Need for Speed: Shift

What EA has done here is reinvent a bloated franchise, and turned it into a product that the hardcore and the more casual among us can enjoy equally.

Overall, Need For Speed: Shift is a welcome change of pace in the long-running series, and a welcome addition to the sim racing genre as well.

Need for Speed reinvents itself with a game very different to the series tradition but that results in an excellent racing game, with the right dose of simulation.

SHIFT will disappoint those looking for Maggie Q and cop chases, but racing sim fans, looking for a solid alternative to Forza and the like, should buckle-up for Need for Speed’s new ride.

For what it is, however, Shift is a fun game and is probably the most accessible sim racer for casual fans or newcomers to the genre.

Not the best on 360, but certainly not the worst. [Dec 2009, p.80]

The game feels like it's stuck between two worlds, and it doesn't execute well enough on either side to fully satisfy any type of racing fan.

I'm glad I waited so long to write a review for this game because I wanted a lot of other racing games to come out and I wanted to ****'s 2-11 now and I'll tell you what,this game has screams of greatness and pure quality racing no matter what reason you play racing games.I personally think that Forza 3 is the best console racing game ever created but this game is a very close second along with Dirt 2.This game really has it all,the **** pit view,graphics,game play ,replay value,depth,character,ect..Everyone has there own opinion but I would pick this game in a heart beat if the choice was this or gran turismo 5,that game is ridiculous and sloppy but anyway,I love the sense of REALLY driving in this game and the damage model is great.Grid tried to do what this game really pulled off.I'm waiting very anxiously for Shift 2 unleashed.This year has a lot of amazing racing games coming out but Need for speed shift unleashed gets to be first ,so that's good!Great games EA!

Poor vehicle handling and annoying audio bugs keet this game from being great. Missing the real fun of an arcade racer, but lacks the refinement of a sim. Stuck between the two and held back from being a great racing game becauseof it.

Alright, it is obvious that the user scores and reviews for Shift 2 Unleashed (S2U) are not unanimously positive, although the vast majority is quite pleased with it. Now, I will try to give my own perspective on the game and hopefully showing that what it is that makes this game pleasant for most and bad for others. First and foremost, S2U has some elements which are certainly well worked out and worth the attention, especially for the race sim fans. However, I believe that the game has too many major flaws which impede it being a great game like forza. These interesting elements, i.e. the surplus for the racing genre, consist of the helmet cam, the personalised sense of a racing career, night racing and the autolog for the multiplayer. As stated, on the other hand there are major downsides to this game as well. The most important one is the frustrating gameplay (especially at the beginning). Trying to balance between arcade and sim, the handling of all the cars in S2U is 'floaty.' At least to me, it didn't feel realistic at all due to frequent oversteer with all cars. This is not just a matter of tuning, it is the very way the driving mechanics work in S2U. Especially at the beginning of the game it feels like the car isn't on a race track at all, but on a ice rink. The cars you drive slide from side to side and then there is the just as frustrating minor lag between controller input and car reaction; the latter problem makes things even more difficult. Add the fact that the difficulty 'easy' is a bit too difficult for the occasional sim driver (like me) and way too difficult for the inexperienced, and the sum is a difficult car to control, and a too difficult game to master considering its pretence of being between arcade and sim. Besides the 'unrealistic' handling of the cars, the game forces you into the career mode and doesn't allow a quick race where you can choose from one of the the many cars the game has to offer. These quick races are only possible for the cars you own and this is a major mistake I believe. Another failure is the absence of the rewind option during racing; there is only the famous restart. Considering the difficulty of the game the rewind option is essential for a less frustrating, and more arcade, play. The sound and music is proper, but not special. One part of the sound did trouble me and that was a peculiar 'tic' every car in S2U makes during races (irrelevant to the view), although I never heard it at Forza nor GT. Although S2U has some neat features (helmet cam, night racing, personalized experience) it is far from the status of forza. The most important element in race games, car handling, is flawed per se. Add the difficulty for beginners and occasional gamers, the game is not what it is advertised to be. Nevertheless if you like the challenge and accept the shortcomings, the game can be fun. A seven.

The races are really fun, however that's only a third of the game, with the rest being drifting and time trials which ****.

This game set the benchmark for the WORST GAME EVER MADE. It was shipped incomplete, the controller deadzone was 20% making you feel like you're trying to keep an out-of-control schoolbus on the road, the game was frustrating and broken at best, nothing made any sense. JUST THINKING ABOUT THIS GAME MAKES ME MAD I WASTED MY LIFE PLAYING IT. never again EA ever.