Need for Speed Underground

"Supe up your ride, without spending the 20 grand."

Need For Speed: Underground
Supe up your ride, without spending the 20 grand.

Need For Speed: Underground, is clearly one of the best PC racing games I've played in a long time, if not the best I've ever played on PC. Either way, EA Games makes a huge leap for the PC game developers to live up to.

Ratings:
Graphics - 10/10
Music/Sound - 8/10
Gameplay - 8/10
Fun Factor - 9/10

Ok, let's start if off, by saying that if your dreams revolve around importing a car from an overseas Asian country and suping (suping = modifying/decorating it) it up, then this is definitely a game for you. Or you don't know what the heck I was talking in that previous line, but you've watch The Fast and the Furious, and you loved that, then again, this is definitely the game for you. Definitely. Why? Well, NFS: Underground is basically a game with a nice amount of cars for you to race and customize it, to look exactly how you want it, from modifications to the body, hood, windows, rims and so on. Gamers hoping for a game like NFS: High Stakes but with more features/cars and better graphics, will be somewhat turned off, to this change of racing style.

The main aspect of Underground, is to "Go Underground," and basically start up the career mode to unlock upgrades for your car, win races to fund the modification costs, and most of all, be the best darn street racer out there. So how does it work?

Well, you start off, as a new street racer in the game, and you pick a stock car you want to start off with. There are about 6-10 choices in the beginning, and with your starting bank of only 10 grand, you can't expect much else anyways. Whether it be the popular Civic, the Miata, or even the Ford Focus, the stats don't matter too much, and you can do fine with any of cars there. From there, you meet the host of the game, and your helper around the street racing world, Samantha. Personally, I find the graphical display of her, or any other humans, not so greatly done, BUT fear not! The races, and cars, have graphics unmatchable to any other racing game for PC. They are absolutely stunning, with smooth and realistic reflections, shine, and glow. The car models are done so well, I could easily tell what cars they were, before even looking at the name. Most of the time, the streets seem to be wet, just to show the sweet reflections on the ground.

Now as you race more and more, you earn money to help you fund modifications, as well as unlock new things for your car. Whether it be one of the performance upgrades, such as engine, exhaust system, NOS or Turbo upgrades, or visual upgrades, such as vinyls, decals, new rims, or even new paint jobs, the rewards are plenty and exciting. Also, you can unlock different cars, and you will eventually be able to ride some of your dream cars, such as a Supra, Skyline, S2000 or even the Eclipse. There are tons, and tons of upgrades, that even after getting to the last mission in Underground mode, I still hadn't unlocked everything.

Now the music. What disappointed me the most was that I couldn't import my own music into the game, so that was a major turnoff. After a while, it stopped bothering me, because the music they DO have for you, is a nice selection with variety, and perfect for street racing. Tunes are catchy, and keep you bouncing for your victories. The sounds? Some people may disagree, but personally, I think they're awesome. You can hear the gear changes differentiate, as well as the engine roar differently as you upgrade your performance parts, or switch to different cars. Car crashes can easily be heard, without even seeing it.

Now the physics and AI. I hear many people complaining about the "impossible" to catch up AI, and "never losing your opponent" AI, and well, they either suck at racing, or don't know how to mess up another racer. First off, it's very easy to catch up to other racers that are ahead of you. You just need nice turns, know when and where to use nitrous oxide, and use the map shortcuts. It's not as hard as many seem to see it as. And as for never losing your opponent? Heh. Seriously, all you got to do is [censored] him up once, and he's pretty much gone for the next 2 laps. Easy, no? The AI is good, and NOT unfair/too good at all. I've trailed a racer and seen him crash into another car many times, or see two racers ahead of me, and laugh as they try to beat each other, and end up both hitting a pole. The AI is fairly realistic, and fair. As for physics... they are outstanding. Depending on the force, and way you hit a car, you'll go flying a many different directions, and either just fly straight, or go tumbling because you accidentally left-sided a car to send you spinning. The physics are so real, I can actually see myself doing it in real life because that's what would actually happen.

Lastly, the game is all built around ONE city, and although many people say that it's annoying and boring going through the same places, that is somewhat true, but the fact is, that is how it is in real life. If you're a street racer in New York, all your racing will be throughout the streets of New York. It's realistic, but can sometimes be boring. Also, there are a total of 4 different types of races. Circuit, Drift, Drag, and Sprint. Also, there is a Tournament style for all the types (where you race 3-4 times, and see who has the most points/come in first the most.), as well as a Lap Knockout style, for circuit. The Drag mode is outstanding, and one of the most interesting to me. It combines perfect gear shifting, with keeping your eyes on the lookout for traffic and road hazards, to create a fun and exciting experience. Drift, is more laid back, but fun as well.

So there you have it. Superb graphics, decent sound/music, stunning physics, and realistic upgrades, will send you flying into tons of fun hours racing your car in this game. A definite recommended buy, from my part, and hopefully you'll find the game as fun and enjoyable as I did.

9/10.

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 07/10/04