Need for Speed Underground

Even after playing this game for basically 20 hours straight, I have no idea what the story behind Underground is supposed to be. Sure, there are cutscenes. And yeah, you can get your ride on the cover of various tuner magazines as you climb the street racing ranks, but as far as something that ties it all together; it certainly isn’t the story.

Die einen werden Need for Speed Underground meiden wollen – zu actionlastig, zu unrealistisch und zu grell ist das Spiel für viele. Doch andere werden es genau deswegen lieben. Und ich persönlich freute mich, endlich mal aus einem privat finanzierbaren Auto zumindest spielerisch das zu machen, was man mangels Geld und mangels gesetzlicher Freiräume hier in Deutschland wohl nie schaffen dürfte : Bis zum äussersten getunete pure Power, die auch noch scharf aussieht ... Und im Gegensatz zu seinem Vorgänger Hot Pursuit 2 ist Underground durchdachter und zeugt von einem von vorne bis hinten durchgestyletem Konzept, das begeistert. Zwar fehlt auch hier die Cockpit-Ansicht (ich habe ernsthaft Leute gehört, die das MP3-Radio mit Dot-Matrix-Animation vermissten), allerdings vermisst man diese nicht wirklich, da der Rest des Spiels zu fesseln vermag.

Racing games are like Kryptonite for me. They seem to suck away all my gaming ability until mere scraps of talent remain, leaving me as helpless as a soft, downy kitten. Need For Speed: Underground crushed me like a squirrel on the interstate (wow, I’m all about metaphors today!), but I had a great time as it did.

Overall, the game is pretty fun in both single player and multiplayer. With a lot of upgraded features and free roam, the game is really enjoyable and just plain fun. If I had to nitpick, there aren't nearly enough cars (where is the '92 MR2?), and I encountered a bug while racing in URL mode. The Outrun system still needs a little work, sometimes it registers passing a person when in fact they have not. Perhaps in the next NFSU, EA will put in traffic and cops (no cops in single player), it would add so much more replay value and challenge to online play.

Starting out with a "knowing is half the battle" message, Need for Speed: Underground hopes to make you like street racing so much on your TV that you’ll never, ever do it in a real car. I think it may have reached that goal. The customizable cars are (as expected) crazy cool, the tracks are easy to learn but offer lots of variation, the level of difficulty is both customizable and has an excellent learning curve, and the bevy of race types will keep people enthralled for hours.

Aside from the deep mechanical tinkering and loads of racing modes, the most impressive aspect of Underground doesn't concern gameplay. Without any exaggeration, developer EA Canada has designed one of the slickest visual experiences to date, giving players a sensationalized sense of speed by employing a slew of eye candy -- a cocktail of lighting effects, reflections, neon glows, motion blurs, and plenty more secret ingredients. It's cool, period.

I believe that 2003 has been a great year for racing games in general. Rockstar's Midnight Club II kicked off the proceedings, and while Nintendo's Mario Kart: Double Dash!! and F-Zero GX are more out-there games, I really think that only Microsoft's Project Gotham 2 has the best chance of being the racing game of the year. NFSU is a fantastic racer for those that want tons of cool customizations and huge single-player challenges, but gamers looking for a more traditional arcade racer might need to approach NFSU with the following in mind -- it's tons of fun, it looks best on Xbox, but the PS2 online portions make Sony's version the overall winner.

If you've ever wondered what if feels like to be an urban legend on your city streets, don't hesitate to drive Underground. The rush will undoubtedly get your adrenaline flowing before you even have time to buckle up.

Whichever way you play it, though, you won't be disappointed. In a year without Gran Turismo, and in a world where Ridge Racer has pulled into the paddock for good, Need for Speed is the undisputed king of the street.

n a daring move, the Need for Speed series switches gears and exits the traditional road of high-end European roadsters. The lane change pays off in its nod toward the tuner-car racing circuit where speed is given a brand-new look and feel.

As you’ve probably noticed, nothing but praise for this new Need for Speed. The Underground part is a bit short but due to the many unlockable things and the online mode you’ll keep busy for a while. Mandatory for each racing freak !

Need for Speed: Underground is een racespel dat door geen enkele racefan mag worden gemist. Own or be owned.

