Need for Speed Underground Rivals Review (no fat)

Game Description

NFSU: Rivals Gameplay

As per NFS tradition, you play the part of a hotshot racer. Apart form the normal race mode, you have the Knockout Race where the last driver after a lap is eliminated. In the Rally Relay Race you change cars between laps

After completing some lap based circuits you'll have the possibility to compete in another 4 types of events. First is the Nitrous Run where you can go as fast as you possibly dare. Your race against time and burn as much nitro as you can. The Street Cross Races boast a smaller track, mostly indoor, where you will have to depend on a cool and calculating head on your shoulders because speed isn't going to win you much.

In the Drift Attack mode you go around poles and lose traction in drift areas, while the popular mode in all previous NFS games, Drag Racing, continues its run of form in NFSU: Rivals as well.

NFSU: Rivals Controls

The weakest link in the whole game are the stiff controls that could have made for better gaming had they been more cooperative.

To steer your car you can use the analog disc or the directional pad, “X” button accelerates, “O” activates nitro, “Triangle” changes camera view, “Square” is used to brake and go into reverse. You can also use the “R” button as a second brake and the “L” button to see what's happening in 1the rear mirror.

Need for Speed Underground Rivals Sound

The soundtrack of the game is similar to every Underground game in the series. It contains songs signed by: “Snoop Dogg”, “Skinred”, “Queens of the Stone Age” and more. You also have the possibility to listen to all the tracks in the EA Games tm Pocket Trax’. The game sound is top notch, and it goes well with the overall theme of speed and thrill.

NFSU: Rivals Graphics

The graphics are good. The only problem is the traffic you can find in cities, which is basically cardboard material. Leaving that aside, your cars, reflections of lights in the window of your car and so on give the game a realistic look. When using nitro blur and shake effects also add to the game graphics pluses making you feel the adrenaline of racing. The environment brings up nothing you could complain about especially when accelerating making you feel a sense of speed just like in the NFSU series but the game physics are sometimes a bit shaky.

NFSU: Rivals Cars

As you compete in races and win them you will earn points that can be used to upgrade your car and buy visual add-ons. Licensed car models include: Dodge Neon, Toyota Celica GT-S, Pontiac GTO, Mazda RX-8 and more.

The NFSU series brought up the possibility to change the stats of your car and also the look. This can be found in NFSU: Rivals too but with some alterations. You won't improve car stats by adding spoilers; vinyl's, rims, neon's and so on make no difference to the stats. You'll just make it look good.

Performance upgrades are a totally different area. You have 10 categories of upgrades such as engine, chassis, brakes, and suspension. Each time you upgrade your car you'll see a meter reaching for 100% in that category, your goal is to reach 100% in all of them if you can.

You will start the game with a Mazda Miata MX-5 and if you win races you'll unlock more cars, simple as that. All you have to do is race. There is an area in the game called ‘My Underground’; where players can check all their stats, like wins and losses, top speed reached and other statistics you can show your friends…and brag all you want.

NFSU: Rivals – Summing Up

This game was thought of before being released as a conversion of NFSU for PSP. And that it is. But there are a lot of extras that add to the original fun of NFSU. Even with some relatively stiff controls, Need For Seed Underground: Rivals scores well for racing fans.

Need for Speed Underground: Rivals cost

NFSU: Rivals currently retails for $49.99US at the time of writing.