GET YOUR GAME ON
Newest ‘Need for Speed’ fails to fill need for novelty
Big franchises mean big business for Electronic Arts. Like clockwork at certain times of the year, the latest editions of titles like "Madden NFL Football" and "Tiger Woods Golf" will pop up on store shelves, and people buy them.
"Need for Speed: Carbon"
» Platforms: PlayStation 2 (reviewed), PlayStation 3, Xbox, Xbox 360, Nintendo Wii
» Rating: E-10 for Everyone (ages 10 and up)
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Right now, it's time for EA to appease the street-racing crowd and roll out the newest "Need for Speed" game.
Last year, "Need For Speed: Most Wanted" brought the series into daylight (the previous two installments featured night environments) and added police chases to the mix. Players raced through the city battling their way up the "Black List," a group of bosslike characters, cleared their names from being wrongfully accused of a crime they didn't commit, totally pimped out their rides and ended up with a gorgeous female ally in the process.
Now comes this year and "Need for Speed: Carbon," where players race through the city, get chased by police, battle their way through a group of bosslike characters, clear their names from being wrongfully accused of a crime they didn't commit, totally pimp out their rides and end up with a gorgeous female ally in the process. At night.
Okay, so most of "Need for Speed: Carbon" doesn't break new ground for the franchise. It could even be argued that one of the game's features -- the open city environment where players travel between different races -- is more crippled than years past because the challenges are so far apart from one another. (An option exists to jump directly into races, though, so it's not too much of a hindrance.)
New this year are the much-hyped canyon races, where one slip-up can send racers' cars careening over the edge, as well as a computer-controlled "crew" that can help racers win races by pointing out shortcuts, taking out opponents or creating a draft that helps the player car go faster.
Those canyon races, however, appear infrequently enough -- usually during boss races -- for them not to be as much of a factor as some players might like. As for the crew members, they're good ... perhaps too good, because they have a tendency to win races in front of the player's car. Sure, prize money is still awarded if a crew member wins a race, but it cheapens the thrill of victory a bit.
That said, anyone who enjoys the "Need for Speed" series will enjoy this game as well. Just don't expect much more than what showed up at the starting line last year.