Need for Speed Most Wanted

"EA's done it again with Most Wanted. This time, it's so much better !"

Need For Speed: Most Wanted Black Edition is EA's newest racing game. After 2 Underground games, EA decided to go back to the whole cop chase thing that made Need for Speed so famous. I would say this is a good thing. Personally, I think the cops are what Need for Speed is all about.

The Story:
This is a racing game. Don't expect too much story. If you played Need for Speed Underground 2, you'll notice that it's pretty similar. You play as a new guy entering the city of “Rockport”, and you just start racing.

The graphics: 9/10
The graphics are NICE !!! The city and the cars both look very good. Even though I feel the city of Bayview (the city that you race at in Underground 2) looks better. I have the Xbox version, and fortunately, no slow downs. Though I don't know why, even until this game, EA still decide to not include body damage on the cars. I knocked a whole point of because of this.

The sound: 10/10
The sounds are nicely done. Sounds of the cars' engines are accurately done. Gamers that played Hot Pursuit 2 will remember the conversations that go on between the cops when they are about to catch you. The conversations are accurate, but could get hilarious at times.

Gameplay/Controls: 9/10
Controls are pretty standard. Though this time, EA decided to give you 10 different configurations that you can choose from. Though with the 10 different configurations, there isn't too much change in each of them. Accelerate with either the right trigger or the right analog stick, and brake with the left trigger or the left analog stick. I'm used to the pressing button for accelerate, so these configurations are pretty new to me. But, no less, it's not like it'll take forever to get used to the controls.

Replay value: 10/10
This game has quite a few modes. There's the Career mode, where the story takes place. Than, there's Quick Race, and a few more modes for racing. Of course, there's also all the cars that you would want to unlock (including 2 Lamborghini's). Replay is definitely available for this game.

Rent/Buy:
Buy. I don't think one can finish the game on a 5-day rental. This is based on the fact that the Career mode will take some time to finish. Plus, there are the other modes and you may fins interesting.

The bottom line: 10/10
Definitely a game worth adding to your collection. There are 2 different versions, the regular, and the “Black Edition”. The Black Edition has a few more cars, races, and a bonus DVD that costs $10 more than the original version. Pick it up.

Reviewer's Score: 10/10, Originally Posted: 11/18/05