New MotoGP screens hit the track

Hey, motorcycle fans! The fourth installment in Namco's MotoGP series is finally heading to your PS2, and we've got the screens to prove it. Pitched as a realistic motorcycle-racing sim, MotoGP4 will feature a bunch of real-world riders (including the late Daijiro Kato), bikes and courses, and will even cater to gearheads by letting them tinker with their rides between races.

Previous MotoGP games have been outstanding hardcore racers, and MotoGP4 has already garnered respectable reviews in Europe, so the US version's prospects look good. Whatever the case, though, MotoGP4 will deliver seven different game modes, realistic weather conditions and a controllable replay camera to capture your best races. The game will also pack in online competitions for up to eight players, complete with USB microphone support for high-speed trash-talk.

Namco hasn't announced a release date for the game yet, although we do know it'll hit later this year. Until then, click the image tab above for a handful of screenshots to get your engine running.

Mikel Reparaz
After graduating from college in 2000 with a BA in journalism, I worked for five years as a copy editor, page designer and videogame-review columnist at a couple of mid-sized newspapers you've never heard of. My column eventually got me a freelancing gig with GMR magazine, which folded a few months later. I was hired on full-time by GamesRadar in late 2005, and have since been paid actual money to write silly articles about lovable blobs.