Need For Speed: Most Wanted

Remakes, when talking about anything, are either hit or miss. Win or lose. The good ones recapture the beloved qualities of their namesake, while the poor ones simply attempt to cash in on their popularity. EA, with a little help from Burnout developer Criterion, has recently released Need for Speed: Most Wanted, a remake of the 2005 title of the same name. The question is, is it any good?

The hero car of Most Wanted: a customized BMW M3 GTR

To answer that question, you have to start at square one. In 2005, EA released the original Most Wanted. It focused on the story of a driver who, after being cheated out of his prized BMW, must win back his car and get out of town, all the while being chased by the police. To accomplish that goal, the player first had to beat the city's Blacklist, a group of ten street racers wanted by the police. The open world and in-depth customization helped make the game a strong seller. So how does this modern rendition stack up?

Well, several changes have been made to the gameplay structure. There is much less of a storyline. Instead, the game opens with a simple explanation of the plot: you must beat the city's ten best drivers to become the most wanted. No bad guys, no stolen cars, and no theatrics. Instead, the game puts its focus into exploration and gameplay. A risky move, but it's worked in the past. Criterion and EA's last venture, 2010's Hot Pursuit, was hailed as one of the best driving games of its time. It, too, was a remake.

A really good remake, too.

The best place to start is the setting. Your environment in this game is the city of Fairhaven. It's a moderately sized area which will keep you looking for new routes and hidden shortcuts, but there is a feeling that the map could be a bit larger. Fairhaven consists of a large urban center at its heart, but also features an industrial area crowded with factories and railyards, a mountainous region consisting of winding roads and stunning vistas, and some coastal stretches with lighthouses and ports. There are lots of interesting locations that help give the game depth, but it would be nice to see more in the way of size.

To explore Fairhaven, you're given a choice of approximately 50 cars in total. That's not as many cars as games such as Forza Horizon or even Burnout Paradise can offer, but Most Wanted makes up for this with its choice of cars. The variety is a major factor. Supercar enthusiasts will admire the Pagani Huayra and the Porsche 918 Spyder, muscle car lovers will go for the SRT8 Challenger or the Camaro ZL1, and hot hatches such as the Ford Focus RS500 and Lancia Delta Integrale will find an appreciative audience as well. There are also some oddballs. The Ford F-150 SVT Raptor is included in the lineup, as well as the Ariel Atom 500 V8 and the BAC Mono.

There's something for everybody in Most Wanted.

What makes this lineup even sweeter is the fact that you can essentially access any car you want without having to unlock it. You simply have to find it hidden in Fairhaven. 10 minutes into the game, I was driving a Ford GT. Moments later, I acquired a Lamborghini. This unique unlocking method is a fantastic idea. No longer do you have to play for hours in order to unlock the car you want. All you need to do is find it. This applies to all of the game's cars, save for the ten cars driven by the most wanted. To acquire their cars, you must beat them in a race and destroy them.

Want it? You have to beat it and destroy it first. Good luck.

Another terrific part of the game is the sound. The cars all sound fantastic, each engine note unique and individual. In addition, the tunnel effects are fantastic, possibly the most impressive I've seen in a video game. The sound of a 427 Cobra barreling through a tunnel is a surreal experience. The team behind the sound effects have done a truly spectacular job. The game also features a fairly good soundtrack. Whereas previous Need for Speed titles have lacked decent soundtracks, this one is actually very good. Artists include Green Day, Dispatch, and even The Who.

Now, nothing is without its flaws, and Most Wanted is no exception. The map feels a bit cramped, there could be more cars, and car customization is very slim. But as a whole, this is an enjoyable game. It's fun to play, and with plenty of collectables, plus Autolog integration and a very strong online mode, it has replay value that will keep you coming back for more, whether it's to find that last speed camera or beat your friend's jump record.

Roads? Where you're going you don't need roads.

To rediscuss remakes, Most Wanted is terrific. It takes the highlights of the original and amplifies them to new levels. It lacks in quantity, but more than makes up for it in quality. It's a game you can play for hours without ever having a dull moment. If you're a gamer, I'd advise you to give this one a go. It's a good old fashioned fun time.
Photo Credits: IGCD

Car Show Highlights

As the temperatures slowly drop into survivable levels, car shows begin to spring up all over the place. In the past few weeks I've attended three different shows, each one a diverse and unique collection of both weird and wonderful. Instead of creating three seperate posts, I've decided to take the highlights of each show and present them all at once. Think of it as a greatest hits collection. Now, on to the cars. Be warned, there are plenty.

