When it came to illegal
street racing, nothing came close to rivaling Rockstar’s Midnight Club
series because, let’s face it, the series perfectly depicted the illegal street
racing scene while keeping it fun yet realistic. Then Need for Speed
Underground came out and gave Midnight Club II a run for its money
with its addictive racing, car modification and beautiful visuals. This year is
different, though; games like Juiced and Street Racing Syndicate
have come to take the crown away from both Rockstar and Electronic Arts. So
what’s EA to do? How about releasing Need for Speed Underground 2, a
sequel that just so happens to take all the good things about the series and
blow us away with something new. Does it work? Let’s see, shall we?
Having made a name for
yourself in the underground racing circuit, things get a little out of hand in
your city and this leaves you no choice but to start anew in another city. The
city in question is Bayview, a West Coast-styled city swarming with the street’s
top racing talents. Your only welcome committee is Rachel Taylor, the beautiful
owner of a car lot and performance shop who also happens to race her customized
vehicle. As you slip into her car, she doesn’t waste any time and tells you
that the huge city that is Bayview is the place to be if you want to make a name
for yourself. Hooking you up with a Short Message System (SMS) to communicate
with you, Rachel tells you to drive her car back to her car lot and thus begins
your underground career.
Bayview is huge and, much
like Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, it’s a combination of cities that
make up districts in this game’s world. You’ll race through areas with planes
landing and taking off in the Airport district and race through the Los
Angeles-inspired street of the City Core while Beacon Hill, Coal Harbor and
Jackson Heights make up the other parts. You won’t automatically jump from one
race to another like the first outing so you’ll be free to cruise the streets at
your leisure although you might not find any interesting secrets or hidden
modes. Sure you can earn a few points here and there by performing certain
moves like powerslides, but exploration is something that will just get old
pretty quickly . . . after all, there’s nothing really to see. Still, it’s
great to be able to drive to races and shops rather than be whisked away to them
with a push of a button.
The assortment of licensed
vehicles are the stars of the show with everything from a Peugeot 2006 to a
Mazda Miata MX-5 to the Honda Civic and even the sharp-looking Nissan 240 SX.
They’re fast and beautiful but then there’s the questionable addition of trucks,
SUVs and the addition of a Toyota Corolla (definitely not a car the screams
racing machine). Worse yet is the Cadillac Escalade, you know, the big boxy
vehicle rap stars are driving around town. Still, thanks to the custom tuning
and modification garages around town, you can make a plain Ford Focus into a
really smoking racing legend. Customizing your ride is encouraged since it
earns you points or stars for your overall Visual Star Rating. The hotter your
car looks the bigger the chance to get it featured in the cover of a DVD (and
big bucks).
You’ll notice that you
also have a map, known as the World Map that indicates the exact location of a
race type. The closer you get to the specified spot you’ll see an icon
indicating the type of race and you’ll get a message from your main challenger.
You’ll find a Circuit race, which is basically your average race. Drift will
have you performing cool slides and breaks in a circular race course (or one
that slopes down like in Downhill Drift) and Drag will having you speed-shifting
like in the first game. Street X, a new race mode, will have you battling it
out to win over the other racers no matter the cost. They’re great races and
you can choose the order of any of them if you want but the great thing is that
these races can be found throughout Bayview’s districts.
You’ll score points during
each race like in the first Underground so you’ll be rewarded for near
misses and handling that sharp turn without slamming into a sign post. Winning
races earns you Reputation Points because, let’s face it, it’s all about how
making a name for yourself in the underground racing circuit. It also means
you’ll earn the respect of your fellow racers and that leads to sponsorship
(this game is huge on product placing so you’ll be backed up by some big name
sponsors). A sponsorship doesn’t just earn you cash and decals with your
sponsor’s name on it but free cars as well because the rides you use when you’re
doing great usually ends up on the cover of a magazine (photographers will
invite you for a photo session).
The controls are a dream
come true when it comes to the racing action. You won’t find a better control
scheme (although if the default doesn’t suit your taste you can always change it
in the Options menu). It’s purely arcade-style but unlike Street Racing
Syndicate this actually works for Underground 2. The game seemed to learn a
thing or two from Burnout 3: Takedown because the game feels a lot like
it and that’s not a bad thing.
