Need for Speed Carbon

"Need for Speed: Most Wanted: Mini-Edition"

I'm not going to lie to you. As soon as I started up Carbon, I believed it was mind-blowing. After the action packed intro cut scenes, I was inserted directly into a canon duel against a familiar person from the previous Most Wanted installment. At the end of the duel, I was heart-broken as unexpected events transpired. Then I was transitioned into the main game after selecting what type of vehicle I wanted to start with.

From the moment I started it up, I was in love with it, just as much as the original Most Wanted. Then something happened. As I continued playing this game, I started noticing minor differences. The minor differences then turned into major differences, and finally the major differences changed into critical differences. What started off as what appeared to be a great sequel to an amazing game (Most Wanted, it's predecessor) turned out to be more of a Most Wanted Version 1.5.

Back to the city.

Following the events of the last game, you're back in your city. After a showdown at the beginning of the game, you're back down to square one. Things have changed; some for the better, some for the worst. But perhaps one thing stays the same. The city. Cruising over these roads after the game “really” starts, I realized that not much was changed about the city I was returning to. In fact, a lot of the areas felt overly recycled (yes, there are differences between normal “recycled”, which is okay to an extent, and the opposite extreme, “overly recycled.”

What happened as a promising start to a fantastic sequel turned out to feel like another one of those expansion packs for an on-line MMORPG of some sort. Sure, there's plenty of new things added: new cars, new tracks, new music, new opponents, new story, everything. But so much of it feels the same, and some of it even comes up short when compared to the predecessor.

Does this make the game bad? Heavens no. But does it stand up to the name established from it's predecessor, Most Wanted? I wouldn't say so. Carbon is a very good game, but it's a game which simply cannot rise to the standards set from a racer within it's own series. And don't get me started on the game length. I rented this game the other day, and I've already gotten 100%, and all upgrades unlocked (just a couple more challenges to go, however).

Sky line.

Some parts of the city are different, but not as a whole. There are some critical changes made, but you often get the feeling that you've done this all before. The city still looks great, though not as great as in Most Wanted. How there could be a step down in graphics, I'll never know, but the warm glow of the city is still there. Sure, it won't catch your eye quite like Most Wanted will, but it's attractive none-the-less. However one cannot get past the fact that so much is recycled to the point you have to ask, did they even intend to add more content? Well that may sound like a dumb question, but if you realize where I'm coming from, it's not.

Perhaps the greatest thing included in Carbon, however, is the canyons. The design and races that take place here are mind-blowing (I'll get into these later), and they definitely add to the experience. But is this too little, too late? I would certainly hope not.

The drive.

Yet with the recycled material of Most Wanted, perhaps the most notable improvement would be the actual control. When the game started, I loved the way the game felt. The controls were slick, smooth. In this game, you actually feel as if you're driving the car. In Most Wanted, you felt as if the car was driving you. Muscle Cars, a wonderful inclusion into the series, over steer - as they should - making for some excellent turns in the hands of an experienced racer. The tuners are stiff and have accurate controls. The mid-engine exotics can pull off most all maneuvers with fair success.

As soon as the race starts, I burn out and go head to head with my opponents. I tense my shoulders as I pull my muscle car around the corner. I hold my breath as I experience a close call in a Canyon duel. I stare in awe as my car performs a stunning spin in the draft mode. The feeling is certainly one of excitement, but not once did I have a feeling of anguish, of anger, of want. This is due to the fact that the game gave me little challenge. The races were exhilarating, but most lacked the challenge I was looking for. Either the opponents couldn't handle the turns like I could, or my AI would wind up wining the race for me, leaving me to do little work.