1928 T-Bucket

1939 Chevrolet Coupe

1941 Chevrolet Flatbed

 

1941 Willys Pickup

 

1954 Chevrolet Sedan Delivery

 

1955 Chevrolet 210 Wagon

 

1956 Chevrolet Bel Air

 

1956 Ford Club Sedan

 

1959 Chevrolet Bel Air

 

1963 Ford Thunderbird Convertible

 

1964 Ford Country Squire

 

1964 Pontiac Tempest

 

1965 Ford Falcon Ranchero

 

1965 Innocenti S

 

1966 Chevrolet Chevelle

 

1967 Ford Galaxie 500XL

 

1968 Aston Martin DB6

 

1969 Chevrolet Camaro

 

1969 Chevrolet Camaro SS/RS

 

1969 Chevrolet Chevelle SS 396

 

1969 Ford Mustang Mach 1

 

1969 Hurst Olds 455

 

1969 Pontiac GTO Judge

 

1970 Dodge Charger 500

 

1970 Ford Mustang Convertible

 

1971 Dodge Coronet Police Car

 

1971 Ford Mustang Mach 1

 

1971 Plymouth Roadrunner

 

1972 Ford Gran Torino

 

1973 Dodge Challenger Rallye

 

1973 Jaguar XK-E

 

1974 Plymouth Roadrunner

 

1975 Pontiac Firebird Trans Am

 

1975 Triumph TR6

 

1978 Chevrolet Camaro Z28

 

1982 DeLorean DMC-12

 

1986 Lotus Esprit

 

1994 Jaguar XJ220

 

2011 Dodge Challenger R/T Classic

 

2012 Aston Martin Virage

 

 

Like I said, a lot of cars. But there's something for everyone, be it a muscle car, a hot rod, or a shiny new sports car. The car show season has only just begun, so hang around for more mouth-watering machines.



Working For The Weekend

After a long week of working hard, nothing is more welcome than a weekend to yourself. So take after the driver of this sweet '32 Ford, and go hit the town and have a good time. You've earned it.

Daily Drivers

Car shows are great. You get to see row after row of incredible machinery. Ferraris sit next to Mustangs, and Packards mingle with F-100s. But there's something about seeing those same cars on the road as daily drivers that I personally love. Sure, the car gets dirty and you have to be more careful, but in the end it's worth it. You're driving a vehicle that's fun, and you're improving your driving experience, as well as everyone else's. Here are some of the coolest machines I've seen being used as everyday drivers.

 

A daily driver needs to be capable of handling almost any situation, so a pickup truck is a wise choice. This 1953 Chevrolet 1500 shows its age, but also its character. It's clearly seen better days, but it's still a hardworking machine.

 

 

The Ford Falcon is an ideal car for urban living. It's big enough to be comfortable, yet small enough to be practical. This particular Falcon is a 1963 model. It could use a car wash, but otherwise it's a solid car. Plus, it looks good in red.

 

 

If you want something more spacious, take a look at this 1964 Chevrolet Bel Air Sedan. The Bel Air model offered a terrific combination of luxury and performance. This particular example has seen some wear and tear over the years, but despite that, the lines of the car still look great. It's elegant and sporting, an impressive feat for a car getting close to fifty years old.

 

 

The Volkswagen Karmann Ghia's styling is hit or miss. It's either sporty and cute or bulbous and fat. Personally, I like it. The stylish design seats two, has plenty of luggage space under the hood, and uses the dependable and efficient VW air-cooled engine. This one is a 1964, and looks pretty good. The headlight covers are a nice personal touch, and the paint, although worn, still catches the eye.

 

 

The Ford Mustang has been around for years, and is now a household name. But this classic example harks back to the days when the pony car was just an infant. The Mustang's debut in 1964 was a huge success, and the car sold extremely well. This 1966 Coupe wears plenty of custom addons, including aftermarket wheels, Shelby-style stripes, a hood scoop and a modern sound system. All of these things make this Mustang a sporty stallion indeed.

 

 

No, it's not a GTO. This is a 1967 Pontiac Le Mans, the GTO's little brother. Apart from a different taillight design, the Le Mans and the GTO are almost identical aesthetically. The difference was in performance. The Le Mans was less geared for performance. This one, though, looks like a serious street machine. It's rolling on Cragar wheels, and has a super cool two-tone paint scheme. A nice car for sure.

 

 

This 1972 Chevrolet Blazer looks ready for anything. The green paint goes well with the white top, although the top is detachable for those sunny fall afternoons. On the road, the Blazer is small enough to be a very usable daily driver. Leave the pavement, however, and suddenly it's a hardcore off-roader. It's the best of both worlds.

 

These vehicles are all interesting cars. At a car show, none would be the star attraction, but out on the streets they're real eye-catchers. They do service every day as dependable workhorses, rain or shine. Consider this: When these cars were built, however many decades ago that may have been, they were built to be everyday machines. So why can't they still be? It's a question worth thinking about.