Need For Speed: Most Wanted was a very polished car-modding, arcade-style racing game and gave a lot of credibility to the series. The only problem then for EA was how they could improve things next time around, providing something that's neither a simple rehash of Most Wanted nor ruined by too many drastic changes.

So, it's good to see that they seem to have got the balance right for their latest offering, Need For Speed Carbon, it seems as though they have made just enough changes to create a fresh experience without going overboard and alienating all its current modding fans. The main change is the addition of a crew that helps you out along the way. This includes a blocker who tactically, yet aggressively, drives to clear your path by redirecting rival vehicles to a more convenient spot in the road. Then there is the scout, who drives ahead and informs you of any upcoming hazards and shortcuts. There is also a drafter, who helps by cutting in front of you to create a slipstream effect. It doesn't stop there either - there is also the addition of a pit crew to help modify and tune your car. You may be happy to learn that the police are once again intruding into the world of street racing and your crew can even bribe them when they need to be kept off your back!

The demo of Carbon has limited modes and cars to choose from, but it already had me rubbing my hands together in anticipation until they were as hot as a flame-spitting exhaust. First of all you pick a car from one of three classes: Exotic, Tuner and Muscle. Then you can have a fiddle with the newest modifying feature: the Autosculpt function. Although the modification possibilities will be much larger in the full version, with various types of bumpers, side skirts, spoilers, bonnets and more, for now we are just given a taste of tweaking existing modifications. This is what the Autosculpt feature is all about, allowing you to extend and twist certain parts of the car to varying degrees, almost as if you can mould the parts into different shapes and sizes. For example, there are a number of ways you can tweak the look of the alloy wheel you have chosen for your ride. You can increase or decrease the depth at which the alloy sits within the tyre, you can change the ratio of alloy to tyre (basically increasing the size of the alloy) or even twist the alloy so that its pattern spirals more. It goes without saying that along with all the other modified parts that will be included in the full version, this feature will make modifying your car an incredibly versatile experience.

Need For Speed Carbon also sees the welcome return of the drift mode, and a track is included in the demo for just that. Here you need to perform well-executed slides around corners, staying sideways for as long as possible to accumulate points. This is made more of a challenge by having bonus areas marked out in yellow stripes across certain parts of the circuit - you get more points when you are drifting along them, but they are also placed close to the barriers, so the risk of crashing is greater. On first inspecting this mode I was surprised (and almost horrified) to learn that you do not need to use the brakes to drift round corners - it seems you simply need to angle your car correctly and hold it sideways for as long as possible. This is very unrealistic, but is not intended to be so. It all begins to make sense when you get the hang of it, stringing together an astonishingly long drift sequence and you start to feel as though you're the king of driving… whilst looking out your side window. It might feel a little more like actual drifting if you had to build up speed and use your brakes effectively to slide round corners, but this is still a worthwhile addition to the game.

Even in the other modes you can tell that EA has gone for a more high-octane thrill style racer, rather than a realistic driving experience. It's more of a search for bigger hits of adrenaline than the quickest lap/split times. In some ways that is the best approach they could go for, as this is the best way to satisfy people who are in it for an entertaining drive as well as people who are in it for all the modifications. While playing you can certainly tell that they are forgoing some realism for entertainment and this approach is paying off. During gameplay the handling is a little too sensitive and simple, but you forgive it, because it's such a thrill to race at these speeds and the addition of traffic and NOS (nitrous oxide/speed boost) keeps each mode from becoming monotonous or dull.

The graphics are a reasonable improvement over Most Wanted, which means crisp car details and realistic looking tarmac (although don't be fooled by some of the few screenshots released, as these may well be next-gen rather than PS2). The only letdown is that every race takes place at night, so sometimes it's hard to tell where you are going if you haven't raced on that circuit before, a problem that almost ruined Need For Speed Underground and has annoyed me in many other unrelated racing games. The sound is about as close to perfect as you are going to get, with every engine grunt and dump valve hiss recreating the real thing. Although it may seem like Need For Speed only caters for rock and hip hop fans in the music selection, they do add a sense of haste to your driving and EAs choice of tracks are rarely enough to alienate too many people.

It looks like Need For Speed Carbon will bring just the right balance for driving game fans and modifying junkies to get their fix. It has enough shiny new features to make it a fresh driving experience but has stayed true to its arcade-style roots to keep its NFS feel that has made the series so popular.

Finally, to give you an idea of the rides that will be on offer in Need for Speed Carbon here is the list of the confirmed cars so far:

1967 Shelby GT500
1969 Dodge Charger R/T
1970 Plymouth® Hemi® Cuda
2005 Ford GT
2006 Corvette Z06
2006 Ford Mustang GT
2005 Vauxhall Monaro VXR
1970 Chevelle SS
2005 Mercedes-Benz SL65 AMG
2004 Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren
2006 Mitsubishi Eclipse GT
1999 Mitsubishi Eclipse
1999 Nissan Skyline GT-R R34
2005 Renault Clio V6
2003 BMW M3 GTR
2006 Porsche Cayman S
2005 Nissan 350Z
2004 Lamborghini Murcielago
Audi Le Mans quattro
2004 Lotus Elise
1998 Toyota Supra
2006 Alfa Romeo Brera
2006 VW Golf R32
2005 Mercedes-Benz CLK500
2006 Chrysler® Hemi® 300C® SRT8

Previewed by Liam Bennion for AceGamez (All Rights Reserved).