Codemasters may not know what they've done. Micro Machines, for a lot of kids/kids trapped in adult bodies, defined the multiplayer experience on the early home consoles, with a simple mechanic: keep up or die. That was it. You simply raced around a pint-sized track and if you fell behind or off the edge of the track (you were racing on stuff like tables and desks), that was it. That the series may be back on track after a rocky tenure with Infogrames (now Atari) may just be too much for some geeks to take.

But it is back, and in deliciously sexy form. Micro Machines v4 has finally been released to stores, eagerly awaiting your hard-earned ducats in exchange for a home in either your PS2 or PSP. The same classic mix of tiny racers in big environments with lots of simple power-ups still stands here, though perhaps in a nod to returning to the game's original roots, a handful of classic tracks will be revisited (the kitchen, breakfast table, and almighty pool table all make repeat appearances), and of course the game's classic stay-on-the-screen-or-lose multiplayer is intact -- now with a camera that actually warns you about the edges of the track ahead of time.

v4's rehash of older tracks isn't all the game has to offer, however. Developer Supersonic Software is also taking things into the wilds with tracks zipping through supermarkets, farms (yes, like the cluck-cluck moo-moo kind), suburbian rooftops and sewers, and adding even more cars to unlock (hundreds of 'em, actually; lowriders, 4x4s, dune buggies, rice rockets, stock cars, muscle cars... you get the idea), plus a handful of new power-ups like flame throwers, heat-seeking missiles (do Micro Machines even generate heat?). Oh crap, we're getting a strong Re-Volt vibe here, and that ain't bad.

As always, we'll have a review of the game in the next few days (hey, we get it when you guys do), so keep your eyes peeled.