Need For Speed - Undercover Review

Any game from the NFS franchise is always awaited with bated breath and Undercover was no exception. A good amount of hype followed the game and game analysts went to town discussing about its competition with the other two racing titles it had to compete with - Midnight Club: Los Angeles and Burnout Paradise. So how does Need for Speed Undercover fare? Read on for our comments.

There are several things that are truly amazing about Need for Speed Undercover. You really get a great big kick out of riding your mechanized four wheeled horses around town. The feeling cannot be described in words, but you get the feel of being the king (or queen) or all you survey! Added to that, the music is so slick that it really makes you feel you are flying, not driving. There is great music when you are stepping on the gas or when you are starting out with your drive and when you slow down, the music slows down too, making you feel relaxed about the exhilarating drive you just had. If there is something that will take Need for Speed Undercover to cult status as most of the franchise's earlier titles have been, then it is this blend of speed with music.

Another interesting thing about this title is the presence of live action sequences interspersed throughout the game. This usually shows people talking streetspeak which truly adds to the mood of the game and allows you to go all revved up in your vehicle.

Need for Speed has done a good job of bringing its car customizable feature back into business (it wasn't present in ProStreet last year). This again gives you the joy of tweaking your car the way you want to drive it and really feel like the owner of it.

About the game itself, it is a bit different from the previous Need for Speed titles, in that sense it has an open world concept. Racing is not all what you will be doing - you will be escaping the cops, chasing people, delivering 'special' packages and even stealing cars. As you go by, you will get promotions in the Undercover world, which will upgrade both your caliber as a driver as well as your car. You are able to upgrade all your cars several times over and when you have enough dough, you are able to buy a meaner, leaner machine. This concept of evolution has existed in Need for Speed right since its earliest days and it is heartening to see that they haven't done away with it in this one.

There are some flaws though. The car detailing could have been more accurate. A very avid car enthusiast might find something amiss here. The game has a bad frame rate too which makes it not a choice for slower computer systems. Some people who have played the game have also commented about the feel of lifelessness they get in the city as they are driving along; the city seems unreal at times.

But the awesome playability of the game and its amazing music more than make up for it. After all, Need for Speed Undercover delivers what the franchise always does - extreme high-adrenaline nerve-pumping car racing. There's no taking away from that.

http://www.gamecolumnist.com - Your source for quality gaming articles, reviews and previews!