Need for Speed Most Wanted Review. Share. Your next most wanted game. By Daniel Krupa. Two years ago acclaimed British developer Criterion took a stab at one of Need for Speeds most established imprints Hot Pursuit. The results were fantastic it was a game that pushed the arcade racer forward in new, exciting  directions, providing unprecedented levels of connectivity, and was a major shot in the arm for the series. Thankfully, following on from the disappointment of last years entry The Run, Criterion is back in the driving seat, turning its perfectionists gaze towards another title from the franchises past. DnQn6kVnobJPWbvS9s5exU2SOz6r5Ax.jpg' alt='Need For Speed Most Wanted 2 Multiplayer Patch' title='Need For Speed Most Wanted 2 Multiplayer Patch' />This time its Most Wanted receiving the makeover and the results occasionally approach the sublime. The first thing that impresses you about Most Wanted and there are many highlights to choose from is the sheer quality and craftsmanship of the game. Its evident in most aspects of the game. Its been constructed with a fastidious attention to detail. Youll emerge from winding tunnels into blinding light flecks of dirt and blades of grass will cling to the screen should you choose to go off road the music quality will dip and static will accumulate on your Sat Nav when you venture underground the warm sunlight skims off rainwater that has pooled on the uneven, cracked tarmac. Theyre all little touches testament to time and energy but when they all combine, as they frequently do, the result approaches something quite sublime. And youll still be able to appreciate it all tearing down the highway at 1. You get the impression that Criterion is rather proud of its achievement. Each race is prefaced by an introductory video, which showcases the city it has built from the ground up. Some are surreal vignettes in which police cars fall from the sky or perch on the ceiling of car parks like flies others are snapshots of the city itself, showcasing its urban beauty. The Need for Speed franchise returns to the hands of Criterion. But is the series back to its bestAs of 30 November 2015, the games. Net and the team would like to thank everyone who was involved in the community. Things in the distance dont bear up to the same scrutiny but its a more than acceptable tradeoff, since every side of Fairhaven every sewer and flood drain, bridge and road is accessible to you right from the beginning, without a single intrusive loading time. This is open world gaming at its most seamless. Different sections arent crudely welded together with lengthy loading times. Youll only be pulled out of it when you change cars, enter a race or switch to multiplayer and it never takes more than a few seconds. But this is a driving game of course, so inevitably it comes down to the cars. And in keeping with its sandbox aspirations, youre able to drive nearly every one of its 4. Lancia Delta to the most desirable Aston Martin V1. Vantage. To drive them you dont have to win races or accumulate points or buy tokens you just have to find them. Some are hidden on rooftops or down back alleys some are hiding in plain sight. When you find a new car its equipped with stock components basic tyres, a basic chassis and transmission, and no nitrous exhaust. You upgrade your car by accumulating Speed Points, which you earn by transgressing the law, setting off speed cameras, bursting through billboards, evading the police. But the fastest way to net some serious Speed Points is by entering street races. Need For Speed Most Wanted 2 Multiplayer Patch' title='Need For Speed Most Wanted 2 Multiplayer Patch' />Each car has five races open to it, ranging from easy to hard. The races themselves are fairly varied there are straightforward circuit races, sprint races and Speed Runs, in which youll have to maintain an absurdly fast average time while weaving in and out of traffic. Place well in the races and youll receive perks such as off road tyres, a reinforced chassis so you can burst through roadblocks, or different gear sets, depending on whether you want a higher top speed or faster acceleration. Modding is easily done via Easy Drive, the games persistent on screen menu. It lets you upgrade your car using the D pad, change your car and set a route to new race. It again furthers that open world feel. Criterion is smart enough to know that nothing is more antithetical to the open world experience that its trying to create than drilling down through a series of static menus. In addition to straightforward races, there are also Ambush events in which youll have to evade the boys in blue. Part of the fun of Most Wanted is antagonising the authorities. Icom Ic-2800 Programming Software there. Initially youll feel restricted to the roads and highways of Fairhaven, but the races show you different sides to the city. Datcon Tachometer Manual. There are two ways in which you can lose the fuzz keep on running for the horizon and hope they cant chase you or break the line of sight and hide under a bridge, like Ryan Gosling in Drive. But police interference isnt limited to Ambush events. Theyll get involved in most races, attempting to ram you off the road or into oncoming traffic dropping stingers right in front of you or blocking entire intersections. As your Heat level increases theyll employ faster cars to chase you down and even call in SWAT teams. And this is where your mods can give you a slight advantage if you need to plough through parked SWAT vans or SUVs you must equip a reinforced chassis and the powershot exhaust, otherwise your car will crumple on impact. However, modding on the move isnt all that easy and the risk of crashing into an obstacle while trying to change to re inflatable tyres isnt really worth it. And while Kinect allows you to access Easy Drive more easily, during the fast paced races of Most Wanted its still a bit of liability to mod mid race. The spectacular is well within reach of even the novice in Most Wanted. Cars handle brilliantly. Once you master drifting and how to use nitrous bursts effectively, youll be competitive in most races. Harder races arent intimidating with practice and a range of mods unlocked. Slow and steady wont win you races in Most Wanted only insanely fast and audacious will. Races in Most Wanted begin not from a static racing line, with you patiently waiting to hit the gas, but from a rolling start youre furiously thrown into the middle of the race and thats pretty much emblematic for the game itself. The opening credits end with an invitation a robotic sounding womans voice says, What happens next is up to you. And thats part of the games central weakness. It provides so much freedom that some will find it rather aimless. When you can drive and upgrade a Lamborghini Gallardo right from the beginning, the motivation to do it all again with a hatchback quickly evaporates. Some many of its pleasures are immediate, not rationed nor deferred. Saying that, there is a very loose narrative of sorts youre tasked with becoming the citys most notorious racer. When you earn sufficient Speed Points youll be able to challenge one of Fairhavens ten most wanted racers. They drive the most desirable cars in the game from the real world Bugatti Veyron to fantastical concept cars and the races are akin to boss fights, periodically testing your skills and knowledge of the citys streets. Incidentally, each race is preceded by the most stunning introduction. Beat them by successfully take down their vehicle and youll take their car as a prize. Its the main incentive to keep on racking up those Speed Points. That incentive is bolstered by the games approach to multiplayer.