Need for Speed: Undercover Review

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Solidus

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First review in:

http://www.gamepro.com/article/reviews/207937/need-for-speed-undercover-page-1-of-2/

As a detective working with the Tri-City Bay Area police, Undercover puts you deep in an operation to route out a link between a local street racing syndicate and arms smuggling ring. The sprawling urban area serves as one gigantic raceway, allowing you to roam the streets and highways in search of events. You're encouraged to fit in with these cool criminals by winning challenges, destroying public property, and generally sticking it to the cops.

But pulling off asphalt heroics is made difficult by the introduction of the Heroic Driving Engine, which replaces the tight controls and responsive handling of previous installments for a set of decent yet poorly executed driving mechanics. The series' fine balance between arcade and simulation has been completely blown to smithereens. Also, events like "Cost To State" which emphasize crash-and-bash tactics over slick driving makes the game feel derivative of titles like Burnout and highlights just how inferior Need for Speed has become when racing head-to-head against the competition.

Call The Tow Truck

It's clear that the Need For Speed series is in need of a GPS unit so it can get back on track. It should go back to doing what it did best: Where are all the cool, varied events? Where's the fine-tuned handling? Where's the intuitive vehicle customization and tuning? Undercover fails to deliver the fundamental concepts that made the franchise enjoyable, relying instead on slick production values and a trumped up sense of style. The game does a good job of rewarding your skillful driving and there are plenty of options for people who want to venture online but this franchise has clearly driven itself off the side of the road. Hopefully, it'll find its way its way back in time for the next installment.

PROS: Lengthy single player campaign; new experience system rewards you based on ability.
CONS: Substandard driving mechanics; less variety in races and events; open-world design handled poorly.
Click to expand...

Final Score: 2.5/5
 
Can't they just go back to the old MW engine. I'm sure many people will still be happy (inlcuding me) with a new story on an old engine.
 
Gamesradar review

Another one:

http://www.gamesradar.com/ps3/need-for-speed-undercover/review/need-for-speed-undercover/a-20081117172343876089/g-2008081814442328067

It’s easy to forget how long the Need for Speed series has been around. The original – our first taste of driving licensed exotica from the likes of Ferrari, Lamborghini and Dodge – existed in a world before Gran Turismo, at least five years before Midnight Club and when we were still playing the very first Ridge Racer. Over a dozen games and years later, it’s an achievement that EA Black Box (developers for the majority of the series) have managed to keep the desire to move around in a car quickly so stoked for so long.
Of course, it hasn’t been an easy life. The Underground years may have been hugely successful but now look tacky and unfashionable and as for ProStreet, well… EA’s attempts to keep up with the trends in modified car culture resulted in a disappointing change of direction that was as much fun as the driving laps of a car park. So, it seems obvious that the latest game should carry on where some of the best in the series – namely, Hot Pursuit 2 and Most Wanted – left off. However, unlike the previously mentioned games, NFS Undercover is different because you will get the opportunity to work for both sides of the law. As Maggie Q and Christinia Milian will inform you during the movie-style cutscenes, your position as a ‘wheelman’ requires you to infiltrate a car smuggling ring by convincing the bad guys you’re one of them.

In gameplay terms, this mean you’ll be taking part in the usual point-to-point and circuit battles to improve your status amongst the local street racers, as well as outrunning cops in ‘damage to the state’ missions. Your criminal activities will also include ‘theft and delivery’ jobs, where you’ll get the opportunity to sample some of the higher tiered cars early on. So far, so Most Wanted. However, as you’re really a cop, the tables will turn. Much like Burnout – and with a bit of a nod to old classic Chase HQ – you’ll be instructed to take down key members of the crime syndicate by literally smashing their cars to pieces.

That’s not to say that ProStreet has been completely overlooked; both the handling and damage model have evolved from it. So, some of the arcade powerslides of old have been replaced with a slightly more simulation approach with tangible understeer and oversteer noticeable in each of the cars. For the most part, Undercover is a successful return to form. But it feels like EA Black Box have taken away more than they have added. Okay, so the Hollywood cast and FMV sections give this NFS some real narrative substance and the action movie pace is maintained thanks to your ability to ‘quick jump’ to the nearest event on the map.

