Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit 2 [GC]

If you're rich enough to own any of the lavish cars in Electronic Arts' latest racer Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit 2, just buy the game. You can afford it. Despite any of the shortcomings in this otherwise exciting racer, you'll probably be thrilled just to do these kinds of dangerous things with the car you own. However, we know most of you can barely afford car insurance (if you can even drive yet), let alone a new videogame, so there are some things to consider regarding the latest addition to the venerable Need for Speed franchise. It has all the expensive foreign cars, the huge tracks, the thrill of the chase, and everything you'd expect from EA's reliable racer. In fact, it's an arcade driving experience we recommend checking out, but if you're picky about racers, and we're sure you are, it's by no means perfect. Learn before you burn those tires, led-foots.

Features

• Hop in the seat of more than 20 of the most exotic, wanted vehicles on the planet including the Lamborghini Murcielago, Ferrari 360 Spider, Ford TS50, and even fancy cop cars
• Push the envelope and drive dangerous with an automatic or manual through traffic at speeds of nearly 200 MPH
• Branching track layouts give you several escape rounds and heart-pounding thrills as you explore shortcuts for the first time
• A variety of modes including Challenge, Hot Pursuit, Championship, Top Cop and Be The Cop
• Supports two-player split-screen racing
• Each corner could bring a surprise -- race through rain, brush fires, sun beams, dust storms and more
• Control configurations are numerous, including the unique option to shift manuals with the C-stick
• 15 pumping songs from the EA Trax library, including hits from Uncle Kracker, Bush, Rush, The Humble Brothers and others

Gameplay Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit 2 builds on the time-honored tradition of playing "cops and robbers." You come screeching hot out of the auto stables with your latest toy, and take on the attitude of total disregard for the law, as well as danger. Imagine racing along side a Porsche, Viper, Jaguar and Aston Martin in your BMW M5, taking to the twisting roads of the Mediterranean or the wrapping around highways that run through tropical settings. Meanwhile, the law -- cops, the fuzz, whatever you label them -- is after you at every turn. It's your job to outrun and outthink them with pure speed and meticulous driving skills. Choosing from over 20 different exotic, erotic, enchanting cars (which cannot be damaged, possibly due to licensing agreements), you'll find the gameplay dynamic is always a little different, ranging from trying to pull away in a bulky, to high top speed vehicle to trying to keep control in the quick, but erratic muscle cars. This mode is called Hot Pursuit, and it's the core single player experience, taking you through 33 different events.

It takes the basic concept of arcade racing, and throws in the relentless intensity of being chased down by police cars. How exactly do they stop you if you have a never-ending supply of gas, a sports car, and a led foot? These are no ordinary cops. Equipped with equally as speedy automobiles and the ability to team up, they're fully capable of bringing you to a stop. A blue meter is displayed at the top of your screen and indicates how close you are to losing them. Like a fuel tank going on empty, the police will opt to let you go out of respect for public safety and self-endangerment if you keep up the high-speed pursuit long enough. There's always another cop around a corner, though, so you're never completely free. The goal is to finish the predetermined amount of laps, like any racer. It's not just a simple chase with lights in your rear window, either. These police will use brute force to take you down. This includes ramming into your tail-end to spin you out of control, in addition to teaming up with other cop cars for road blocks. They will pull ahead in front of you, sandwich you in, and even throw down the spiked chains if need be. Fortunately, when they do get so drastic to slash your tires, you are able to intercept it over the radio, which tips you off as to where it will happen. This gives you a chance to avoid it, naturally, whether that be by shortcut or ramming through the parked police vehicles that attempt to funnel you into the tire-slicing roadway.

This mode is extremely entertaining, and the vehicles combined with the branching track designs really bring it all together. Each of the 33 high-speed events predetermines a selection of vehicles, lap count, and occasionally multi-track races. This means the CPU is at a level playing field with you, outside of the fact that it will know the track layout by heart. It's a superb racing environment, where tracks are miles and miles long -- sometimes 15 miles -- and you must find the best paths, treat your car right, fight with opponent racers that crowd the tracks, and fend off cops. Speaking of which, every car handles nicely. They all have a very heavy feel to them, so at first it feels unresponsive, but with enough practice you realize it's a taste of simulation on top of the arcade action.

That's a very important aspect to consider if Hot Pursuit 2 sounds interesting to you. You can lose control of your vehicle fairly easily, be slowed quickly by scraping against road walls, and be sent tumbling along if you hit oncoming traffic. Traffic AI is nothing special, but it will react to your path (or opponent's path) and attempt to get out of your way. If you do happen to lose it and know the competition is going to blow past you, there's always the option to resent your vehicle facing in the correct direction, but you can only do it three times per race. Overall, there's a lot going on to keep the Hot Pursuit 2 experience a cut above average racers.