Customer Reviews

Need For Speed

5 star:		(18)
4 star:		(12)
3 star:		(7)
2 star:		(6)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

I am predominantly a simracer rather than an arcade racer, so I am reviewing this from the biased perspective of someone who typically likes Forza2, RacePro and Gran Turismo. I have never played any of the NFS games. But I have played and enjoyed the Burnout games. So I DO like arcade racers now and then too.

Pros:
- The presentation is hip and energetic with pulsing sound effects and visuals.
- The audio is cranked all the way up by default. So if you are using a driving seat with some kind of vibration system like an Aura Bass Shaker or Buttkicker, you will need to turn it down. Mine started getting pretty hot in a matter of a few minutes compared to games like Forza 2 and Race Pro- which would barely warm the units up.
- Cockpit view feels less claustrophobic than GT Prologue. Not sure why.
- Camera shake does definitely add to the realism and excitement.
- Money is earned pretty quickly so you can buy new cars- a lot less grinding compared to GTP. Also when you buy a car, you can later turn around and sell it for the same price as you bought it.
- The beginning of the game puts you through a trial race from which it provides you with a recommendation of the gameplay settings. This is a nice touch- especially for introducing newbies to the genre.


Cons:
- Although the presentation is more "hip" it is also much more cluttered. There is often too much graphics and too many statistics presented to you both in the HUD and after the race.
- Program is not entirely bug free. It froze on me twice. And on another occasion I was able to start racing BEFORE the green light!
- Load times are pretty long so I recommend installing it on your harddrive- which helps a little.
- Even in Pro mode (i.e. no traction control, stability, and abs) it felt easier to control than Forza 2, and definitely easier than Race Pro.
- The force feedback on the wheel appears weaker than Forza 2. I was surprised it was already set at 10/10 by default.
- Cars do not appear to be visually as pleasing as Forza 2 or as accurate as GT Prologue. For example, the rear airfoil in the Audi TT does not raise automatically at greater than 75mph- which it does in GTP.
- Quick Race mode gives you a limited set of cars to start with. Although you earn cash pretty quickly and you can buy them.
- Cars are pretty aggressive on occasion, forcing you off the track on purpose. But at the same time, sometimes you see it do some really weird turns (that are not a result of a spinout) and decelerations that seem to indicate the AI decided to revert to following its rail.

On the whole NFS is simracing from a NFS perspective. It's a good effort for the NFS franchise. They presumably want to try and keep their existing customers (who tend to prefer a more arcade-style experience) but at the same time take a small nibble at the simracing piece of the pie currently dominated by Forza, Gran Turismo, and others.

Hardcore Simracers will probably be better off sticking to the Forza and Gran Turismo series. Forza3's new ability to wind back time so you can redo a portion of the race will likely be the top feature in the game- allowing you to practice a corner over and over.

I think casual games will still find this game enjoyable for the excitement-drenched visual and audio experience. I find that even though I am a semi-hardcore simracer, this title does grow on you after a while.

Addendum:
I recently played the demo version of Forza 3. Here's a quick comparison against NFSS:

F3's driving physics definitely does feel more accurate. E.g. on the Audi R8 about 70% of the power is supposed to be in the rear wheels and 30% in the front. In F3, it feels right. If you do too sharp a turn and hit the gas too hard, you will oversteer. In NFSS however, the R8 feels like a front wheel drive vehicle- in a hard corner, I can usually turn the wheel in the direction I want to go and just floor the gas, and eventually the car will straighten out. Your car almost never oversteers. I do admit though that NFSS' version of the R8 physics does make it more fun sometimes- you can whip your wheel around on a hard corner and just floor the gas- gives you a heroic feeling when taking an insane corner- which admittedly is not a good way to drive on a real race track.

The steering vibration in F3 is much stronger, and it really adds to the illusion of weight of the car. So if you through a serious of left/right turns quickly, the wheel will pull very hard in both directions and it really gives you the sensation that your car's weight is being flung from side to side.

