Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit
Posted by: Mick on 2011-03-09 20:58:00I just received the last of the trophies for Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit, so I thought I'd share some of my thoughts. It's a great game, one of the best arcade racers I've played for a while. The single player can be challenging at times, but it's nowhere near as difficult as Wipeout.
There's a bit of rubber-banding. I swear I saw a rival racer crash and get flown over the railing only to reappear at my side a few seconds later while I was driving at top speed. I understand when the cops get an advantage keeping up with you. The whole point of those game modes are that the cops are applying constant pressure to you. However, when it happens at the end of a ten minute race it makes you want to throw your controller.
Multiplayer is very fun and I haven't been having any trouble getting into games. The muliplayer modes mirror the most enjoyable single player events and it's done very well. EA has released an add-on pack with two new modes recently. They added "Arms Race" which is just a race with weapons available and "Most Wanted". Most Wanted is some of the best multiplayer gaming I've ever experienced. One racer is marked as "Most Wanted", the cops need to bust him and the other racers need to protect him. The key to this mode is that it's completely open, no routes are blocked. When it's played well the racers will tie up the cops while the Most Wanted will try giving them the slip. When people work together it's very fun, even when they don't it turns into a ramming fest, which is still fun. EA has really nailed multiplayer on this game.
Overall, Hot Pursuit is a very entertaining title. I definitely recommend it to anyone with any interest in arcade racers. However, most of the DLC is over-priced. The two most recent packs include 3 new cars and 10 new single player events for a whopping $7. If I had my time back I would have passed on those. However, if you're enjoying the multiplayer you should consider getting the Armed and Dangerous pack which contains the extra multiplayer modes.