Wow. Already a 16[sup]th[/sup] Need for Speed game? Time goes really fast. It seemed that it was only yesterday that i was playing NFS 2 Special Edition split-screen with my big bro. Good times.... Moving on!
Let's see: According to this game's official release, it strips down to the game's essential parts which feature high quality racing and police chases and chasing. Know what? They don't disappoint.[footnote]I should warn that i will be using Most Wanted as a prime example[/footnote]
It has a gorgeous city, Seacrest County, which translates to an expansive map. Race from snow-capped mountains to desert paved roads. The scenery is very beautiful and you might as well watch it all day. I was tempted to anyway. I said expansive map. And i mean it. This is, approximately, 4 times larger than Criterion Games Burnout Paradise. That means, that you get to travel miles of open road and winding tunnels. And roads. And tunnels. Did i mention the shortcuts? Of course not. Well they are definitely there. But be careful! Some are actually shortcuts while others, although few in number, are used to escape the police OR to catch the illegal racers. Depends on your preference i guess.
The selection of cars is amazing. Not your Gran Turismo selection mind you. No. Only 66 cars. But they look sooooo good that you won't even mind that! But the real treat is to play the cop versions of the cars. [footnote]They just look so... sexy. :X[/footnote]
[img_inline width=350 height=200 align="left" Caption="Play as a racer or a cop. You get awesomeness either way."]http://cache.gawkerassets.com/assets/images/9/2010/08/nfs_hot_pursuit_3.jpg[/img_inline]
The game works on a points system. The more points you earn, the higher the ranking. Both classes, Racer and Cop, have 20 ranks. With the top Racer rank being 'Most Wanted' and the top Cop rank being 'Ultimate Enforcer'. Not only the points act as your bounty but they also are used to upgrade equipment and get new cars. Did i just say use? Sorry. The rewards are handed to you the moment you reach a specific bounty target.
As mentioned, it's a treat to play the cops. The adrenaline rush of chasing racers is just very fun. And it's very satisfying when you manage to bust a racer. Or shut down a race. Yeah. Shutting down a race is much more fun than busting one racer. This is, not to say, that it's not fun to play the racers. It has its own classical taste and is very pleasurable.
Let's cut to the chase shall we? It's Hot Pursuit right? So the question is how good are the police chases? Answer? Not that good. Sad really. Maybe it's because i have played Most Wanted. 'Cause you see, if you compare Most Wanted's chase scenes and Hot Pursuit's Chase scenes, you will most assuredly note that MW's chases are a lot harder to do. But the game does make up for it by introducing sweet 'weapons' to the cars on both sides of the law.
[img_inline width=350 height=200 align="right" Caption="Not as helpful as one would expect."]http://cdn.softsailor.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/08/Need-For-Speed-Hot-Pursuit-Police-Car-and-Helicopter-500x281.jpg[/img_inline]
For the racers you have: Spike-Strip, EMP, Jammer and Turbo.
For the cops you have: Spike-Strip, EMP, Road-block and helicopter.
So, which is better? Which side has the advantage? Well. Both of them are evenly matched. See, in Most Wanted, you had to rely on weak structures to deter your opponents and coppers. But in this game, you are granted the power of doing some serious car-tastic damage. All 'weapons' are helpful from the very beginning they are introduced. All except the Coptor. Disappointing as it is, there is really no need to use the coptor as the road-blocks, spike-strips and EMPs do a fairly good job at keeping law and order. It does come in handy later after it gets upgraded by your hard-earned bounty points. Then the fun begins. The turbo however, it's just wow. Very very awesome to use. It's like NO[sub]2[/sub] on high. Very useful for quick getaways after a crash or to quickly get in the lead. Shame it's limited. But fear not as you always have NO[sub]2[/sub]! As long as you don't crash. Which ,thankfully, has small chance of happening. Otherwise we would have had another Burnout Paradise in our hands.
[img_inline width=350 height=200 align="left" Caption="Insane Car chases. Check."]http://www.itechgiz.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/09/nfshotpursuit1.jpg[/img_inline]
The game introduces a new system called Autolog. It's like Facebook of NFS. You login, drag a couple of friends and start racing. After a while, the speed-board will begin to fill up with the time you friends took to complete each race and what you have to do to beat them. Very thrilling and gives a competitive edge. It's nice except it's also useless. On the Pc anyway. On the XBox 360, you have XLive. On the PS3, you have PSN. On the PC, you have the equivalent Steam. So it makes you wonder why EA simply couldn't integrate Steam into the game. Plus Autolog is glitchy so that's the negative aspect of the social service.
One thing I miss dearly is the customization. Sure the cars look very nice on their own but simply choosing a paint colour isn't exactly enthralling. A few more options would have been nice for the soul.
CONCLUSION:
A very much-needed addition to series which goes to the core of the gameplay and brings out new, fun innovations. The police chases are as fun as ever and the 'weapons' add a strategic element to the racing. Definitely recommended.
[sub]Firstly, comment! And feel free to critique. :3
Secondly, if you have any suggestion on what game/anime/movie I should review next, you can post your suggestions and I'll try my ever best to entertain the requests.
