EA’s newest Need for Speed game deviates from the formula in certain ways. It’s more sexier, and not only because of the fancy automobiles. This new installment of Need for Speed is an improvement on the previous ones by the developer. As a bonus, it has a solid design and smooth gameplay.
Method of Need for Speed: Unbounded’s development called “Calendar”
I won’t pretend to a racing game veteran, but I did sink endless hours into Midnight Club 3: Dub Edition on the PlayStation 2. Need for Speed Unbound is very similar to the aforementioned game, however it isn’t as as eccentric.
In spite of this, Unbound retains a substantial amount of what makes it stand out from the crowd. The game’s centerpiece is its leveling system. The first part of your trip completed in a respectable vehicle that gives you a taste of the action. You get a better automobile after the prologue, but it degrades after that. Because of the effort required to develop your car and talents, this adds a feeling of growth. But in games like Forza Horizon, players get instant access to Speed top-tier supercars, diminishing the game’s emphasis on advancement and the excitement of building up from nothing. In Unbound, the thrill of being a good racer with a strong car comes from the player’s experience of beginning with a lesser grade car and progressively improving and upgrading it. After spending many hours racing across Lakeshore City’s streets, this was a strong sentiment on my part.
Components of NFS Unbound’s gameplay
It’s obvious that a lot of time and effort put into this system by Criterion Games. The game structured around weeks, with the last day of each week serving as a qualification test necessary to go on in the plot. One session is the whole of a day, which includes both the daytime and nighttime hours. Need for Speed Unbound forced me to think ahead and make strategic choices, such as whether to gamble my money in another race or preserve my restarts for a more critical race, that I never had to drift hunters make in any other arcade racing game.
The aesthetics of the pictures and sound
It’s true that you can only restart your session so many times. It’s true that this idea has used in other games, but the extra features in place here make it shine. Since any unused retries would be lost at the conclusion of each race if they only permitted for individual races, players would speed tempted to keep restarting races until they came in first position. Yet, in Unbound, players are compelled to maximize the use of their limited attempts.
My favorite aspect of the game is the strategic planning required for each race; I really felt like I there. These confines and harsh mechanisms might make things difficult at times. Additionally, I found that I able to drive my virtual vehicles more expertly after using them. Probably the only thing that kept me racing the stakes and repercussions, since I wanted to see my performance improve. As I can’t keep trying over and over again until I succeed, I must learn to speed accept my failures and make adjustments to my strategy.
Putting your faith in your abilities and taking a chance on potential gain
In this game, it is not crucial to win every race thanks to the vehicle rating system. I found excitement and pleasure in competing even though I wasn’t the winner. It’s common sense to wager against opponents who are quicker than you, and doing so might provide you with motivation to speed improve. I realized early on that I not going to place in the top three in most events. The racer that is most likely to finish in last place is still in the running, and I may take my chances by betting against them. In any case, just my taking part in the race itself would net me some money, and winning the bet would net me much more. This gives even the races you know you have little chance of winning a feeling of meaning and eliminates the urge to keep trying until you succeed.
The enormous stakes of buy-in races and the rush to the garage to deposit winnings before the authorities arrive create a thrilling and tense atmosphere. Speaking of the law enforcement, Unbound has returned with a heat rating system that functions similarly to a “speed” status. The more races you do in a single day, the hotter you’ll get. Though the concept is sound, the game’s law enforcement completely ridiculous. When other racers force you off the road, their exclusive attention on the player might annoying. With the cops on your pursuit, it may take a very long time to reach the garage and cash in your earnings if you increase your heat level.
Planning and artificial intelligence for the game environment of NFS Unbound
In Lakeshore City, street racing is common since the roads designed with speed in mind. Learning to drift is challenging; I often found my vehicle over-drifting and spinning out on turns. It’s not easy to get back up to speed after being passed by other racers because to the AI’s rubber banding mechanic, and even one crash may severely hamper a player’s chances of winning the race.
However, not everyone shares my appreciation for this particular aesthetic. The human characters have given a cel-shaded design that helps them to stand out. It took me a little while to get accustomed to it, but once I did I thought it to refreshingly novel, but some may find it distracting. I pleasantly surprised by how nicely the music in Need for Speed Unbound matched the game’s atmosphere of gritty subterranean street racing. The voice acting speed is excellent, especially for the police officers. The conversation stays away from cringeworthy awkwardness while being written for a younger readership and full of contemporary lingo. While the game’s visuals are certainly impressive, fans of other drift hunters racing games may less than satisfied.
Result: The Judgment
As arcade racing games go, Need for Speed Unbound holds its own. The game is more complicated than your standard arcade racer thanks to a campaign that lets you start from nothing and work your way to the top, as well as limited retries that raise the stakes in each race. Some players may get disinterested in the game due to the tedious early-game grind and the bothersome constant pursuit by police. While I think NFS enthusiasts will like the game, and I think it’s worth the $10 to test it out through EA Play Pro, I wouldn’t advise casual gamers to purchase it at full price without first trying it out. It’s also important to remember that EA sold the game at a discount in the weeks after its release. You should hold out until the next sale on the service you want.