THQ stays on the off-road racing bandwagon with Baja

This console generation has had no shortage of off-road racing games, from some that were terribly fun to others that were just terrible. While not completely bankrupt of merit, MX vs. ATV Untamed certainly edged closer to the latter end of this spectrum, especially compared to the likes of Motorstorm or DiRT, though this has not dissuaded publisher THQ from keeping at it. Today the company announced a new off-road racer named Baja, currently in development at 2XL Games, a new studio founded by -- surprise surprise -- the devs behind the MX vs. ATV franchise.

Set for release on both the Xbox 360 and PS3 this August, the off-road racer will include support for 4-player split screen gameplay, as well as up to 12 players online or over a LAN. And for those with setups that far exceed our own, the game will also support multiple-screen panoramic view. THQ has also confirmed that the game will include some 40+ different vehicles, as well as the ability for players to upgrade off-road rides using "a full array of upgradeable options with hundreds of authentic parts." Still, with an emphasis on arcade-style racing, it seems as if 2XL is attempting to strike some sort of balance between over-the-top and authenticity, something that, in our experience at least, rarely turns out well.