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Need
for Speed: Most Wanted
Score: 9.1 / 10
The Need for Speed franchise found its most
success when it took to the nighttime street racing circuit with Need
for Speed Underground and its sequel. But the newest in the series, Need
for Speed Most Wanted, brings the franchise up from the underground into
the daylight, along with upgraded graphics, a more open racing world,
and new gameplay that focuses not only on race events, but a new
strategic element of police evasion from the cops racing around in hot
pursuit of you and your tuned-out high-performance car.
Instead of racing around the night streets as was the gameplay of Need
for Speed Underground, this time around Need for Speed Most Wanted
breaks the franchise out of its nocturnal nitro-fueled street scene.
You’ll be racing during the daytime in Need for Speed Most Wanted, as
you compete against the Blacklist, the who’s who of street racers that
fear nothing – including the police. The twist that Need for Speed Most
Wanted brings is that with the daytime racing comes more police
pursuits. But the Blacklist is brazen enough to race during the day
instead of under the cloak of night, with the threat of heavier police
presence. Not only are you competing against tough competition for props
as the best street racer, you’re trying to avoid the cops patrolling the
same streets you’re racing through in the
many racing events including drag races,
timed events and first-car-to-the-finish-wins races.
And unfortunately for you, they’ve got an A.P.B. out for your car, so
anytime you encounter a police cruiser, they’re going to pursue you and
bust you hard if they happen to corral your car. With the
police-infested streets, you will be constantly racing away from the
law-enforcing officers
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intent on collaring you and your high-powered automobile. It’s a great
new addition to the Need for Speed gameplay, but unfortunately there’s a
letdown in the challenge that these particular cops-in-cars present.
We’ve all seen an episode or two or “Cops,” and seen how efficient that
the police are in capturing culprits using cars to evade them. I mean,
practically no one gets away.
Here, in Need for Speed Most Wanted, these cops have a severely
difficult time capturing you. You’ll be racing away from police
cruisers, busting through roadblocks without much of a hardship. The
only time that Need for Speed Most Wanted’s police start to get
challenging and more aggressive is during long chases. If you can shake
your police tail within one of two minutes, there’s practically no
challenge at all. Longer chases, however, bring out more and more police
cruisers in pursuit, more roadblocks, and generally more ornery and
aggressive cops, one’s willing to smash into your car with the ferocity
of a pit bull.
Although the Need for Speed Underground games were regarded as having
visually striking graphics, they can’t match the stunning beauty of Need
for Speed Most Wanted. The game uses real-time lighting and mapping
effects that enhance already impressive visuals, especially the cars,
which include some of the most sexy and sophisticated road machines
around today such as the Lamborghini Gallardo and the BMW M3 along with
street-muscle monsters like the new Ford Mustang GT, There are 36 cars
in Need for Speed Most Wanted, and all have a photorealistic quality,
all shiny, smooth and spectacular. And, of course, with this being a
street racing game, you can tune your car and modify it with street kits
that turn already sweet-looking rides into one-of-a-kind beauties. Along
with Gran Turismo 4 and Burnout Revenge, Need for Speed Most Wanted has
some of the best car graphics in a current-generation game.
Environmentally, the game sheds its nighttime racing shroud and uncovers
a sunshine-drenched industrial and urban landscape with a mix of
pastoral country roads connecting them. Cities are still around, but
just as often, you’ll find yourself careening around the curves of docks
and warehouses, or golf courses in suburbia. The world of Need for Speed
Most Wanted is expansive, although not as varied in its appearance.
There are plenty of déjà vu moments if you happen to pay attention to
the scenery whilst escaping the cops. But a few cop traps marked by
special icons you can set off to slow down or disable the police
following you in hot pursuit (like a large doughnut that crashes down
from a policeman’s favorite hangout onto their car) and shortcuts and
hiding areas break up the familiarity somewhat. The further you get to
completing the game, more connected parts of the environment become
drivable. A free roam feature allows you to test out the roads before
taking on a racing challenge. Overall, there is a realistic look to the
environment wherever you go.
You’ll feel a real sense of speed racing around the scenic world. This
is a fast-moving game, When you hit top speeds, you’ll feel that you’re
really zooming around, both from the crisp-moving frame-rate and visual
clues, including a “wind” effect, where there’s a noticeable, seeable
“wind tail” on your car as it rips through the winds of the road. Tack
on slow-motion, highlight-reel moments when you make a big jump and Need
for Speed Most Wanted’s graphical package takes the checkered flag.
But the awesome nitro-fueled visuals wouldn’t be worth much if the game
didn’t provide a solid control schematic for you to drive with. Most
Wanted isn’t technically correct in how cars handling like Gran Turismo
is, instead employing an arcade-style schematic just like Burnout
Revenge. There is a forgiving-yet-sometimes-confusing collision control
that keep you on the road despite smacking into other vehicles,
guardrails and buildings. If you spin out after hitting into something
you shouldn’t be ramming your car into, Need for Speed Most Wanted tries
to straighten you out, and that leads to you sometimes practically
driving sideways as you’re trying to right yourself at the same time the
game’s attempting the same thing.
However, besides that minor control issue, the cars hug the road well
with control that is instantly responsive to your needs, including
breaking, hard-turning and drifting techniques that get you around the
corners and away from the cops. You can also put into play a short
“Matrix”-type slowdown control, which will decelerate your car a la the
“Matrix”-style suspension of real-time movement. It’s a strategic
element that can help you avoid crashes or police roadblocks at a more
manageable speed pace without losing control.
Online, Need for Speed Most Wanted doesn’t overwhelm gamers with
excitement. Races can be a bit stuttering, but mostly you’ll experience
solid online gaming. However, my recommendation is to make sure you have
a super-charged vehicle (like the Lamborghini Gallardo) with every
possible upgrade, including some nitro boost). Otherwise, you stand no
chance of winning a race against the majority of players that come to
the starting line with asphalt-eating beasts that will leave you and
your less powerful car in their wake.
EA made the right decision in avoiding the temptation of sequel-itis
with Need for Speed Underground 3 and instead steered into a
fresh-yet-familiar direction for one of the best racing franchises
around. Need for Speed Most Wanted is an exceptional racing game, with
stunningly awesome graphics and a solid gameplay, albeit somewhat
lacking in the A.I. smarts. Online success requires a tuned-to-the-max
car, but if you have the requisite vehicle, can be a lot of fun. Street
racing gamers will once again fulfill their need for speed and vehicular
mayhem.
