In hot pursuit of the smash release Burnout 2 comes another speedy racer. But do you really need it?

If you're a racing fan then the answer is most definitely yes! Need for Speed is a racing game that takes the road racing genre that's become so popular lately and produces a distinctive mix of enjoyable races, cars and locations. It's an arcade racer through and through and one that grows on you the more you play it.

Initially I wasn't that impressed - although it looks very nice, there was something lacking in the speed of the action, it didn't really seem fast or exciting enough. However, this was because I prefer the third person view where you can see the car you're driving. Admittedly, from this view things don't seem that exciting. However, switch to driver view and all of a sudden it's almost like you're playing a different game. Now you're low to the ground and everything flashes past at high speed - that's more like it! Having discovered this, I started to enjoy things a lot more and began to get to grips with the handling. There are 49 cars available in total on this game and every major sports car is represented from all the leading names including Porsche, Ferrari, Jaguar, BMW and many more. All of the cars are highly detailed, the reflection of light is excellent and best of all you can smash them up to your heart's content! As you smash into barriers, rocks, trees and vehicles, the car becomes gradually more trashed, with dented and scraped bodywork, smashed windows and eventually the engine and exhausts begin smoking. Each car handles differently and although this isn't hugely noticeable, it does make a difference to high speed cornering and handbrake turns.

Need for Speed competes admirably with Burnout 2 in terms of graphics - the scenery of every location is colourful, varied, interesting and very realistic. The skies in particular are stunning, with a few clouds making patterns and the sun shining brightly in your eyes. In fact the way it lights up the scenery at dawn and sunset is really impressive. Locations include coastal paradise routes, forest roads and the awesome mountains of the Australian outback. The autumn woodland levels are particularly impressive with all of the trees a blaze of colour and leaves flying up from the ground in the wake of the car racing in front of you. The sound effects are excellent; a range of distinctive engine noises are in place and the crashing sounds are just right. The music is a bit of a let down - a series of rock tunes and only four techno ones. For those of you that find rock/heavy metal really grates (that's me by the way) your choice is severely limited - luckily the four techno tunes are excellent. To the game's credit you can use the jukebox to switch tunes on or off and instead of looping the same track during a race, when one finishes another is selected. It's a great system, let down by the lack of range.

There are two main modes available - World Racing and Hot Pursuit. In World Racing you race against 4+ other drivers along roads with very little traffic, in Hot Pursuit you do the same but there are police cars that chase you. Each has a Quick Race option that throws you straight into a race without any menu selection and each has a Challenge option where you can have 1 or 2 players competing against other racers and police. The main racing Championship consists of no less than 30 events, but rather than having to plod through each one in turn, they're set out on an event tree so winning one event unlocks a couple more. This way you can pick and choose which events you'd like to play and each one states the type of challenge and the reward you get for winning it (unlocking a new vehicle or track for Challenge mode).

There's a great range of challenges to keep things fresh too. There are straight races where the first to complete the laps wins, then there are knockout races where at the end of each race or lap the last racer is eliminated until the winner is left. There are time attack races where it's just you against the clock or challenges where all competitors are in the same model of car. The locations are reused somewhat in the early races, but there are 30 tracks in total to explore.

Hot Pursuit features a similar championship called Ultimate Racer. This features another 30 events in a similar tree that allows you to unlock loads more vehicles and tracks. As well as the races, knockouts, time attacks and challenges, there are delivery and pursuit challenges. Delivery is similar to time attack, you must deliver the car within a set time limit but pursuit casts you as the police and you must stop a number of racing cars within a tight time limit. This is achieved by ramming the cars and pushing them into the roadside until they grind to a halt and are trapped. You can also call in the use of helicopters and road blocks, which come in very handy on the tougher levels. All of this is well presented with various high score tables and a highly enthusiastic voice that tells you if you break a record or win an event. The level and track designs are some of the best I've seen for a while, not only do they make for exciting and challenging races, but they are littered with big detours and short cuts for the observant driver. Going off-road often allows you to avoid police and cut out sharp corners that slow you down. Whilst some are only brief, others such as the abandoned mine in the outback allow you to gain a serious advantage. Some of the computer-controlled racers know these routes, so following them can help you discover them. This adds an extra strategic element to the racing and it's always very satisfying when you discover a new handy short-cut!

The intelligence and skill of the other racers is pitched just right, they are good drivers but will make mistakes and crash if you shunt them into the wall or crash into other vehicles. Through using the brakes and handbrake to take a good line and maintain speed you can keep ahead of them. The racing nature of the game makes high-speed collisions with cars and scenery quite forgiving, they don't slow you down too much and you scrape along until you regain control, but excessive use of the handbrake can result in spinning out of control. What is remarkable is the intelligence of the police, they are very good drivers, persistent and intelligent, but not infallible, so ramming them off the road or into a vehicle will sometimes damage them too much to continue pursuit. If they fail to catch you, they will bring in a helicopter and set up roadblocks that are great fun to dodge or smash through at high speed! The voiceover of the police radio is intelligent and varied, giving you an idea of what's going on and there's a handy map that allows you to navigate your way around the course as well as keep an eye of the location of police cars, other racers and roadblocks. The police will chase all the racers and often slow down your opponents enough for you to speed past and leave them to their struggle! It's all very well put together.

Finally, there are Zone and Jump Cams that really add to the action. Jump Cams automatically kick in when you get into the air and show a slow-motion shot of your jump in action. This blends seamlessly with the action and is an incentive to get high jumps. Also, you can use the Zone Cams to capture impressive moments of the game. Did you just ram an oncoming vehicle and send it flying? Then hit the Zone Cam button and the camera zooms out of your care and spins around 360 degrees in a Matrix style freeze frame of the action. This happens automatically when you ram roadblocks. There is also a cam that previews the track ahead, sending a fireball along the road at great speed allowing you to see what's coming and the best driving line for that section - all this is done in great style and pauses the racing action. The replay feature is also excellent, offering you the chance to jump back and forth by half a lap, pause the action, slow it to half speed and choose from a variety of views. You can also switch between the two human players when replaying a two-player race. The only bad things about this game are the slight lack of speed in overhead camera view and the lack of variety in the music.

Need For Speed: Hot Pursuit 2 is a high-speed rollercoaster ride of fun and entertainment, with luscious scenery, almost 50 sports cars to try, loads of events and challenges to perform and the added bonus of intelligent police that hound you in some of the races. It'll give you all the speed you need, and then some!

Reviewed by Geoff Holland for AceGamez (All Rights Reserved).