Graphically speaking, the
first game was a thing of beauty on the Xbox and the same can be said about this
one. It’s gorgeous and far more detail has been placed on not only the
vehicles but also the city itself. Sure its not breathing with life like
Midnight Club II but it still looks great. You’ll watch as the weather
changes and you’ll race from dusk till dawn as the early morning light is barely
peeking through. The cars are beautifully rendered but, once again, they don’t
take any damage at all (although the cut scenes of the crashes look particularly
good). The comic book style isn’t a good idea even with a nice rendering of
Brooke Burke . . . it’s just all flat and boring.
As for the sound, the
soundtrack will not be everyone’s cup of tea and it certainly isn’t mine. While
well-known artists like Queens of the Stone Age and Xzibit make up the
soundtrack’s eclectic mix, it’s nowhere as good as other EA titles like
Burnout 3. The game doesn’t even support a Custom Soundtrack feature so big
disappointment in this department. Fortunately the game does support Dolby so
crank this one up if you want to hear the roar of the engines. The voice
acting, though, is not great. Brooke is the only character that doesn’t make
the badly written dialogue seem too bad.
Need for Speed
Underground 2 is not a giant leap
forward but it’s certainly a leap in all the right directions, making this one
an addictive ride into the underground racing scene. The city is huge but
there’s no real reason to go out exploring it and that might just be its only
major flaw. However, you can’t go wrong with all the race modes and with Xbox
Live support there’s enough here to keep racing fans more than happy. Take this
one out for a spin if you love your racing games perfect.
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#Review |
Gameplay: 9.2
While still very much an
arcade-styled racer, the vehicles handle realistically enough that you’ll notice
any change you happen to make on your vehicle of choice. The driving conditions
change at the drop of a hat (it can start raining or you’ll find more traffic in
certain areas) and they certainly affect the race itself. The sense of speed
doesn’t come close to Burnout 3: Takedown but you won’t find a better
illegal street racing feel like this one. The new mode, Street X, is downright
addictive.
Graphics: 9.0
Once again the game takes you into
the night with a city filled with bright lights and the occasional side streets
with wet pavement. The city is beautifully detailed but it’s the cars that will
make gamers drool. Like the first Underground, the sharp and gorgeously
detailed cars reflect the lights and look great not only during replays but also
during the racing action itself. Unfortunately the comic book panel cut scenes
isn’t cool even with a perfect rendering of Brooke Burke.
Sound: 8.0
There’s nothing quite like the sound
of a Nissan 240 SX engine revving up and the loud screeches of tires during
drifts–all of which is done marvelously once again. The game’s score is a bit
of a let down considering the fact that the last game had techno beats and a
nice solid mix of great hip-hop. Snoop Dogg covering The Doors coolest tune
(and badly I might add) just isn’t a great opening track. The dialogue is not
good at all either.
Difficulty: Medium
Thanks to an improved opponent AI,
you’ll have to be mindful of the other racers and a single mistake can cost you
the entire race. This makes for a truly challenging racing game that keeps you
on your toes and makes you question every turn and short cut. Drag and Drift
are now even more challenging than before.
Concept: 9.0
While Bayview is a huge and
beautiful city with five districts filled to the brim with various racers just
itching to challenge you, it’s hard not to feel how empty the massive city feels
so gamers will most likely not spend the game exploring it. The fun is in the
modifying your ride so you’ll happily spend most of your time earning money so
you can really customize your car in the various garages. You’re also not
pushed into completing the events you dislike the most like in the first game.
Multiplayer: 9.0
Having finally reached an agreement
with Microsoft, EA included online multiplayer capabilities this time around and
Xbox Live gamers will certainly appreciate the fast, furious and ultra smooth
online modes. You can also play this one with a friend using a single Xbox but
no System Link support, though. That’s okay, though, you’ll get split-screen
plus all the available racing modes.
Overall: 9.2
Wonderfully stylish, satisfyingly
addictive and completely different, this sequel to the stellar original makes
Need for Speed Underground 2 a new fan favorite. Its open-ended world is
massive and is filled with much to see even though the city comes off as barren
and boring. Yet when all is said and done it’s all about the illegal street
races and they’re done to perfection here. This is a Must Have for racing fans
everywhere.
