The last of the greats.
User Rating: 8.7 | Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit 2 GC
It was only a mere three years ago that NFS released the last good game in my eyes that they will ever release. Now, its all about riceburners and streetracers. Thats why I have a lot of respect for this game, even though it didnt fully impress me like the others, it still has made an impression on me. The gameplay has always changed throughout the NFS series, and thats what they are known for: innovation. They were the first to push 200, they were the first to have police chases, they were the first to let you race in an underwater tunnel, and they were the first to let you race as a T-rex, a log, or an outhouse. So its actually a surprise in this game when they cut all of that out. In NFS 4: High Stakes, it was only circuit tracks. They went back to the orignal formula and put the same tracks but different paths like in the 3rd game. Even though the graphics have been beefed up a little, it doesnt feel like an orignal NFS game. The cars seem bulky and they dont really look like al that much fun to drive. But they are. The levels are mostly simple and the fogging effects are great, but its frustrating when you hit a corner right only to run into something thats not there or wasn't there to begin with. The GameCube holds up very well under all the pressure of high speeds and reflections. The sound is ok. But the cars just sound the same most of the time. The sondtrack is awesome, I love Uncle Kracker and Hot Action Cop. I found out about HAC from this game and found out about Junkie XL from High Stakes. Underground has only taught me to hate rap music more. Theres only so many times I can listen to Little Jon before I blow my brains out, and thats zero. I never really finished this game so Im not sure how long it would have lasted me. But I still have it and thinking back about it holds my interest again. Im going to have to grab back my GC from my brother and start playing again. Even if someone is not a fan of racing games or just plain hates the NFS series, this game is the last of the best and should be added to anyones collection immediately.