But now after I've dismissed the idea of a challenge from this game, I should perhaps comment that one of the only challenges found in this game comes straight from the AI. While I love the idea of having a crew member team up with me, block out an opponent, allow me to follow in their draft, or scout out a secret pathway through a race, I can't stand the fact that they drive like 10 year olds in lightening fast Ferrari's. While the AI scouts are usually ahead of you in the race, they apparently gain a thrill by slamming on their breaks directly in front of you during a turn. If you move to avoid them, they usually pass you again, or block you from passing them. Then when you do pass them and wish to call upon their help, the blockers usually never make it to the enemy car in time (blockers knock them out of the way), or the scouts manage to go flying pass you due to some hyper-powered supercharger you never knew the had, and then cut you off or manage to sabotage your racing in some way or another.

You would think, “Granted. These are minor incidents which happen every so often.” Not so. These things happen in most every race, forcing you to turn off the scout, or ignore the fact that you have a blocker. Heaven forbid you try to have someone in front of you to give you draft. They'll just get in your way too. Please understand where I'm coming from. I do not wish to gripe about minor things, but my point is that these are not minor problems.

AI aside, perhaps the second most annoying thing when you're trying to win a race would be the glitches. I've hit sides of buildings turning a turn I took too fast with a muscle car, only to find I could no longer accelerate past 59 MPH. What is this? I am forced to hit the restart button. The countdown ends, and I perform a burnout start. My car doesn't even go, it just continues to rev it's engine where it started as the opponents take off in front of me. I restart again. Third time's a charm? Perhaps not. I take off - successfully, this time - and go flying down the road with a scout beside me. Then the scout takes a shortcut down an ally. Unfortunately, this short cut meant heading through the side of my car. So I take a hard hit and fly. I reverse and start moving again, only to find, yes, that my car will not accelerate past 59 MPH. Restart. But hear me out; this was on just one race. There were other races where this very things happens. It is not uncommon to have these glitches happen to you. They subtract from an otherwise enjoyable racing experience.

Amped up Surround Sound and Custom Window Tinting

Perhaps the most notable upgrade in the media department would be the music. Yet the music in the game is a mixed bag. While greater than Most Wanted, only a few tracks are truly present in Carbon. While it's good I don't have to turn off the music and turn on the CD player while racing, Carbon only has a handful of truly astounding tracks. The thumping of the canyon music with intense drumming thunders in your ears as you take every corner praying that you don't head off the canyon and into the abyss bellow. But the few moments when the tracks really sign are, well, few. EA usually has better music in their games than this. While it certain improves over the poor audio of Most Wanted, only a handful of tracks offer any definition of improvement in the least bit.

On the visual side, it seems as if the graphics are not as impressive as Most Wanted. I know, it sounds like I'm doing a lot of comparisons here, but keep with me. The graphics are nice, no doubt, but they are notably toned down. I owned the PS2 and 360 version of Most Wanted, so I definitely saw what both systems could handle. Needless to say, the PS2 version of Carbon does not even match up with the PS2 version of Most Wanted. A minor drawback, of course.

As for the characters that form the story in the game, they look a bit TOO realistic. In MW, they were done well; fair shading and mapping drawn over the actors. This time around one cannot help but feel as if they were launched head-first into one of those live-action adventure games which were (un)popular in the 80's and early 90's.

The ride.

All minor gripes aside, the line-up of cars is impressive, if not small. While not reaching the amount of cars found in, for example, Midnight Club 3 (bet you thought I was going to say Most Wanted?), classics and impressive exotics still fill the lines. Mustangs, the classic Shelby, and an old favorite all make their return. Thought limited, you cannot help but like the cars which are there.

Taken to the garage, these cars can be customized in many ways. Performance can be increased and modified, giving your muscle car more torque for extra pick up along those sharp turns. A tuner with a nice engine can have more horsepower to reach high-speeds faster. The ability to tweak and tune your car's performance is a definite plus. Move over the visual and body customization and you have a whole set of unique additions for your cars. The selections available to you are major improvements over the aesthetic customization aspects of Most Wanted. While Midnight Club 3 held perhaps the deepest customization so far, Carbon meets and almost - almost - exceeds that level with it's in-depth customizing capabilities. It makes for a truly personable car. You can take classic straight from the shop, add on custom everything, a powerful flame vinyl, throw in a supercharger, transmission and engine upgrade, and you're ready to hit the roads again.

