So Gran Turismo 5 has come and gone and, to an extent, disappointed a lot of people. Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit has been the game that has sort of come in and surprised everyone, stealing the thunder of GT5 to become, arguably, the best racing game of 2010. But what did you think of Criterion’s interpretation of EA’s lucrative driving franchise?
Personally, I’ve never been a fan of any driving games outside of F-Zero GX and Super Mario Kart but, after being forced by my brothers-in-law to play the game over the weekend, I’ve really started to enjoy it.
Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit seems to walk a delicate line quite expertly. On the one hand it’s super accessible, but never at the expense of brilliant driver feedback or control. Most ‘arcade’ racers struggle with that balance – the cars feel too similar, it’s a little too forgiving – but Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit absolutely nails it. It’s fun, in-depth, constantly rewarding and has an incredible sense of speed.
Moving away from the sub-Fast and the Furious storylines has been a wise-choice on the part of Criterion. EA must have been sweating when they first saw how stripped back and bare Hot Pursuit was, but it’s a testament to how solid the mechanics and framework of the game is, that no-one seemed to notice of care when all the filler inbetween was removed in fovour of a tight focus on racing.
But enough of my uninformed ramblings – I’m keen to hear what you guys thought of it? Let us know in the comments below.
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