Need for Speed: Underground 2 Review

In addition to the sad voice acting, some of the race tracks feel too generic at times and could've used niftier features and shortcuts to spice them up. Granted, the situation is much better now because of the way the game plays, and the tracks are still a lot more diverse than in the original, but they are far from perfect. In the grand scheme of things, however, I could've easily omitted this remark, as it doesn't really take away from the game's addictive qualities and the sheer fun you get from playing it.

Finally, NFSU2 looks great, with fantastic race car models, dynamic lighting and very believable real-time weather effects. Though some of the details in the scenery are distinctively low-poly (like the regular street traffic), the designers have used very clever tricks to make sure that the stuff that's in your focus while you race looks downright beautiful.

What's even better is the awesome soundtrack; a great selection of hard rock and hip-hop tunes take the game's feel to new heights and reinvent the term 'intense arcade racing'. Simply put, NFSU2 offers a HUGE adrenaline rush for the player; the biggest adrenaline rush I've ever had while playing a racing game.

For what they're supposed to do in an arcade racer, in game physics are in my humble opinion, fine-tuned to perfection: they don't feel constrictive, they're certainly outrageous but still feel natural enough while you drive. Again, a true damage model is missing, but by now, I'm already used to this in NFS games. I don't know why that is though; it's probably because a more elaborate damage model would put too much strain on your CPU; what will all the other calculations that are going on on-screen. The AI is aggressive and quite challenging, and races get tougher as you progresses further into the game. Of course, if the challenges become too easy for you, you can always connect to one of the game servers and enjoy some online competition. Certainly, this adds a lot to the game's replay value.

With all its visual bells and whistles, the game ran very smoothly on my AMD 64 3400+/GeForce 6800 Ultra rig with all the graphics settings maxed out and with FSAA turned on. I haven't tried it on a lower-end system, but judging by how it works with all the settings maxed out, I'd say it should run smoothly even on mid-level rigs.

I wholeheartedly recommend NFSU 2 to arcade racing fans the world over. Ultimately, it all comes down to how much fun you've had with the game and if it was addictive enough to make you lose sleep over it. Need for Speed Underground 2 checks out in both these categories; it's simply a fantastic sequel to an already good game. I wonder what got into EA, I kind of like thinking about cows while I'm playing their games. Now I don't know if this is a good thing or a bad thing anymore. Well, I can always load up FIFA 2005 if I want images of milked cows to pop into my head.