Thirdly, if you would like to look up an old review, visit the Remains of the Day Group [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/groups/view/Remains-of-the-Day] for the review index, likewise if you would like to remain up-to-date on the reviews posted, join it![/sub]
SBR Reveiws
Let's see: According to this game's official release, it strips down to the game's essential parts which feature high quality racing and police chases and chasing. Know what? They don't disappoint.[footnote]I should warn that i will be using Most Wanted as a prime example[/footnote]
It has a gorgeous city, Seacrest County, which translates to an expansive map. Race from snow-capped mountains to desert paved roads. The scenery is very beautiful and you might as well watch it all day. I was tempted to anyway. I said expansive map. And i mean it. This is, approximately, 4 times larger than Criterion Games Burnout Paradise. That means, that you get to travel miles of open road and winding tunnels. And roads. And tunnels. Did i mention the shortcuts? Of course not. Well they are definitely there. But be careful! Some are actually shortcuts while others, although few in number, are used to escape the police OR to catch the illegal racers. Depends on your preference i guess.
The selection of cars is amazing. Not your Gran Turismo selection mind you. No. Only 66 cars. But they look sooooo good that you won't even mind that! But the real treat is to play the cop versions of the cars. [footnote]They just look so... sexy. :X[/footnote]
[img_inline width=350 height=200 align="left" Caption="Play as a racer or a cop. You get awesomeness either way."]http://cache.gawkerassets.com/assets/images/9/2010/08/nfs_hot_pursuit_3.jpg[/img_inline]
The game works on a points system. The more points you earn, the higher the ranking. Both classes, Racer and Cop, have 20 ranks. With the top Racer rank being 'Most Wanted' and the top Cop rank being 'Ultimate Enforcer'. Not only the points act as your bounty but they also are used to upgrade equipment and get new cars. Did i just say use? Sorry. The rewards are handed to you the moment you reach a specific bounty target.
As mentioned, it's a treat to play the cops. The adrenaline rush of chasing racers is just very fun. And it's very satisfying when you manage to bust a racer. Or shut down a race. Yeah. Shutting down a race is much more fun than busting one racer. This is, not to say, that it's not fun to play the racers. It has its own classical taste and is very pleasurable.
Let's cut to the chase shall we? It's Hot Pursuit right? So the question is how good are the police chases? Answer? Not that good. Sad really. Maybe it's because i have played Most Wanted. 'Cause you see, if you compare Most Wanted's chase scenes and Hot Pursuit's Chase scenes, you will most assuredly note that MW's chases are a lot harder to do. But the game does make up for it by introducing sweet 'weapons' to the cars on both sides of the law.
[img_inline width=350 height=200 align="right" Caption="Not as helpful as one would expect."]http://cdn.softsailor.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/08/Need-For-Speed-Hot-Pursuit-Police-Car-and-Helicopter-500x281.jpg[/img_inline]
For the racers you have: Spike-Strip, EMP, Jammer and Turbo.
For the cops you have: Spike-Strip, EMP, Road-block and helicopter.
So, which is better? Which side has the advantage? Well. Both of them are evenly matched. See, in Most Wanted, you had to rely on weak structures to deter your opponents and coppers. But in this game, you are granted the power of doing some serious car-tastic damage. All 'weapons' are helpful from the very beginning they are introduced. All except the Coptor. Disappointing as it is, there is really no need to use the coptor as the road-blocks, spike-strips and EMPs do a fairly good job at keeping law and order. It does come in handy later after it gets upgraded by your hard-earned bounty points. Then the fun begins. The turbo however, it's just wow. Very very awesome to use. It's like NO[sub]2[/sub] on high. Very useful for quick getaways after a crash or to quickly get in the lead. Shame it's limited. But fear not as you always have NO[sub]2[/sub]! As long as you don't crash. Which ,thankfully, has small chance of happening. Otherwise we would have had another Burnout Paradise in our hands.
[img_inline width=350 height=200 align="left" Caption="Insane Car chases. Check."]http://www.itechgiz.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/09/nfshotpursuit1.jpg[/img_inline]
The game introduces a new system called Autolog. It's like Facebook of NFS. You login, drag a couple of friends and start racing. After a while, the speed-board will begin to fill up with the time you friends took to complete each race and what you have to do to beat them. Very thrilling and gives a competitive edge. It's nice except it's also useless. On the Pc anyway. On the XBox 360, you have XLive. On the PS3, you have PSN. On the PC, you have the equivalent Steam. So it makes you wonder why EA simply couldn't integrate Steam into the game. Plus Autolog is glitchy so that's the negative aspect of the social service.
One thing I miss dearly is the customization. Sure the cars look very nice on their own but simply choosing a paint colour isn't exactly enthralling. A few more options would have been nice for the soul.
CONCLUSION:
A very much-needed addition to series which goes to the core of the gameplay and brings out new, fun innovations. The police chases are as fun as ever and the 'weapons' add a strategic element to the racing. Definitely recommended.
[sub]Firstly, comment! And feel free to critique. :3
Secondly, if you have any suggestion on what game/anime/movie I should review next, you can post your suggestions and I'll try my ever best to entertain the requests.
Thirdly, if you would like to look up an old review, visit the Remains of the Day Group [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/groups/view/Remains-of-the-Day] for the review index, likewise if you would like to remain up-to-date on the reviews posted, join it![/sub]
