TrackMania Sunrise

Last year's TrackMania combined the physics of an arcade racer with the problem solving of a puzzle game. The sequel expands on the original with new gameplay modes, better graphics, and faster cars. The demo for TrackMania Sunrise isn't as generous as the original game's four demos, but arcade-racing fans will not be disappointed.

In the demo, you progress through three gameplay modes. In Race mode, you simply drive on an existing track for the fastest time. Win silver medals in both races to access the new Platform mode, in which you must make an untimed series of difficult jumps. Two more silvers in Platform let you try the two Puzzle challenges, the highlight of the demo: Given a starting point and a finish line, you must construct the shortest track you can with a limited set of building blocks. The two puzzles in the demo are extraordinarily easy, though, and the track editor is limited. The other new gameplay mode, Crazy, is unavailable in the demo. We had hoped for harder puzzles, but the three difficulty levels and three or four achievable medals for each challenge kept us occupied for a few hours.