Car handling seemed a little inconsistent with the
slower cars, particularly when slowing down around corners or using
the handbrake for turns. And while the handbrake is a bit unpredictable
throughout the game, it's only when you get behind the wheel of a
high-performance car, that you really start to enjoy the game. Yes,
the game can be enjoyable. There are some flashes of what made Need
for Speed Most Wanted one of the most loved games in the series
here. You can see the attempts made by the devs to try and replicate
the Most Wanted formula in Undercover. Car chases are
intense and often involve up to 10 cop cars pursuing you as choppers
circle above.
But it is when the game starts to get fun that its technical drawbacks
are most evident. The game's frame rate seldom climbs above the
low 20s, and at a time when developers are managing to lock their
games at 60 fps, this is unforgivable. During intense police chases
or races with multiple vehicles around or even when driving off-road
with dirt being kicked up, the frame rate drops even further, making
the game almost unplayable. And herein lies Need for Speed Undercover's
undoing. All the fun that the various events provide and the thrilling
sense of speed experienced when driving a high-performance exotic
is nullified by the game's technical inadequacies.
Issues such as inconsistent frame rates and frequent texture pop-in
are inexcusable considering this is the third Need for Speed
game of this generation. Visually, this is possibly the worst
Need for Speed game ever made. The cars look strictly okay;
everything else is dreadful. To add to that you will see pedestrian
cars drive through barricades, and cars fly 50 feet in the air when
hit by your speeding Lamborghini. Sound is a mixed bag as well.
While the engine sounds are brilliant, the soundtrack is less so,
especially this one Spanish love song (a bizarre choice for a racing
game soundtrack) that you will hear way too often, when it shouldn't
have been in the game at all.
Also see: Euro 2008 is enjoyable
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