The third game in the series combined the gameplay aspects of its predecessors, allowing players to choose between racing opponents of Lotus Turbo Challenge or the arcade-like time trials of Lotus 2. The two-player option was retained and the music selection feature returns (Patrick Phelan's soundtrack to Lotus III spawned many modern remixes). Lotus III also added a third car - a concept Lotus M200 automobile - and allowed the player to choose which one to race with. The game recycled most of the graphics from Lotus 2, but added a number of new scenery.
The Mega Drive version bears the name Lotus II: RECS (referring to the game's new course creation feature), while the DOS port released in 1993 was simply called Lotus: The Ultimate Challenge due to being the only Lotus game on that platform. The DOS version features the Lotus Esprit S4 instead of the Esprit Turbo SE. Apart from the slightly different car's graphics, the difference in gameplay is minimal, if any. The DOS version was released again in 1996, this time on a CD-ROM.
RECS[]
The single most innovative feature of Lotus III is the Racing Environment Construction Set (RECS) course creation system. The system allows users to create a race track by defining various basic parameters, such as amount and difficulty of turns and hills, amount of obstacles, type of scenery or difficulty of opponents. The created track can then be raced by one or both players. The course can also be written in form of a letter-and-digit code and later reused; these can be raced individually or in a series of up to nine user-created tracks.
The RECS system allowed players to quickly create a unique track without having to use a course editor; however, it sacrificed the facility of precisely positioning turns or obstacles. The RECS system was later reused in another Magnetic Fields' game, International Rally Championship.
Lotus III was not as well-received as Lotus 2, due to its slower running speed (although this time the Mega Drive port was faster) and relative lack of innovation. Many found the lap-based races against the clock to be comparatively boring.