Need for Speed: The Run

If you focus on the pure details of the cars and racing itself, Need for Speed: The Run stands head and shoulders above past installments as well as other racing simulations.

Although the single-player adventure runs out of fuel way too soon, the intensity of the racing while driving beautifully rendered "dream" autos makes up for the brevity, and a few replayable modes (Challenge and online) greatly increases Need for Speed: The Run's gameplay driving distance.

Need for Speed: The Run is by no stretch a bad game; it just fails to capitalize on its chances. San Francisco to New York is a long haul, and it's even longer when not enough happens in between. [Dec 2011, p.112]

The game is way too short and there isn't enough to its narrative to get even close to being interested in playing it again. While there are some cool moments, I generally found myself getting too bored or frustrated with the races and the game's conclusion only made the story even more pointless.

Need for Speed: The Run is a case of a good premise not quite realized.

What should be an epic race with huge scale and freedom is short-lived, disjointed and linear. [Jan 2012, p.64]

The game might look decent enough, but the overly scripted racing and under scripted plot fail to engage the player or give the feeling of a white knuckle battle to reach the finishing line. You end up barely caring about Jack's plight and when it comes to the gameplay... Lets just say if you're a fan of the franchise stick to Hot Pursuit, it's where Need For Speed shines - The Run on the other hand just crashes and burns. Repeatedly.

This is one of the best Need For Speed ever, the history isn't something trivial, you can feel that you are the person behind the flywheel. The quick-time events are horrible, yes, we know that but there are just a few of them, and in exchange, we get a relatable history and the feeling that something is happening because of your actions, you are not just a weird guy on hist 30s trying to look great, you are in danger, you feel even more danger than in Most Wanted. The thing that I most like about this game is the feeling of the country, you feel the change between the USA, and I recall how much I was excited every time when I saw a region change. I really loved the night, I really felt the stress of the competition, in every race you have to be the first, you have to get the best times, and you have to change your car because of the new state, It was awesome, if you think in this game as a stand-alone game, you are going to love it, most people hate it because you can't personalize your cars or because of there are not many changes in the gameplay, but they have to admit that this game alone is one of the best (Maybe just behind Most Wanted) NFS games ever.

Atmosphere: 8 Enjoyment: 8 Gameplay: 7 Graphics: 8 Music: 5 Story: 6 Total: 7.00

Need For Speed The Run is a good game. The gameplay is great,with solid,if at times **** physics are arcady but the cars still have a good amount of weight to **** tracks are also well designed.There are some great helicopter escape sections,and racing through the rockies as rocks collapse onto the road just makes for excitement. The graphics are simply incredible,though the framerate hitches occasionally. The sound design is good,with a decent soundtrack to back it up. The game is way too short however. The entire game can be completed in under 2 hours,which really holds The Run back. Overall,NFS The Run is a good game,but could have been great had it been a bit longer.

Not the worst NFS game I've played, but still pretty bad. Let's start with the positives: - Very good graphics. The cars, the landscape, the effects, all combine well into this very complex visual experience. Top notch. - It has a story behind it. Even though a not very complex one, I love the fact that the game has a story behind it. And then the negatives: - Disgusting A.I. How is it even possible to develop such terrible A.I. in a 21st century game is incredible to me. How did no one think that this is a bad idea. The opponents are poorly scripted and make the game a constant frustration. If you are behind, the opponents wait for you so you can catch up. If you are in front, they are flying. Constant frustration. - The driving feels poorly designed. I know it's Need For Speed so I'm not expecting simulator driving, however, let's at least hint in that direction. It's like you're driving a spaceship in a 90s game, not a modern day car. - Loading times. Wow. If I wanted to finish the race without using any resets and I had to restart the whole race every time I made a mistake, I had to wait about 2 minutes after every mistake. About 2 minutes! And if I choose to play hard, I will probably make some mistakes here and there. I'm not very picky when it comes to car games, but still, disappointing.

[SPOILER ALERT: This review contains spoilers.]