Developer: Criterion Games
Publisher: EA Games
Platform: PS4, Switch, PC, Xbox One
Tested On: PC
Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit Remastered – Review
It really seems that it has become a staple in the gaming industry to bring out remastered versions of old classics, ranging from Tony Hawks to the Spyro and Crash Bandicoot games, now even to the Need for Speed franchise. When the whole world is really waiting on an NFS Underground remake (what we sort of have gotten with NFS Heat), it was a special treat to receive something like the remastered version of Hot Pursuit. Upon starting the game, it gave us a serious nostalgia trip, as these games made the Need for Speed genre pretty well-known for how modern they were during their original release period. It is only to wonder, did Criterion Games make the perfect remaster, or did they ruin that perfect picture of the past?
Story
The story of NFS plays out in two ways; you can either be the street racer making his way up the wanted list or the police officer that wants to become the most feared cop on the streets. Both campaigns play out the same and even the vehicle selection is easily comparable. On both occasions, you must rise to level 20 and you have the free choice of what side to play on and then feel free to alternate between cop and racer or just blast out one story at a time. There is some small information bundling the stories, but don’t expect large plots or character development.
Graphics
The visuals of Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit Remastered are amazing. The graphics look awesome and races are colorful thanks to the sunny tracks that you get to race on. If you manage to park your car up a wall, you will notice that the damage is both realistic and nicely done but don’t expect a damage model like in a sim racer though. One thing that is really infuriating is the way that the menus are designed. They are made exceptionally pretty thanks to the added animations, but that means that even on a heavy system it is really taxing. This will finally result in slowing down the navigation through the menus, as well as even making them quite choppy and laggy.
Sound
One thing that these remasters really get right is the soundtrack. The music mixes in the classic songs from then with a few new modern ones that really fit the setting. You will have great music blasting through your speakers while evading the cops or trying to take down the suspects. Next to the great music, you will also have nicely voiced characters and vehicles that sound their part. Expect squealing tires and exhaust pops while power-sliding through a police roadblock.
Gameplay
Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit Remastered is an arcade racing game where you must rise to the top of street racers and/or the police force. The main story is split into two sections, one is street racing against other racers while evading the police and the other is you as a cop chasing down street racers that are breaking the law. You are free to alternate between both stories of complete one at a time. It is fun to switch between the two and to make it progress evenly, as you will unlock better cars later on, but that is completely up to the player to decide.
Basically, the idea is the same for both careers as you must reach the highest rank, which is level 20. You can do so by completing missions, unlocking better vehicles and breaking records. As a street racer, you will have to rely on your skills, while as a cop you can call in backup or roadblocks to stop opponents in their paths. One thing that you will notice quite early on is that the A.I. can be really quirky from time to time. Sometimes they will randomly crash into cars or the walls, as a racer this will make your life easier, but as a cop, this will mean that you have to decide on who to catch first.
The game comes with a really large car roster, around 70 streetcars and 50 police versions. While you will find many of the same vehicles in both sections, each of them does have unique cars for its respective storyline as well. The large car collection can be really fun to experiment with to decide what vehicle you like the most, but actually handling them feels more or less the same. If you have ever played the older Outrun games, especially Coast 2 Coast, the driving (or more the drifting) feels exactly the same. This will make that getting around the corners feels absolutely great, but does make the game handle incredible arcade-like.
Talking about controls, driving feels good and handles really well. This is something that the older racing games had issues with due to engine limitations at the time. Navigating through menus is pleasant but due to them being sophisticated and taxing on the system, the whole experience feels horrible slow.
Conclusion
The remake of one of the more known older Need for Speed games did turn out nearly perfect. While the driving might feel a bit ‘over the top’ if you’re expecting something realistic, it does handle nicely and responds immediately. The elaborate career mode where you can combine both paths, one being the street racer, the other being the police officer, makes for many hours of gameplay. The great licensed soundtrack will take you back a few decades and a large car roster means that there’s something for everyone to enjoy. Graphically the game looks great and plays smoothly, the only offense here are the menus that are overly done which makes them unnecessary slow.
Related Items
1 Comment
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.
[…] make a game they try to give it a fitting name to shortly explain what it is all about. Games like Need for Speed will have something to do with racing while Mafia will be centered around crime. In Hell is Others […]