Need for Speed: Most Wanted (GameCube)

First of all, the races all happen in the daytime, not all at night, so you can actually see where you are going. They have also done away with the annoying rain storm that used to happen at some point during every race. Apart from that, the graphics are much the same standard, and range from adequate to nice (the car models are very good).

The races types in this version are mainly sprint, circuit, lap knockout, speed trap and toll booth. Unfortunately they have left in the drag race from NFS Underground 2. This is a shame as the other race types are all really good and require a lot of skill to master. The drag race does require skill, but there is also some luck involved as you can't always see the traffic in time to avoid it. Fortunately you are not always forced to do the drag race to progress in the game, and they are few and far between. Circuit and sprint are standard get to the finish line first race types. Lap knockout requires you to finish ahead of the last car after each lap. The car in last position is then eliminated. This means that you must be in first position on the last lap to win. With speed trap races it is not all about winning, but you must accumulate the most speed whilst going through the various speed traps throughout the course. This usually means that you need to deploy your nitro burst at just the right time to maximise your chances of winning. Toll booth races are a straight race against the clock, making sure you get to each checkpoint in time.

You can also free roam the city as with NFS U2, but you don't have to if you just want to jump to the next race. You still have to drive to the shops though if you want to upgrade your car, but you can be guided there if you prefer.

The range of cars and upgrades are good, although the customisation seems to have been toned down compare to NFS U2.

Part of the game now involves chases with the police. The police can actually turn up when you are in the middle of a race, but usually you will end up facing them in free roam mode. Your objectives include collecting bounty. You can do this by various means including wrecking police vehicles. Dotted through the city are pursuit breakers; these are areas such as scaffolding that when driven through will cause part of a building to collapse on the pursuing police. This part of the game is fun but be warned - some chases can last a long time, (30 minutes or over), especially later in the game when you get a lot of vehicles after you. Once the police have lost sight of your car, you need to find a good hiding place and wait until they give up looking for you. Later in the game you also get helicopters as well as police cars making it much harder to hide.

Overall this is an excellent game. I would recommend if you liked any of the previous Need for Speed games, or even if you haven't played them but just like driving games. It is not realistic at all; your car is almost indestructible, but that is not really the point of NFS. It is a computer game and the most important factor is that it is fun to play. Need for Speed - Most Wanted definitely is.