Need for Speed Undergound grabs you with its sky-high production, and hooks you into its impressively designed single-player mode. The beautiful visuals only heighten your desire to race. But the real kicker here, and the focus of the whole experience, is customizing your ride. If you're not into that element, don't go out and try to buy this as a stand-alone racer. You really have to be dedicated to the car creation, and you have to have the patience for it.

EA really has turned the Need For Speed series into something very special. The series was starting to get old with rehash after rehash, now each Underground title seems to get better and better with every release. I really enjoyed the first title in this new series, but the lack of online play for the Xbox really put a damper on the title. EA and Microsoft hooked up before E3 and the rest is not history. This series finally has some Xbox Live love to call its own. I also really like how you have endless possibilities about how you can modify your vehicle. You can also put some really kick-ass paint on the ride as well. And having the whole city at my disposal is a real treat.

This is the best arcade racer for the X-box. If you like any type of racing games, from Mario Kart to Gran Turismo, I urge you to buy this game. I promise that you will not be disappointed.

Need for Speed Undergound grabs you with its sky-high production, and hooks you into its impressively designed single-player mode. The beautiful visuals only heighten your desire to race. But the real kicker here, and the focus of the whole experience, is customizing your ride. If you're not into that element, don't go out and try to buy this as a stand-alone racer. You really have to be dedicated to the car creation, and you have to have the patience for it.

Need for Speed Undergound grabs you with its sky-high production, and hooks you into its impressively designed single-player mode. The beautiful visuals only heighten your desire to race. But the real kicker here, and the focus of the whole experience, is customizing your ride. If you're not into that element, don't go out and try to buy this as a stand-alone racer. You really have to be dedicated to the car creation, and you have to have the patience for it.

Need for Speed Underground ist wie ein Video von Pop-Luder Christina Aguilera: dreckig, fetzig und verdammt geil! Vor allem die heißen Grid-Girls haben es mir gewaltig angetan, aber auch das eigentliche Spiel braucht sich hinter deren XXL-Fahrgestellen nicht zu verstecken. Die Grafik ist super, das Fahrgefühl genau wie die Gegner-KI erstklassig und die Spielmodi extrem motivierend. Zusätzliche Kurse hätten dem Spiel aber gut getan, und warum trotz Bombast-Optik eine Wiederholungs-Funktion fehlt, würde ich auch gern wissen. Außerdem vermisse ich die spannenden Polizeiverfolgungsjagden der Vorgänger. Wer auf actionreiche Rennspiele steht, sollte trotzdem zugreifen – ein besserer Arcade-Raser ist derzeit nicht in Sicht.

Pro Sekunde legt unser Wagen 70 Meter zurück (250 km/h). Wer mit solchen Geschwindigkeiten durch die engen Gassen und stark befahrenen Hauptstraßen einer Stadt donnert, darf weder niesen noch blinzeln noch denken - ein Moment der Unaufmerksamkeit ist gleichbedeutend mit dem Crash. Der jüngste Need for Speed-Sprössling stellt einen Bruch in der Serie dar: Statt Ferraris, Lamborghinis oder Porsches werden in Underground 20 der in der Tuner- und Straßenrennszene so beliebten Mitsubishis, Subarus und Hondas gefahren. Außerdem herrscht striktes Tagfahrverbot - schließlich gehören Street-Racer zu der nachtaktiven Spezies.

Overall this is a really good game, but it'll be disappointing to anyone who expected this to be the fastest game around. EA went in the right direction when it comes to gameplay variety, but for the future I hope they focus their attention on creating a huge list of unique courses. I also hope the next game is truer to its name.

Mit Need for Speed Underground liefert uns Electronic Arts den neuesten Teil der beliebten "Raser"-Serie für den PC und alle Next-Gen Konsolen ab. Diesmal geht es darum sich bei illegalen Strassenrennen zu profilieren und sein Auto aufzutunen was das Zeug hält. Wie sich das neueste Werk aus dem Hause EA spielt und wo es sogar möglich ist heisse Rennen übers Netz zu fahren, dass soll euch unser ausführlicher Testbericht nun näher bringen.

Mein bodenständiger Opel Corsa geht mir mit seinem Schneckentempo langsam mächtig auf den Senkel! Wenn der Geldbeutel nichts anderes zulässt, ist es umso erfreulicher, wenigstens virtuell dem Geschwindigkeitsrausch verfallen zu können. Und das aber richtig! EA Blackbox hat diesbezüglich wirklich ganze Arbeit geleistet. Das Tempo kommt erheblich besser rüber als im Vorgänger. Die Spiegelungen auf den Straßen hingegen fand ich persönlich etwas übertrieben. Weniger wäre hier mehr gewesen! Die Reflexionen irritieren nämlich ab und an etwas zu sehr.

