Recently Electronic Arts passed on a playable demo for Need For Speed Underground 2 for the PlayStation 2, and we had the distinct pleasure of taking the game for a spin in a limited part of the game's city. What we gathered from this test run is that the game's environments and eye candy have been beefed up in a major way that makes the entire experience slick and flashy. Set in a living breathing city, Underground 2 lets players drive through 5 interconnected neighborhoods in a free roaming city populated by businesses, vehicles, and more. The demo let us try out a few areas in the game, but the traffic was pretty light through most of the areas and the car damage was turned off. The demo also only let us try out the Free Roaming mode in the game, so we can't really give you an unabashed view of the Circuit, Drift, and Drag events in the game.
What we can tell you is that the latest title in EA's street racing game is very slick and car performance has been given a major overhaul, making controlling your car a snap. New players will have an easy time controlling their car in the downtown areas, unlike most games in the genre. The city areas in the game have also been tricked out with lots of interesting buildings and businesses - for instance, players might drive down the street and see the florescent sign of Burger King and many other brand name stops.
The other things we can tell you about (though without the benefit of fist-hand experience) is NFS Underground 2's numerous promising features. For one thing players can explore the city and encounter rival street racers who will teach them the finer points of the underground and tip them off to the best racing locales in town using cars from such manufacturers as Nissan, Toyota, Mitsubishi Motors and more.
The game also promises improved and enhanced performance tuning. Performance tuning allows players to fine-tune just about every aspect of their vehicle handling and performance. The game will also offers some more visual customizations options, allowing gamers to make their ride look the way they want.
Game modes being served up in this sequel include Circuit, Drift, and Drag, as well as free roaming. A lot of these events are actually triggered in the game world by finding the races on the streets of the city. Players will also get tips from other racers, and learn where they can buy extras like hundreds of aftermarket brand name parts for their cars. These upgrades include audio upgrades, scissor doors, spoilers, headlights, side skirts, roof scoops, hoods, rims, wide body kits, neon and more. NFS Underground 2 also offers a lot of varied locales, road surfaces, real-time weather effects, environmental hazards and day and night cycles. PlayStation 2 owners can also take the experience online against other players using the PS2 network adapter.
While our test drive of NFS Underground 2 was limited, what was available to us we enjoyed. The controls for the game have been tightened up significantly and the open ended style of the game is a lot of fun. The world itself is very slick and the gameplay is easy to get into for hardcore players and novices alike. Here's to hoping that the rest of the features in the game are as slick as what we were able to play in the demo. You can learn more about EA's promising street racer at the game's
official site
. Look for the game to hit multiple platforms in November. The list of key features, according to Electronic Arts, can be read below:
Key Features:
- Free-Roaming City: Explore a massive city divided into five distinct, interconnected neighborhoods, ranging from serpentine suburban hills to an intense downtown grid. A complex series of drivable freeways connect the neighborhoods together.
- Emergent Gameplay: Want to make a name for yourself in the underground? You’ll need to find it first. Races can happen anywhere and at any time and as players encounter rivals on the street they’ll be clued into where they can buy the hottest upgrades or enter the most elite events.
- New Gameplay Modes: Three new gameplay modes are added to last year’s circuit, drift and drag competitions, challenging gamers to hone their skills in a number of driving disciplines.
- Performance Tuning: Tune every aspect of your car’s performance with hundreds of licensed aftermarket performance upgrades and then fine-tune everything from the gear ratio to the suspension for the ultimate ride.
- The Hottest Cars: More than thirty of the most sought-after tuner cars are available from the hottest manufacturers--from Mitsubishi Motors, Nissan, and Toyota to Ford and Volkswagen, if they’re hot on the street, they’re in the game.
- Visual Customization: With more than twice the visual customizations of last year’s game, there are literally billions of car combinations available to gamers. Featuring audio upgrades, scissor doors, spoilers, headlights, side skirts, roof scoops, hoods, rims, wide body kits, neon and more, if you can trick it out in real life, you can trick it out in Need for Speed Underground 2.
- Environmental Variety: Each of the five distinct neighborhoods in Need for Speed Underground 2 feature a unique look and feel, including varied driving conditions and track types. Road surfaces, real-time weather effects, and environmental hazards will keep gamers on their toes as they race from dusk till dawn.
- Online: Gamers can put their reputation on the line, challenging the world’s best racers online for the PlayStation 2 computer entertainment system.*.
*An Internet connection, Network Adaptor and Memory Card for the PlayStation 2 are required for online game play.
