Need for Speed: High Stakes

aka: NFS 4, Need for Speed 4, Need for Speed: Brennender Asphalt, Need for Speed: Conduite en état de liberté, Need for Speed: Road Challenge, Over Drivin' IV
Moby ID: 979
Windows Specs
Note: We may earn an affiliate commission on purchases made via eBay or Amazon links (prices updated 3/25 3:25 PM )

Description official descriptions

Just like its predecessors Need for Speed: High Stakes is an action racing game with a wide selection of exotic sports cars and many different types of tracks. The trademark Hot Pursuit mode game mode from the first game in the series is still present, where players race opponents on tracks filled with regular traffic and police cars that chase the racers. The classic pursuit mode is extended with two additional modes: Getaway and Time Trap. In Getaway the player needs to shake off the police in a set amount of time, or playing as the police trap a speeder before time runs out. In Time Trap an entire race needs to be completed before time runs out, or as the police all speeders need to be arrested. There are minor differences between the two platforms for this game mode, regarding spike strips, road blocks, and back-up. The latter for instance is unique to the PlayStation version. The Pursuit mode is available in multiplayer as well and players can take different sides or race together.

It is the first game in the series to introduce a Career mode with a set of challenges. Beating these is rewarded with trophies for unlocks, and money to spend on new cars, repairs and upgrades. In the PlayStation version the Career mode is split up into two different sets of challenges: Tournament (required races) and Special Event (optional races). High Stakes in the title refers to races where players bet their cars. In the PC version these are a part of the Career mode when the player owns more than two cars. In the PlayStation version two players can insert their memory cards and race against each other. The winner immediately receives the opponent's car and it is deleted from the loser's memory card right away.

In addition to the new game modes it is also the first game in the series to have a detailed physics models. Damage now affects both the appearance and the performance of the car for the first time.

Spellings

  • Need for Speed: הדרך לניצחון - Hebrew spelling
  • 极品飞车:孤注一掷 - Simplified Chinese spelling

Groups +

Screenshots

Promos

Videos

See any errors or missing info for this game?

You can submit a correction, contribute trivia, add to a game group, add a related site or alternate title.

Credits (Windows version)

209 People (185 developers, 24 thanks) · View all

Tools and Libraries
French Localization/Localization Manager
Translation (France)
Language Testing (France)
Quality Control (France)
French Voices
German Localization (Lead Localization)
German Localization (Translators)
Language Testing (Germany)
[ full credits ]

Reviews

Critics

Average score: 86% (based on 38 ratings)

Players

Average score: 3.7 out of 5 (based on 80 ratings with 4 reviews)

The premier road racing game on the market today!

The Good
If you like beautiful cars, fine driving machines, NFS: High Stakes will pretty much drive you nuts. Two dozens beautiful top-of-the-line cars and a bunch of great circuits to race them on - what's better than that?

The graphics in NFS are impressive and functional, but what sets this game apart is the racing. Arcade games offer both racing and hot pursuit (from both perspectives) fun, but the game's racuit circuits - which unlock more tracks - are the heart and soul of this game. You'll be racing cars on fabulously detailed tracks until 3 AM in a variety of race modes.

Car handling is highly realistic (take it from me: Start with a slower car) and enemy AI is outstanding. No other road racing game touches it.

The Bad
The menus aren't very intuititive and can be confusing; you can play the game for months and still not remember how to get to some features. In-game, it's pretty much perfect.

The Bottom Line
If you like racing games, you should have NFS: High Stakes.

Windows · by Rick Jones (96) · 2001

The best racing game I have ever played, bar none.

The Good
Need for Speed: High Stakes is a logical upgrade to the previous game in the series, NFS3: Hot Pursuit.

I wrote all about what I enjoyed in NFS3 in my previous review for that game, so I won't rehash it here. What I will write about is what's been added to the game since NFS3 and what's been improved:

  • Campaign mode. There is a very long campaign mode that takes from 20 to 40 hours to complete, ranging from many different racetracks and natural settings, to "knockout" competitions, to the game's namesake "High Stakes" race where if you lose the race, you lose your car. That's right: You have money to spend and earn, which also leads to the inevitable garage of cars you can purchase if you do well enough. Of course, it also means you might have to sell your cars to earn money for upgrades or tournament entry fees.
  • Car damage is finally a part of the NFS series. The more you bang up your car or excessivly redline, the more you damage your engine, suspension, body, etc. The more banged-up you are, the worse the car performs, even to the point of your body scraping the ground during a sharp turn and slowing you down (complete with a hideous scraping noise and a shower of sparks). And in campaign mode, you have to pay to get your car repaired or it's still damaged in the next race.
  • The number of tracks have nearly doubled.
  • True Internet play. EA's beta Racing Program let me race 8 total strangers over the internet, which was a refreshing change from High Stakes' computer AI.
  • The number of songs that can be played during gameplay have nearly doubled.
  • The 3D hardware acceleration support has been improved. While some texture layering issues still exist (license plates sometimes flicker during odd object orientation or distance), most of the display glitches are gone. As Kasey Chang wrote in his review, it's the game that NFS3 was supposed to be.