The one who fell behind.

Moving away from the crutch of the Blacklist rivals of Most Wanted, Carbon takes a turf-territory approach, having you race against opponents for their territory. While it's great to see hunks of land marked with your color and insignia, it gets to be old. The crutch of Carbon does not even meet the interest of the crutch of Most Wanted. In Most Wanted, you had to fulfill certain requirements which were set by the rival before you could challenge him. In Carbon, these requirements are exchanged for “beat the opponent on this turf.”

Gone are the camera expeditions where you raced through town avoiding traffic just to make that one speed capture, surpassing the record set by the rival. Gone are the dynamic police chases which required you to fulfill certain capabilities in an enjoyable experience just to face the black list. While the blacklist rivals are what you aimed for at the end of each act of MW, the “boss” rivals in Carbon are just that; simply bosses, as in, the typical bosses at the end of old-school side-scrollers. Though far from side scrollers, you feel no real need to match up with a turf boss. You don't have their history, you don't know how good they are. You just race them, beat them, and take their land.

Because speed chases requirements are gone, you no longer have to engage in any police pursuits. The polices chases, something amazing from MW on the 360, have gone from “exciting” to “irritating.” You no longer have to engage the police. Instead, the police are a hassle; people who stay on your tail after a race, and you feel no better from causing destruction and evading them.

On another note, the traffic is most all gone. Only a few cars remain on the road. Previously, I enjoyed the challenge of the traffic. Sure, I didn't care to crash into any car just as much as the next guy, but it brought in an extra sense of realism, a sense of danger. You had to win the race and avoid traffic. A semi could over-turn and get in your way. In Carbon, you'll be lucky if you even see traffic, must less crash into it if you don't choose to free roam. Because the traffic is gone from this PS2 version of Carbon, it feels as if you're playing GT; back on a race-course with no traffic, the only difference being the city and back-alleys. While you can be a fan of GT and enjoy this aspect, fans of NFS will find this difference to be unnerving.

The Trophy.

All in all, Carbon is a truly enjoyable experience, but is certainly not without it's flaws. It's glitches and AI malfunctions are maddening. The actual challenge of the race itself is menial. But the excitement you get while pulling off a hard turn going 60 is amazing. The game truly has some of the best racing mechanics of all time. But only so much can be said for the repeat city, and for the few location extras which have been added in. Yet the performance and aesthetic customization makes up for several of these aspects. Though not as great as its predecessor, Carbon does well delivering an enjoyable experience to racing enthusiasts all around.

Honestly, I cannot recommend a buy. Thought entertaining, the game is too short. After playing through the story mode once, you'll have little things left to do other than “race clean-up.” After finishing the career mode and completing all challenges, the only thing keeping you playing would be the multiplayer, or if you want a few extra bucks to bring in that little extra customization on your car. Renting this game the other day, just two days ago, I've already beaten it. It's that short. Most all other racing games give you a much longer experience. Carbon was over almost before it even began. Because of this, I can only recommend that you rent it.

Keep in mind, I'm not nit-picking. These are all serious problems. The reason I compare this to Most Wanted, is because this game is a direct sequel. It was expected to be just as good, if not even better, than Most Wanted. In the end, it turns out to be Most Wanted Version 1.5, the equivalent of an expansion pack. That said, who's to say we don't like expansion packs?

The Good:
+ Excellent Racing Mechanics, great control
+ Plenty of Customization options
+ Canyon Duels are perhaps the best features of this game
+ Small yet nice selection of cars
+ Definite music improvement

The Bad:
- Little Challenge
- Most great features of MW are cut
- Police Chases no longer required, yet are instead a hassle
- Too short

The Barren:
- Apparently everyone moved out of the city, because there is little to no traffic

Need for Speed: Carbon
8/10

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 01/17/07