But it’s behind the wheel where it counts the most and the new grown up approach lacks some of the arcade lunacy that made Hot Pursuit 2 so enjoyable. Even the modifying sections (once a huge part of Need for Speed titles) have been reduced down to little more than a handful of tuning and styling options. And anyway, if it’s over-the-top motoring madness that you’re looking for, then you’ll find that Midnight Club: LA fulfills that need. Need for Speed Undercover, then, is attempting to look back while also moving forward. Black Box has taken little in the way of risks but it’s not faultless – the streets can feel quite empty (depending on race type) and the framerate can get a bit juddery. But you can’t say that EA hasn’t given us what we asked for.
Click to expand...

Final Score 7/10
 
There are so many great racing games out there, I think NFS, like Tony Hawk, needs to take a bit of a vacation and think about it's future.
 
I'm a HUGE fan of Most Wanted. Carbon was disappointing, Pro street was just awful!

From now on, I'm so voting with my Wallet!, Most Wanted I purchased. Carbon I also Paid for as I was that impressed with Most Wanted, and from there I've decided, Rather download Pro street before I buy - Best decision I've made as Pro street is not worth buying! So I've done the same with Undercover!

Overall, All the cars I've driven in Undercover feels just as awful on the road as the cars in Pro street. Wheels screeching, and car actually slows down rather quickly even if its a slight turn or curve in the road which kills the feel of driving the car - this is not how a car preforms on the road!

I liked the Idea of being able to drive to my races, Look on my map and drive to a place to tune up my car, or buy a car, or drive back to my garage. The police chases in Undercover feels sloppy in comparison to Most Wanted, and quite honestly, I would have expected Undercover's cars and the world to have a more Real World look - its a little too fake for my taste. Yes, the graphics are way better than Carbon, and to some degree better than Most Wanted, but common, 3 years along and this is what we get?

Most Wanted, in some aspects felt more realistic, you got a feel for the vehicles! As much as Carbon's graphics sucked, it had the same feel when you're driving the cars - just that the game was full of bugs, game would crash often, and no updates available for my Asian Pacific Edition... the actual graphics was pathetic, and game play was Too easy! But otherwise Most Wanted and Carbon had the same Feel on the road! Whereas Pro street & Undercover has the same sloppy feel on the road!

Won't waste money on Undercover - Will play it a little more, doubt I'll bother playing it to the end! Disappointed, but glad I'm voting with my wallet!

My 2c worth!
 
Cant they just redo Underground 2 in HD??? That game is the pinnacle arcade racer!
 
The last good nfs i enjoyed was most wanted everything else after that sucks ! thats why im a grid and pgr fan these days ! NFS should go back to their no storyline days ala porsche unleashed, hot pursuit 2 etc.
 
So Ive got a copy of this game and been playing the last 2 days.
Not bad at all and has elements of:
1) Hot pursuit
2) Underground
3) Most Wanted

What im really dissapointed with is the the framerate drops, aliasing and tearing. Also shadows seem to hinder gameplay especially when moving between bright and dark areas.
 
LabAnimal said:
I'm a HUGE fan of Most Wanted. Carbon was disappointing, Pro street was just awful!

From now on, I'm so voting with my Wallet!, Most Wanted I purchased. Carbon I also Paid for as I was that impressed with Most Wanted, and from there I've decided, Rather download Pro street before I buy - Best decision I've made as Pro street is not worth buying! So I've done the same with Undercover!

Overall, All the cars I've driven in Undercover feels just as awful on the road as the cars in Pro street. Wheels screeching, and car actually slows down rather quickly even if its a slight turn or curve in the road which kills the feel of driving the car - this is not how a car preforms on the road!

I liked the Idea of being able to drive to my races, Look on my map and drive to a place to tune up my car, or buy a car, or drive back to my garage. The police chases in Undercover feels sloppy in comparison to Most Wanted, and quite honestly, I would have expected Undercover's cars and the world to have a more Real World look - its a little too fake for my taste. Yes, the graphics are way better than Carbon, and to some degree better than Most Wanted, but common, 3 years along and this is what we get?

Most Wanted, in some aspects felt more realistic, you got a feel for the vehicles! As much as Carbon's graphics sucked, it had the same feel when you're driving the cars - just that the game was full of bugs, game would crash often, and no updates available for my Asian Pacific Edition... the actual graphics was pathetic, and game play was Too easy! But otherwise Most Wanted and Carbon had the same Feel on the road! Whereas Pro street & Undercover has the same sloppy feel on the road!

Won't waste money on Undercover - Will play it a little more, doubt I'll bother playing it to the end! Disappointed, but glad I'm voting with my wallet!

My 2c worth!
Click to expand...

Not really what NFS is about.;)
 
Let's make a mybb prediction. I think that within the next 2 NFS installments we will see NFS Underground 3.
 
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