Need For Speed, Need For Change

Peter, your post is an excellent review of the need For Speed 2015 game recently released. I have now played over 200 hours between Xbox and PS4 and although I do enjoy the gameplay, i feel there is so much wrong and so much missing from this game. They promised us 'Awesome' and delivered average ... like Rivals, they managed to reduce what could have been a masterpiece to a mediocre, run-of-the-mill experience. below is my second review submitted to Metacritic;

I suggest that anyone scoring this more than 6 either doesn't engage in the game completely, does not possess a competitive edge or worse still, has some alternative investment for doing so.

My first review, after a few days, looks generous; but now, almost 3 weeks on and perhaps a little over 200 hours play [shared between xbox and ps4], I'm struggling to rate it any higher than 4/10

So lets get the source of these 4 points out of the way:

It has a very acceptable choice of cars, modifications and handling dynamics [1point.] There is a good variety of events, from easy to very challenging, and in the main they are enjoyable [1 point] The vinyl editor is fiddly and limited but with patience plus creativity, you can just about achieve anything [1 point] There is the environment, themed as it is, a bit on the gloomy side, but large enough, varied enough and interesting enough [1 point]

Now, the pointless;

I will start with the glaringly obvious statement of 'This is a racing game' and, as the game and franchise reminds us, there is a 'Need For Speed.' For the casual player this is perhaps not an issue but for those of us who vigorously compete against all-comers, it is vital that the Speedwalls give us the information required and are geared up for competitive racing. This means event completion times need to, and must, go beyond minutes & seconds, we simply must have tenths & hundredths of seconds, maybe even thousandths. This level of accuracy is vital, these fractions are the difference between being first and being the first loser; the rivalry that exists in online racing is intense. The speedwall should also be available automatically & immediately after an event ends without having to wait around 10 seconds for the cinematic to return you to 'free-roam' and without having to perform 3 actions to view the updated information. The first thing a racer wants to know once they hit that finish line is 'how did I do & how does that affect my position' Perhaps every Speedwall should be 'topped' with the 'World Record' for that event?

I get so annoyed that games are released with so many flaws, bugs and glitches. When a blockbuster Movie is released it is finished and polished, it is the definitive article; not so with games it appears, and certainly not the last 2 instalments of 'Need For Speed'. If one player can find so many flaws in 2 weeks of playing you must ask yourself “how come the production teams never spotted them?” or did they? And if they did, why aren't they fixed before release? The lure of the Lira?, the must be out in time for Christmas sales? Or worst still, a two-fingers up to the customers and an acceptance of this is as good as it gets .. warts an all.

We have 'route-tracks' to lead us through the events but many are very poorly placed, follow them at your peril. There are checkpoints in absurd places, some of which, if you drive a 'racing-line' you will miss completely and effectively your race is over. There are 'invisible hazards on race tracks that either stop you dead, make you crash or launch you like a missile into the air. The starts to events are awful, as you come out of the cinematic, you can be face to face with a truck or even facing in the wrong direction. The 'multiplayer' [again, just like in Rivals] is totally impractical and can only be achieved with careful planning and an absurd routine. It's sad that games such as GTA V can handle all of these issues flawlessly and yet, a much more dedicated racing franchise fails miserable on all points.

A car racing game with no steering-wheel support, no manual gears and unbelievably, no car horn [which was about the only one sure way to attract the attention of your fellow lobby players]

Of course I'm nit-picking, I paid plenty of money for an over-hyped average game with AI cars that attack you on every turn, trucks with 5-watt tail lights that are set like traps for you to impact into at 370km/h and cars suddenly spawning right in front of you as you hurtle down the freeway or canyon winds. 'Collectibles' that are lame, tame and pointless [literally], sweeping blue-light flashes that constantly blind you as you approach that right-hander at great speed [where one of them trucks will be waiting] off course this is all more noticeable once you have passed the cinematic story and the constant phone calls and messages and have entered the realm of racing against your peers.

How about a little more customisation on all cars, some offer very little indeed. In the vinyl editor, give us some manufacturers decals and badges, a few different fonts and a more precise control over placement. Those garages! Why cant we drive through them and have our damaged cars made good, like we did in Most Wanted or Rivals. Why is there no 'photo-mode', we love taking photos of our custom rides.

Finally, I ask myself this question “ are the developers, producers, EA Games, Ghost Games, all happy with the work they have done on this game. Are they satisfied that they have produced the best they could but more importantly, how can they not see the issues or faults that I do?”

Every single time we hear the same proclamation ”we listen to you, the players” .. okay, listening is fine but do us a favour, take what you hear, learn from your mistakes, scour the best things from other titles, take the advice from the experts and make the next one awesome .. it may be your final opportunity.