The driving game's huge map acts as a kind of mix tape of our country's nicest landscapes, building large, evocative regions out of Byron Bay, the Yarra Valley, the outback and more, and linking them with wide freeways and country trails.

Horizon 3 is a lot more like a sprawling adventure game than a traditional racer in this regard.

It can be a little off-putting at first, especially for those used to a more directed, linear experience, but the freedom of the open world design actually makes for a meandering game.

The Horizon festival — dozens of rich kids descending on a region, or in this case an entire country, for an endless party of cars, music and optimism — is back again, and this time the player is in charge.

Winning races brings more fans to the festival, which in turn spreads your scouts out across the land by opening or upgrading Horizon 'hubs' wherever you choose.

You also win credits, which you need to upgrade all your shiny machines, but this is supplemented by a random "wheel spin" when you level up, meaning if you're unlucky it could take a bit longer to cash up.

Outside of racing to earn fans and expand the festival, you can buy, tune, modify and paint your cars, take part in illegal midnight street events, test your skills with crazy stunts and challenges, or follow rumours to uncover rusty old abandoned classics ready to be restored. 

Speaking of cars, more than 350 of them are up for grabs in the game, and there's truly something for everybody. I went straight for the classics, polishing up a 1953 Corvette, stripping the bumpers and adding a retro-style fin.

Horizon 3 is filled with too many things to do to list them all here, and on any given play session you might find yourself chalking up wins at your new base in the outback, competing to jump the furthest distance off a bridge, or heading online to go on a road trip with up to 11 other people.

In short, this is a fast, gorgeous, fun racing adventure, and the brilliantly executed Australian flavour makes it even better.