What helps the lifespan of all these modes is that the AI is not simplistic it will not follow a predetermined racing-line constantly. While this may serve the casual gamer well, the more hardcore fans will unfortunately be left crying for a bigger challenge. Once the boss race has been tackled once, you inevitably will beat it second time around. However, while these races are tougher, they are mainly tougher because you do not know the courses anywhere near as well as you come to know the city courses. While in the city you can crash or hit some traffic and recover easily, in the canyon it is very easy to scrape too many walls at hairpin turns or simply fall off the edge of the canyon these helps to serve up the somewhat harder difficulty that a boss race should contain. While the bosses may not defeat you, there is a possibility that the canyon will. This consists of a race in the current area and then a showdown in a canyon race. Win all the races in an area and then comes the boss race. The world map, that you must take control of, is broken up into areas and each area has a number of races made up of the above varieties. These various modes of racing serve to bring general diversity to the game and are all accessed through the world map. Those who are new to NFS may struggle at first with gauging throttle usage and the fact that their perfect race car has suddenly started to handle like a rampaging horse with a cowboy on its back. Those who have played the series before will find the cars twitchier than before and it takes a little time to adjust. This mode may take time for many to get used to. The track is greasy to give that extra bit of skidding ability. Those who have played the more recent NFS titles will recognise drift mode: drift round a small track, as near as the wall as possible, to rack up points. However, this mode is somewhat deceptive: if you finish first you are generally the quickest so it is really just a normal race. Speed-trap racing follows a series of markers which act as speed traps, the player needs to accumulate the fastest speeds through these points to accumulate the highest total while racing against other cars. There is also checkpoint mode, where the player has to reach checkpoints in a limited amount of time, but in many respects this is sprint racing broken up slightly. Circuit and sprint are self-explanatory it’s either laps or A-B racing. There are four standard race types to work through: these are circuit, sprint, speed-trap and drift. As mentioned above, you start from the bottom and have to work your way up to the top. However, the meat and drink of any racing game such as this is in the career mode and that is where this review will focus. There is nothing more satisfying than defeating that opponent you have been stuck on for three days by running him off the edge of the canyon. These challenges offer a range of difficulty and can be relatively entertaining. As the name suggests, players are given a series of challenges which can lead to unlocking various features within the game. There is also the option of a challenge series. It should be noted that with the unpredictable nature of racing games, much like Soccer where every match is different, the online mode certainly gives this title an extended lifespan and should be used where possible. There are of course the standard offerings of a quick race and the now customary online mode. Need for Speed Carbon offers players a number of game modes to choose from. However, when did a racing game, or any sports title in actual fact, really rely on a gripping story? Let us leave that to the RPG genre. Unfortunately, the story is as dull as it sounds in this simple summary. The aim therefore is to win races by any means necessary and get to the top by ultimately defeating the various bosses in Carbon Canyon hence the title. Typically the player starts off with no street rep, a rubbish car and is confronted by a bunch of drivers who believe that Nigel Mansell drove like your Grandma. Now for essentially the same game that is a certain bargain. Before the game itself even comes under scrutiny it is worth noting that the PC version is some £20 cheaper for UK customers and is probably reflected worldwide. But is this next instalment worth your hard-earned (or possibly laundered) money? With this review concentrating on the PC version (the PS2 review can also be found here and, unlike some websites, is actually different!) the answer would seemingly be that, yes, if you like your arcade racers this is worth a go. Like many other EA titles, the Need for Speed franchise goes through a fresh incarnation each year.
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