I've never been a huge racing game aficionado, probably stemming from the fact that I didn't learn to drive until I was in my mid thirties. I've always been more of a kart racing type of guy. But there is one kind of racing game I love and that's a super immersive one.

My first look at Baja was truly impressive. Of course the set up they had it on had a lot to do with it. It was like an arcade set up with the 360 driving wheel and pedal plus three huge screens that were angled to give you a feeling of being surrounded. While the set up was certainly a plus, the game itself left me feeling pretty good about off-road racing.

The graphics were extremely sharp, some of the best I've seen aside from the clips of Gran Turismo 5 Prologue and DiRT. They weren't quite up to the level of those two, but still more than held their own. The course I drove on was set in the desert and even though it had that same awful brown color palette I'm so sick of these days, I was still quite impressed. The level was massive and they packed quite a bit into it.

The game's controls were smooth as butter although keeping your car actually on the course was a bit of a challenge. All sorts of obstacle and rough patches make it necessary to keep both hands on the wheel at all times. No smoking cigarettes or changing tunes on the radio here. Although one nice feature will allow you to let the car take over and drive itself through AI while you go to the bathroom or fix a sandwich. Quite a nice convenience and one that I wish came in real cars. It will be interesting to see how the game plays with just a handheld controller and a single screen as surley this will be how most people will be playing the game

But driving isn't the only thing you need to pay attention to in Baja. The health of your car is important as well. As you drive through the tough course, ramming into things along the way (or maybe that was just me) parts fly off leaving your vehicle in a less than stellar state. Each bit of damage to your car results in time being taken of off your overall timer, often leaving you with little time to complete the course. And if you are as a terrible driver as I can be at times, you may well find yourself unable to complete the course in the alloted minutes the first time around.

My time with Baja has definitely left me curious to see what it will be like when it's completed and despite my reticence to really get into a racing game, this might be one that turns the tide for me. As good as it looked and felt, I'm sure there will be many improvements and additions to it before it's eventual release this summer, leaving THQ with what looks to be a stellar entry to the genre.