erik240sx

What a disappointment if you're coming from the original version of Most Wanted. The graphics and car selection are better, but those are the only plus points I can give. The driving physics are just plain stupid and very frustrating for anyone who knows anything about driving. For example, it's near impossible to make it around a moderately tight corner without drifting, and if you try to turn without tapping the brake to initiate a drift, the car will slow down mid-corner, basically punishing you for proper race driving technique. The cars are also extremely twitchy and there is a lag which makes the vehicle continue steering after you have already straightened out with the controller. This makes it extremely difficult to point the car in the direction you want to go. All these things add up to a driving experience that is simply not even fun, which is what the whole NFS franchise is supposed to be about. The AI opponents are also ridiculous. There is a "takedown" feature where you can slam into an opponent and make them crash; however, even when you see their car flipping upside down or hitting an indestructible wall at 150mph, they are then right back on your tail 5 seconds later...only to slow down again if they pass you. Completely nonsensical. The car customization from Most Wanted 2005 is basically absent as well. Whereas you could choose from a huge variety of parts in that game to customize the performance and appearance of your vehicles, it has been dumbed down to a few basic categories with very limited options. The police chases are also much less intense than in the original game because the cops are extremely easy to evade. That was one of the most fun things about the old version and it might as well be nonexistent in this one. Overall this doesn't really live up to the original Most Wanted in any way at all and shouldn't have been connected to it by name. I wonder if the developers of this one even played the first one... Maybe the game gets better as you progress, but I haven't made it very far because there is really no incentive as it is simply not even fun to play. What a disgrace.

One of the best games in the Need for Speed catalog. Very good graphics for the time (and they still hold up today), great car selection and customization, fun driving physics, good story mode, and the police chases are second to none.