Mit Need for Speed Underground liefert uns Electronic Arts den neuesten Teil der beliebten "Raser"-Serie für den PC und alle Next-Gen Konsolen ab. Diesmal geht es darum sich bei illegalen Strassenrennen zu profilieren und sein Auto aufzutunen was das Zeug hält. Wie sich das neueste Werk aus dem Hause EA spielt und wo es sogar möglich ist heisse Rennen übers Netz zu fahren, dass soll euch unser ausführlicher Testbericht nun näher bringen.

Overall, I found this game to be surprisingly addictive, though incredibly frustrating at later stages in the game. I'd recommend it to most people, with the qualifying mention that the physics are not terribly grounded in reality, and the repetitive scenery can wear a little thin by the halfway point.

An die übertrieben farbenfrohe Grafik musste ich mich erst mal gewöhnen. Doch das Geschwindigkeitsgefühl hat zusammen mit dem Motion Blurring dazu geführt, dass ich oft wie gebannt vor dem Monitor saß. Allerdings nur bei circa 50 von 111 Underground-Rennen. Danach zieht sich das Spiel unnötig in die Länge, Abwechslung fehlt - die Rennen werden lästige Pflicht auf dem Weg zum nächsten Upgrade.

The song they contribute (“Get Low”) manages to get on your nerves within 5 seconds, leading to hitting the mute button almost immediately. It does have Rob Zombie on it, which adds on 2 cool points to the 15 it lost for including Lil’ Jon and company. Otherwise, the game has a nice assortment of sound effects on the tracks, including matching skidding effects to help make the drifting races even more awesome…but the voice acting for some of the other racers manages to get on the nerves after a few seconds as well.

Call it what you will, but fact is fact. If you have a choice on the Xbox, go with PGR2. If you have a PS2 or GameCube, this is a racer you gotta have. If you want to see a couple more videos past these two, head over to our game database page!

Mesmo assim, "Need for Speed: Undergound" é o melhor jogo de corrida para quem busca similar a atmosfera de "Velozes e Furiosos". Nada substitui o prazer de fechar seu oponente na última volta de uma corrida com o bólido que acabou de ganhar neon azul piscante e pintura personalizada.

Ett annat problem är att det bjuds på lite för många tillfällen då man kan köra in i en stolpe eller liknande och bli helt stillastående, varpå man oftast förlorar loppet. I de stunderna är man övertygad om att det här är världens kanske sämsta bilspel. Men snart har man startat om loppet och förlorat sig i fartupplevelsen igen - en fartupplevelse som inget annat bilspel levererar.

Mesmo assim, "Need for Speed: Undergound" é o melhor jogo de corrida para quem busca similar a atmosfera de "Velozes e Furiosos". Nada substitui o prazer de fechar seu oponente na última volta de uma corrida com o bólido que acabou de ganhar neon azul piscante e pintura personalizada.

Do yourself a favor, strap on a seatbelt and give "Underground" a test drive. Warts aside, it takes the "Need for Speed" franchise and kicks it into high gear with predominantly satisfying results.

Racegamers die in het bezit zijn van een goede controller halen die best weer even van onder het stof, schaffen zich deze Need for Speed Underground aan en gaan voor één van de beste streetrace-tuningkicks van het moment.

Mesmo assim, "Need for Speed: Undergound" é o melhor jogo de corrida para quem busca similar a atmosfera de "Velozes e Furiosos". Nada substitui o prazer de fechar seu oponente na última volta de uma corrida com o bólido que acabou de ganhar neon azul piscante e pintura personalizada.

On a final note, NFS: Underground certainly has the flair and the flamboyance of an underground street racer game. It sounds and looks beautiful - the cars and backgrounds are superb looking, and the THX certificate ensures that the audio experience is top-notch. There's a ton of improvements for your car, and you'll certainly get caught up in trying to make it look like the ultimate shrine to coolness. On the other hand, the game lacks a more innovative and involving track design, which makes the actual racing and the map layout a tad too repetitive at times. I've also sorely missed even traces of a damage model, as I feel that twisted metal makes a perfect addition to hard and heavy tunes, hot chicks in tank tops and very fast cars. I'd recommend this game to arcade racing fans. What it lacks in certain gameplay segments, it makes up with its abundance of style and RPG features.