NFSS' gas pedal feels a lot less "analog" than F3. NFSS' response tends to feel like it's a 1 or 0. F3 feels about right. You step on the gas gradually and you can feel and hear the gradual build up of power.

F3's cockpit is closer in view so you can see the dials more clearly. However the rendering of the cockpit is not as detailed as NFSS- and certainly much less detailed than Gran Turismo Prologue. Also with the closer cockpit view in F3, half of the rear-view mirror is truncated.

Even though I tend to prefer realistic racing sims, I find I really missed the camera shake in NFSS. It really does add a lot to the experience. When I play F3, it just feels rather tranquil by comparison.

NFSS' replay camera view is incredibly weak- there is really only 1 view. F3 has brilliant camera views. Just about every conceivable camera view is included. I have never seen so many views in a racing game. This is particular important if you are serious about analyzing your driving. And just as in Forza 2, you can toggle on/off detailed telemetry about your car.

However, still, the one feature that makes F3 the hands down winner, is the ability to rewind time so you can retake a corner. I found myself using this quite often and really appreciating it the more I use it- especially so that I don't have to restart the race just because I spun out toward the end of the last lap. However, I can see that this can be such a powerful crutch that people will over use it... perhaps forgetting that in real life there are no undos when it comes to real car racing... But for now I am thankful the feature is there. It is such a great learning tool.

I'd sum it up as Television show "Top Gear" meets "Gran Turismo".. Game has an accurate driving feel, coupled with a profile building experience.. Your accelerated to drive on & improve your ranking. Earning Cash quickly & testing out a wide variety of Cars within your 1st day. Your not limited to only driving your garaged cars. There are plenty of Manufacture Races & other Time Trial Tests to hone your skills. One you begin to tune your cars to met track needs, you're really beginning to master the game.

My favorite part is the Start of the race, the initial battle to get to the lead, avoiding drivers & spinning people out. You will quickly recognize rival drivers who give you a hard time on the track.

If you enjoy the likes of Project Gotham Racing, Dirt, Grid, or any other title in the the Need for Speed franchise, you will likely enjoy the sometimes overwhelming amount of audio/visual eye candy presented in NFS: Shift. However, if searching for a "close-as-it-gets" simulation-style racer, such as Race Pro, Gran Turismo, and the Forza, I recommend avoiding.

Graphically, the game is beautiful. Audio is decent also - although not as accurate as Race Pro or Forza. Electronic Arts certainly did revamp their physics engine in this title, giving it a slightly more controlled version of the one found in GRID. Yet, body roll is dramatically over-done, creating vehicles that feel more like drift-racing air-ride suspension Cadillac sedans. Initially, I was convinced this was a direct result of a tuning setup/car type, yet was disappointed to find even the high-end sports cars - those tuned with suspensions stiff as a board - flopped and skidded from one side of the track to the other at even the slowest "highway" speeds.

On a positive side, though, it is certainly nice to see the Need for Speed line-up change things up a little by taking the racing off the street and on the track. Especially with the number of famous tracks (Mazda Laguna Seca, Brands Hatch, Silverstone, etc.) recreated brilliantly in the game.

Bottom line: moderately, sometimes majorly unrealistic vehicle physics and typical Need for Speed flash mar the potential of a great Forza sim racer competition. Simulation buffs should steer towards Race Pro, or wait for Forza 3.

The game has the feel of the old NFS games, but they have SHIFTed to more of a simulater style game. Just not quity the same quality as Forza 3, 2, or 1. If your looking for the old style NFS games this is NOT for you. If your looking for true simulation, it's close, very close. Tuning the cars is a little more of a guessing game then Forza with no good ways to test your set-up with before you race. If your a fan of the NFS series this is a must have... If your a fun of the Forza series this is a game to have on your shelf but not to play every day.

I have been playing the need for speed games since they were first introduced on the PSone. Over the years the game has evolved and changed. This iteration is by far the best it has been in recent history. It combines beautiful graphics with excellent physics. The tiered advancement system is nice, along with the fact coming in first is NOT the most important part of the race, but how you drive the race is. If you are looking for a game like NFS Carbon or Underground, look elsewhere. I'm glad they have finally stopped with the immature street racing games that have populated the series since last generation; this is by far a step up and in the right direction.

