will feel great playing SkyDrift, but it's a handful if all you've ever done is race cars around tracks. We love the way SkyDrift mashes up pure chaos with pure racing, and the idea of setting the action hundreds of feet off the ground was brilliant. In the hands of a weak developer, SkyDrift could have ended up being a cardboard, stereotypical Racer. Digital Reality found the perfect balance between precision racing and arcade fun in this one, and wrapped it all in a shiny package that makes for one of the best adrenaline-fueled download titles you'll play this year.