There's so much to do in NFSU, that initially it's a pretty daunting task. The bulk of the gameplay (story, unlockables, ranking etc.) is played in the "Go Underground" mode, which consists of a whopping 111 separate challenges. NFSU offers a variety of cool racing styles, including the new drift and drag challenges. Standard circuit, sprint, free run, and lap knockout modes round out the gameplay, but in terms of uniqueness, it's the drift and drag runs that'll really please enthusiasts.

Overall, this is a great game, and is great for novice to advanced racers, giving a little bit of something to everyone. Once you’ve beat the entire game, check out online mode, to face challengers that will put up a good fight. Too bad you can’t race for slips though! Online drift mode is very popular, and if you happen to find someone in there with the name RedStarAcura behind an Impreza, he will not back down to any challenge!

It's hard to talk about an import car racing game without mentioning the movie The Fast and the Furious. The movie put as much of a spotlight on tricked-out cars as it did on its cast, and the resulting effect caused a huge surge of interest in the import racing scene. In the wake of the film, a number of other properties have risen up to try to claim a piece of the lucrative scene as its own. Need for Speed Underground is EA's attempt to get involved, and it's mostly a success.

It's hard to talk about an import car racing game without mentioning the movie The Fast and the Furious. The movie put as much of a spotlight on tricked-out cars as it did on its cast, and the resulting effect caused a huge surge of interest in the import racing scene. In the wake of the film, a number of other properties have risen up to try to claim a piece of the lucrative scene as its own. Need for Speed Underground is EA's attempt to get involved, and it's mostly a success.

Yet another elaborate current generation console design has been given the greenlight for a handheld version. Need for Speed: Underground is one of those rare titles that not only attempts some technical marvel on the Game Boy Advance hardware, it also features an incredibly playable design that actually feels like the console design. The GBA version defintely has more pros than cons in its production, only really lacking in the features department. But this element definitely shouldn't keep you from giving this fast 'n furious racer a spin on the handheld.

It's hard to talk about an import car racing game without mentioning the movie The Fast and the Furious. The movie put as much of a spotlight on tricked-out cars as it did on its cast, and the resulting effect caused a huge surge of interest in the import racing scene. In the wake of the film, a number of other properties have risen up to try to claim a piece of the lucrative scene as its own. Need for Speed Underground is EA's attempt to get involved, and it's mostly a success.

It's hard to talk about an import car racing game without mentioning the movie The Fast and the Furious. The movie put as much of a spotlight on tricked-out cars as it did on its cast, and the resulting effect caused a huge surge of interest in the import racing scene. In the wake of the film, a number of other properties have risen up to try to claim a piece of the lucrative scene as its own. Need for Speed Underground is EA's attempt to get involved, and it's mostly a success.

NFSU is definitely a game to consider. My suggestion: hold off on a purchase until NFSU 2 for the GBA is released next month.

Street racing is very different from and, in many ways, more exciting than traditional automobile racing. Competitions take place out on the regular streets and freeways of the city, as opposed to the relatively safe confines of a closed professional course. Instead of cups and medals, prize winnings are paid out in cash, which many participants use to trick out their cars with fancy paint jobs and slick body kits--even when performance upgrades, such as turbo kits and exhaust systems, make the most sense. In street racing, your car's appearance is just as important as winning the race. Need for Speed Underground brings this fast and furious world of street racing on to the Game Boy Advance with mostly positive results. Apart from the graphics, everything from the console versions of the game has made it on to the GBA cartridge.

In Need for Speed: Underground habt ihr die Möglichkeit, die Reifen quietschen zu lassen. Diverse Spielmodi, viele Tuningmöglichkeiten, zahlreiche Boliden, abwechslungsreiche Strecken und cooler Hip-Hop-Sound sorgen für viel Rennspielspaß. Wer bis zu drei Freunde zur Hand hat, kann sich auch rasante Mehrspieler-Duelle liefern. Einziger Wermutstropfen ist die zwar flüssige, aber mitunter pixelige Grafik, die oftmals die Orientierung erschwert. Hat man sich daran gewöhnt, steht einem ungetrübten Rennspielvergnügen aber nichts mehr im Weg.