As an older gamer i grew up with the NFS franchise, and watched it with some dismay as it moved away from track to street and then faded into obscurity. With Need For Speed; Shift I feel that EA has helped to bring the franchise back into competition with the Gran Turismo, and Forza franchises. Don't get me wrong the Undergrounds were excellent in my mind but maddening shortcuts, and opponents that seemed to have faster reflexes then Tron made it a maddening experience. NFS:Shift seems like a fresh start with beautifully rendered cars tearing up famous tracks all over the world. The car selection seems very good with classic imports for the Tuner, big american muscle for the Wrenchers, and the exotics that make us all drool like young schoolboys.
The cockpit view is very nice but still feels a little cramped for my taste but the detail has to be seen to be believed. Controls feel good, and the cars all feel a little different when driving them. The AI while a little bit aggressive when it comes to trading paint, or trying to muscle me off the track (NOT NICE!!!) seems to actually use some intelligence with racing, braking lines, but still is subject to mistakes. Nothing like driving through a corner at Laguna and you can't see anything for all the dust in the air cuz the AI took it wide, and is now in the dirt. I thought that was an Excellent little detail!!!
At the end of each race points are awarded based on aggressive, or precision driving (another nice touch) and rewards are doled out. Cash doesn't seem as hard to come by as one reviewer stated so it's not as much of a grind to buy upgrades for your favorite ride. Game has enough variety so far to keep me entertained for hours.
I think it's a great game, and well worth the time and money spent.

I have never before played a racing game that so perfectly captures the feel of driving from the cockpit view. This is really like a first person driving game.

My 10 year old grandson recomened this game to me ( I am 66 ) I LOVE it !! the cars are really nice & it was easy for me to "master" the tracks. Great game.

NFS Shift is very fun, and a very real driving feel in terms of a online Racing game. The best in-car view bar none. 50% Arcade, 50% Sims. 9.5 out of 10. If you have or are now playing PGR, Grid, Forza,or Nascar, then you owe it to yourself to pick up NFS Shift.

At first I put in shift with every intention of not likely it, but several hours later I found myself firing the game back with different intention... to have an adrenaline fueled excitement race behind the wheel! Many months ago, I was just another nay saver, posting negative comments about the series shifting in the wrong direction. It's definitely fair now to retract my previous statement, as I always seem to do with this series (Refer to my review on Pro Street). They did a wonderful job transforming an arcade series into a full pledged simulated racer.

I've played every single racer that has been released on the next-gen consoles, and I can't even count how many dating back to last generation. In my honest opinion, Need for Speed Shift's new cockpit view is hands-down the most exhilarating and realistic experience that you would have behind the wheels of a car. From the shaking of the car, the heavy breathing of you as the driver, and best of all the disorientation that is experienced when slamming into a wall over 100 mph. The graphics are also the best in the series, with a great polish over vivid colors, plush textures and practically no frame rate issues. I gave shift 4 stars for entertainment value because it simply is very entertaining. However I gave it 3 stars in over all because of some minor set backs that don't entirely bring the games value down, but don't help very much in the over all dept.

My grips with the game come in random fashions: 1. Instant relay is somewhat lack-luster, with poor camera movement and excitement, though kind in mind the series has really never had replays, except for Underground 2. 2. Customizations have dumb down too much, this coming from a series that invented the "auto-sculpt" in Carbon. 3. Lack of visualization in the menus, before the series offered a "photo mode", to get an overview of the car, but that has been taken away by far.

So all in all, this is a solid title with plenty of replay value for the time being. Now sure how shift will hold up once Forza 3 and GT 5 are released, but it definitely fills the void for the time being. This game falls somewhere in-between the hardcore simulation and the casual arcade racers. If you are open-minded and prefer to play both types of racers, the Shift is worth your time. However, if you a junkie for tuning cars and customization of engine parts, then this game may not be for you... just remember to have fun with this game, that's what it was created for!