    **The Bad**
    No game is perfect. As enamoured as I am with High Stakes, I have to point out a couple of flaws that may turn people off to the game. The online racing portion seems to need a lot of work. Over a year now (2000) and their EA Racing online program is still in beta, which is evidenced by the long sync time when trying to start a race and the confusing interface. Worst, however, is that in all versions of the game v4.44 and lower, it is possible to cheat by modifying the default car statistics and create a supercar under the guise of "Chevy Camaro" or some other car that can't possibly go 250mph. This was so offputting the first time I encountered it that I went back to Campaign play. I'll wait for a patch that prevents cheating, thank you very much. Some of the 3D elements aren't handled properly by all 3D cards and drivers. This is nitpicky, and I probably shouldn't even have mentioned it. I guess I just really wanted to see what "fog" looked like on my 3D card (a GeForce II GTS), but enabling that option turned the screen into a murky blue mess. Realism isn't exactly out the window, but it is annoying that cars won't flip over under extremely hard turns like they would in real life. I'm sure this decision was made so that you could master the arcade racing art of "powersliding" (which, I hate to admit, is a guilty pleasure of mine in any game that supports it). The interactive music of NFS3 is missing, replaced by songs that play once through and then switch to a new song. The songs are good, and there are many of them, but the single best thing about NFS3 was how the music was tied specifically to portions of the track and really helped build a powerful immersion into the game. I was really sad to see the interactive music missing in High Stakes. The car showcases have been pruned down a lot to just a few pictures and stats. This is a continuing trend in the series, as the first few games had full-motion video of the cars, and the latter games have only narration of statistics to a few static background pictures.

    **The Bottom Line**
    Simply the pinnacle of sportscar racing, if you don't mind a few arcade assists now and then. What it lacks in true realism, it makes up for with long replayability and good clean fun.
  • Windows · by Trixter (8952) · 2000

    EXCELLENT!!! Best in the series!

    The Good
    More cars, more tracks, more of everythng! This is the first NFS to feature transparent car windows, and it has better graphics. Even the Hot Pursuit mode is improved. Even though damage only shapes your car and cracks glass, it is still realistic. Wheels come loose, your car makes popping noises through tailpipes (Missing in NFSPU.), your car not being able to steer well, even landing from jumps can damage your suspension, and when you turn hard in a direction, your suspension will screech on the road... Or you can turn damage off. The techno music is very good, and will help keep you going. The tracks are very good, ranging from a German countryside (Landstrasse) to a Canadian forest reserve (Kindiak Park). Now about the Hot Pursuit mode, you have three ways to play it, such as Classic, Getaway, and Time Trap (I reccomend it!). You can tell that I love to track down speeders in a desert in my specially tuned Chevy Camaro Police Vehicle, or patrolling the German countryside in my Porsche 911 Turbo German Police Vehicle. Oh yes, your Police car paint job and siren varies in every country. Heck, you might even see some Park Rangers in some snow and Canadian tracks! It's that good, There's a carrier mode, which takes you through some circuits, 3 types: Tournament, Knockout, and High Stakes. I'll tell you about High Stakes, it's where you are put against an opponent in a race, and if you win, you'll win your enemy's car (And a trophy.). If you lose, it's the opposite. There's the usual arcade mode and multiplayer mode. Let's go into the bad parts...

    The Bad
    I am a little dissapointed that the music from NFS3 wasn't carried into High Stakes. Ah well... How do you call a wingman, and your spike strips almost always fails. Some of the later tracks are hard. I think that the cops should be faster, and more aggresive. I'm surprised that the tracks from NFS3 has been impported into High Stakes (Not a real bad thing.). The car's textures could've been a little sharper, but that's okay. I don't like people who makes those super hi-poly cars for the game... That's just about it...

    The Bottom Line
    This is the best NFS game I have, and this is one of the greatest racing games there is. There's plenty of challenge for everyone, so GET THIS GAME!!! Only losers say this game sucks. I say that this game is great! It'll keep you entertained while EA fixes its mistakes. Thank you and have a nice day!

    Windows · by Andrew Taylor (7) · 2003

    [ View all 4 player reviews ]

    Trivia

    Police

    Depending on which country you are racing in, Police car have different paintings - and even different sirens.

    Taco Den

    If you go behind the Taco Den on the Redrock Ridge track, you'll hear people burping inside.

    Awards

    • Computer Gaming World
      • March 2000 (Issue #188) – Racing Game of the Year

    Information also contributed by Erik Niklas

    Analytics

    MobyPro Early Access

    Upgrade to MobyPro to view research rankings!

    Related Games

    Need for Speed: Porsche Unleashed
    Released 2000 on Windows
    Need for Speed: Porsche Unleashed
    Released 2000 on PlayStation
    Need for Speed: Collector's Series
    Released 2006 on PlayStation 2, Windows
    The Need for Speed: Special Edition
    Released 1996 on DOS, Windows
    Need for Speed: Carbon (Collector's Edition)
    Released 2006 on PlayStation 2, Windows, Xbox 360
    Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit 2
    Released 2002 on PlayStation 2
    NFS: Unbound
    Released 2022 on Windows, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series
    Motor City Online
    Released 2001 on Windows
    Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit (Limited Edition)
    Released 2010 on Windows, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3

    Related Sites +

    Identifiers +

    • MobyGames ID: 979
    • [ Please login / register to view all identifiers ]

    Contribute

    Are you familiar with this game? Help document and preserve this entry in video game history! If your contribution is approved, you will earn points and be credited as a contributor.

    Contributors to this Entry

    Game added by MAT.

    PlayStation added by Brolin Empey.

    Additional contributors: Cochonou, Rebound Boy, Zovni, Exodia85, formercontrib, Crawly, CaesarZX, Patrick Bregger, Victor Vance.

    Game added March 6, 2000. Last modified March 19, 2024.