I'm not a fan of the abrasive soundtrack either. As usual, EA tried to be "edgy" in their music selection, but most of these tunes are just irritating. I actually turned the music off completely, which I normally don't do. Still, this is a winner. Need For Speed Underground effectively combines the best aspects of other games with first-rate visuals, resulting in a spectacular racing experience.

The game does look great with a fitting soundtrack, transporting you into the underground world. Although it doesn't have the realistic prowess of Project Gotham 2, those that like to trick out cars may find Need for Speed: Underground to be a fitting element to their holiday collection.

NFS: Underground is an uneven mixture of gorgeous graphics, upgradeable street racing vehicles, variety of race modes, unique customization, lack of opposition, repetitive tracks, and no law enforcement presence. Somehow they have even managed to get rid of the replays all together. The additions and subtractions seem so random, it’s almost as if they picked this game’s elements out of a hat. But the game still manages to be involving and fun, although not quite as engrossing as NFS:HP2. It’s surely worthy of gracing any racing aficionado’s collection; the various events and practically endless cosmetic customizations should keep this one out of the trade-in stack for some time to come.

NFS Underground est très bien réalisé et offre d'excellentes sensations de vitesse. On prend plaisir à modifier chaque partie de son véhicule pour le façonner selon ses désirs. On regrette néanmoins le manque de diversité dans les circuits et l'absence de gyrophares empêcheurs de courir en rond.

C'est bien la forme qui prime sur le fond avec ce Need For Speed Underground. Magnifique, dans ses graphismes et accessible dans son gameplay, le dernier né de la série de EA n'en demeure pas moins très répétitif et ce aussi bien en solo qu'en multi. Les nouveaux modes de jeu sont complètement anecdotiques et l'aspect Tuning/Fast and Furious du jeu ne plaira pas à tout le monde, vous êtes prévenu.

C'est bien la forme qui prime sur le fond avec ce Need For Speed Underground. Magnifique, dans ses graphismes et accessible dans son gameplay, le dernier né de la série de EA n'en demeure pas moins très répétitif et ce aussi bien en solo qu'en multi. Les nouveaux modes de jeu sont complètement anecdotiques et l'aspect Tuning/Fast and Furious du jeu ne plaira pas à tout le monde, vous êtes prévenu.

Ce dernier volet de la série des Need for Speed a mis l'accent sur les parcours urbains et sur l'aspect tuning. Alors soit, décorer sa voiture c'est agréable, mais on a l'impression que les développeurs ont fait l'impasse sur des aspects importants des précédents NFS : la variété des circuits et les courses avec la police. Non pas que Underground soit mauvais, mais rester en ville et peaufiner le look de son bolide, ça devient répétitif à la longue...

Electronic Arts revient à la charge, pour la septième fois, avec un nouveau Need for Speed. Une série qui commence à prendre de la bouteille, pourrait-on penser, qui doit donc atteindre une certaine maturité, un certain degré d’excellence ? Pas exactement. Avec ce nouveau volet, EA nous emmène dans les tréfonds de courses urbaines endiablées, dans l’univers branché du moment – décrit par le film Fast & Furious de Rob Cohen -, le monde du tuning, de moteurs V8 vrombissant et de pin-up faciles à emballer : la course underground.

Je sais bien qu'il en faut pour tout le monde mais j'ai du mal à croire que vous prendrez réellement du plaisir avec ce NFSU limité, répétitif et vite ennuyeux. Cependant, si vous êtes un fondu du genre, vous pourrez peut-être trouver votre bonheur le temps de quelques parties entre amis mais sorti de là, comme c'est lassant !

Need for Speed: Underground är bilspelet som helt och hållet bygger på ett modernt visuellt uttryck och en hård attityd. Den hårda attityden har man i viss mån lyckats överföra till det bärbara formatet - det här torde vara det första Game Boy Advance-spelet med hip hop-musik. Då är det värre ställt med det visuella. Det är omöjligt att på den relativt klena Game Boy Advance återskapa de regnvåta, neonupplysta vägarna som vi njutit av i spelets förlagor på PlayStation2, Xbox och Gamecuve. Och eftersom själva racingen i sig är relativt underordnad den grafiska stilen i det här spelet så blir man kvar med en högst oimponerande titel.