Tokyo Xtreme Racer

Pros:
+ Gang and rivals are given humorous and well-written backstories, adding a (minor) dimension to your opponents
+ All racers on the road are labeled according to "beaten", "lost to", and "never faced", making it easy to read the room
+ Fun soundtrack with moody techno and nu-metal influences, perfectly describes the feeling of racing a thin highway late at night
++ Novel "health bar" mechanic, where racers lose health proportionately to how far they are behind, keeps races quick if the competition is just not up to par
++ Fantastic presentation and UI design for 1999
++ Learning the left-right sway of weaving through
+++ The six-rival structure of the main career mode splits the meat of the game into extremely digestible chunks, making it easy to pick up and play for short bursts

Cons:
- Races are determined exclusively by hardware, so there are some races that are completely impossible unless you play ugly. Also a positive, as it forced you to pick your races carefully
- Little to do after all of the racing gangs are defeated outside of the 4 Devas and 4 Devils
- Cash is given out very sparingly, so little incentive to buy a ton of cars and try them out as it's more economical to just save for the best car and upgrade yours meanwhile
-- Only one track, as large as it is, eventually means that the creep of familiarity settles in to the point of tedium