Need for Speed Most Wanted
When I first fired up Need For Speed Most Wanted, I really was expecting Runs N Roses to start pumping out Paradise City through my cars stereo system, the similarities between Burnout Paradise and Most Wanted are obvious; an open, living city to explore, shot cuts, ramps and billboards and gates to crash through, the only thing missing was the slo-mo destruction of your car when you crash. Oh, and that classic rock song.
Whilst Most Wanted’s setting may scream of Burnout Paradise, this is a Need For Speed game through and through, and whilst Criterion made both games, they’ve really pushed the envelope on this latest edition of the need for speed franchise.
The thing you’ll notice first is just how sweet the game looks, and how all the little things work together, like racing through a dark tunnel only to get blinded by the bight sunlight as you come out the other end, the dirt and dust when you go off road, or the puddles of water on the slick highway.
Then there’s the cars, they look and sound amazing. They handle well and drive, depending on the car, fast.
This is a game of pure, unadulterated fun.
And then there’s the cops. These have to be the most determined cops I have ever come against in a video game, they are hard enough to loose before your wanted level goes up, but antagonize them enough and the swat will be called out, creating road blocks out of massive swat vans that you can’t bust through. Fortunately there ate a few tricks you can employ to loose the cops, and the thrill of the chase is what Need for Speed is all about.
And then there’s the cars.
There are a nice range of cars available in Most Wanted, the only trouble is, you don’t have to do anything to unlock them, you just have to find them. Some are parked down back alley ways, some on roof top car parks, some are just sitting on the side of the road. Imagine my joy as I’m driving down the road in a not to shabby car when I spot an Aston Martin V12 Vantage parked on the side of the road. Hell yes, I’ll take that.
This ready availability of cars does make exploring the city desirable, but it has the reverse effect when it comes to racing. Each car has five races available to it, with a varying range of difficulties, and each race comes with the possibility of winning points and upgrades for your car. The issue is, if you’ve got an Aston Martin, why the hell would you bother jumping in a Ford Focus to do five races?
Criterion’s re-imaging of Most Wanted is pure genius and is the best Need for Speed game since Criterion’s own 2010 re-imaging of Hot Pursuit. It’s not a perfect driving game, it will take a certain degree of focus and dedication not to waste a whole night of baiting, then running from the police and actually enter some races, but not matter what you do, you’ll be doing it in a fast car, racing by the seat of your pants, and it will never get old.
