I was pulling for this series, but it just wasn't there.
Gameplay: Where J2:HIN fails in it's gameplay are both the types of races and the AI you race against. First, the race types are stupid. Some of them involve going multiple laps without ever touching a wall, doing a continuous drift for an entire race, and other sorts. But what's worse than the actual races are the AI. The developers decided to put on a "rubberband" effect to the AI, meaning that the AI stay with you the entire race to add tension. There is no completely blowing away the competition, or lapping opponents. You could be miles away from the nearest racer, but it you run into a wall, they'll be on your tail if not passing you in seconds.
Maps: I was hoping for some creativity here, but there wasn't. the locales were nice, but nothing I haven't seen before. You've got the U.S., Tokyo, and the UK as some of the backdrops, but you're focused more on the rediculous racing than the scenery.
"DNA": The pitch for Juiced 2:HIN is something called "Driver DNA." It's physically a double-helix that changes color depending on your racing style; careful or reckless. It was kind of neat to watch my stats change colors, but the whole thing felt rushed to get put together, so a lot of the time I didn't even know why my double-helix was mutating. "I was driving in a straight line? That means I'm a 'cool' driver?"
Physics: Arcade game. Nothing more, nothing less. Smoke an exotic with a Civic. The only real difference is the game tries to mix things up by stamping a "seal of approval" esque marker on cars that are more suited to drift or drag, so novice players aren't trying to drift an FWD or AWD car since thet don't know any better.
Customization: I'm not going to lie, this game did hit a benchmark with customization. They left no stone unturned. Anything you can think of, you can alter. The car selection is also decent. The creators were able to nab some licenses not normally seen in racing games, such as Holden, and this keeps things interesting. This is a redeeming quality, but with a lack of players to show your pimped ride off to, it's almost pointless.
Multiplay: Yeah, there's no one online. I bought the game at launch, and there were empty rooms galore. Nobody played this game. I spent the time creating an avatar and customizing my ride, with nobody to race against.
Overall, this game flopped. As a fan of real-life Hot Import Nights car shows(which I attend frequently), I wanted this game to succeed in hopes of getting some exposure to the tuner scene. Instead, us fans got a black mark on our record we can't erase.