Need for Speed ProStreet

"Good game, but lacks fun"

After playing need for speed carbon and underground 2 I had high hopes for this game. But this is way below the standard of these two games and of what I expected from it. It is fair to say it is a more realistic race game as you don't just bounce off the side and back onto the track and your car also gets damaged. But it is much slower and isn't as fun.

Game Play 6/10
You would have thought that in a race there would be high speed racing from start to finish maybe slowing a little around bends. But not in this game. You virtually have to brake to a halt to go round a simple turn. In a racing game I just want to go driving at high speeds, skidding round bends and shooting off to the finish line, but in this game I just can't. Most of the courses hardly have any straight roads, they are made mostly of bends that you have to go round and twenty to thirty miles an hour. Sometimes it is just like being on a real road and driving around the countryside which to me isn't really exciting. The good thing about the racing is that it gives you arrows on how to approach turns and corners, it also tells you if you are going to fast round them, which is often the case. Although the game is slower than the others I have played in this series of games it is much more realistic and is still reasonably enjoyable, the only problem is there are many racing games better than this one. Drag racing on the other hand brings the game play of this game from 4/10 to 6/10. You have to burnout your tires and shift gears at the right points. It's simple and fun to do. Sometimes it gets a little difficult and annoying but it is still decent. Overall the game play is a little disappointing and below the standard I expected.

Story 7/10
The story is much different to carbon and underground 2. This time you have race days where you can earn respect by winning and dominating races. You get to choose what race you want to do and there is no roaming around cities or streets trying to find a race, it's simply click and drive. The more race days you progress through the more you unlock. By dominating races you can win cards which can give you upgrades and installments to your cars or money. It's not the most interesting of stories but it is better than some. It's nice sometimes to get to choose what race you want to do and it is easy to choose what car you want to do it in. The idea of racing for respect and cash is good as it fits in with the realistic game play, as well as the idea of race days in the street. Overall the story in this game isn't too much to moan about. It is nothing special but nothing terrible either.

Sound and graphics 8/10
The graphics and the sounds in this game are very impressive and realistic, which is a good job really as the rest of the game is only no more than average. The sounds of the tires against the ground are very good when you are trying to get yourself an incredible burn out. The screeches made when the car goes to fast around a bend and the smash as you hit the side are very realistic. Overall the sound and graphics are very impressive and realistic, and are one of the few good points about this game.

Overall 6/10 (Not average)
Should you buy this game? It depends. If you want a more realistic racing game with realistic driving, sounds and graphics then this is probably the game for you. But if you're like me and are the sort of person who wants to fly through the courses at high speeds drifting round bends and roaming round cities then this game may not suit you. When this game arrived I was all excited and wanted to play it immediately but it was a little disappointing. Renting this game could be a good idea as you can tell by the first few races if you are going to like this game or not. If one of your friends have this game and you are round their house it could be a good idea to ask them if you can try it out and see if you like it or not. Or you can ask for their opinion on the game. I am hoping that the next need for speed game will be much improved and more exciting. Thanks for reading this review and I hope you found it helpful.

Reviewer's Score: 6/10, Originally Posted: 10/13/08

Game Release: Need for Speed ProStreet (EU, 11/23/07)