PlayStation 2

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.

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.

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.

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 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.

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.

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.

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.

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.