[MrAdams]

Originally Posted by ruffstik

Geat game....I'm playing on a 52" Sony xbr3 and I'm running full 7.1 surround sound. I moved a chair up in front of the TV and holy shit.....that was bas ass!

played for a couple hours last night. its got some bumper car action going on but not too bad

[endofanera7]

liking the great reviews....fuking amazon ship my shit already!

[SpacE82]

I'm getting it now after all these reviews! IGN and Team XBOX gave it great reviews too. They talked a lot about the in car views and said thats the way the game should be played. Anyone played in the in car views? Are they as good as they are supposed to be?

[darkphantom]

on PC it looks stunning, but no more G25...so waiting for the 360.... which should be within the next two hours

[ruffstik]

Originally Posted by SpacE82

I'm getting it now after all these reviews! IGN and Team XBOX gave it great reviews too. They talked a lot about the in car views and said thats the way the game should be played. Anyone played in the in car views? Are they as good as they are supposed to be?

In car view is the way to play it...looks really cool when you get going really fast and you get this whole tunnel vision effect....or when you crash head on into the wall like I do and everything blurs out like you just got a concussion.

[CollinsE90]

Originally Posted by ruffstik

In car view is the way to play it...looks really cool when you get going really fast and you get this whole tunnel vision effect....or when you crash head on into the wall like I do and everything blurs out like you just got a concussion.

man yall beat me to it, im playing it right now BMW reps hard in the game. although the prices are a bit fucked up on the game...225,000 for a gt-r, and 500,000 for the new lambo which is 1.75 million. and the e35 m3 at 50k??!!!! and the e92 m3 at like 80k?

just dropped 140k after mods on my e92 ///M, 700hp!

[NFS]

I was playing this on PC last night. The in car modelling and inertia effects are brilliant.

Just started though and bought a 135i coupe

[Hula-Hula]

Wow this game is freakin' awesome! My 135i is PIMPIN!

[xtac]

does it play in 1080 or 720 ps3
thinking about picking it up, but i like the midnight club/ underground racing games better

[Judge]

Is anybody bothered by the tier system ranking?

These are organised into four tiers and you start the game by purchasing a Tier 1 car from a selection of potentially affordable models including a BMW 135i, Ford Escort RS Cosworth, Honda S2000, Mazda MX-5, Nissan Skyline 2000GT-R (C10), Toyota AE86 or VW Golf GTi. As you play the game you unlock further tiers, moving on to higher performance vehicles in Tier 2 like an Audi RS4, BMW M3, Chevrolet Camaro SS, Mazda RX-7, Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IX (or X), Nissan Silvia Spec-R (S15), Nissan Skyline GT-R (R34), Porsche 911 GT3 RS and Subaru Impreza WRX STi. In Tier 3 you get supercars including an Aston Martin DB9, Chevrolet Corvette Z06, Dodge Viper SRT10, Ford GT and Nissan GT-R Spec-V (R35), then Tier 4 takes you into hypercar dreamland territory with the Aston Martin DB9R, Bugatti Veyron 16.4, Koenigsegnigggseginiggggsegg CCX, Lamborghini Reventon, Maserati MC12 GT1, McLaren F1, Pagani Zonda R and Porsche Carrera GT.

http://www.gameplanet.co.nz/playstat...r-Speed-SHIFT/

[darkphantom]

ok, I have to say while the game looks amazing on PC, it is not without its flaws...

randomly seeing grass floating and the hood has some nasty fuzzies when you paint it black on a white car...

[lebreeze]

Not sure if you guys have it or not but, the force feedback race wheel for the 360 is out of control. Its the best thing everrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr. Best mod ever. Its my first track day with my M3 in my bedroom

[Year's_End]

My straight up honest review of NFS:S after playing it for about five hours.

Ok, this game is sweet, but it sure as shit isn't without its faults. I bought it after reading this thread and checking out some pretty positive reviews and gameplay vids. This review is based on the 360 version. I used a controller, not a wheel.

The Good:

The graphics are amazing. Lighting is good, environments are rich, and the interiors are some of the best I've seen in a racing game. The cars are modeled pretty damn well, with very few jaggy/blocky surfaces. I like the lighting elements during dawn and dusk races. They did a good job with headlight projections.

The sound is great. The engine noises stomp Forza/GT, and tire squeal isn't repetitive or generic; It's quite varied depending upon the surface, oversteer/understeer, etc. Unfortunately, the music in the game is too loud, too in your face, and just straight up annoying some of the time.

Also, no racing sim (if you wish to call this one) has emulated the rush and feel of speed as well as this game. Scenery blurs, the cars shake and bounce, and you get this awesome tunnel vision effect. It's really cool, and it makes driving fast actually interesting for a change. In comparison, going 150+ in Forza is a snore (the same can be said for GT). Combined with the unusually violent but oh-so-awesome sound effects, and you have a game that's really fun to play (most of the time).

The Bad:

Ok, we know the game looks good and sounds visceral, but does it PLAY well? Yes, and no.

The handling is a mixed bag. It's definitely NOT A SIM. Picture Project Gotham trying to be a little more like Forza or GT. The physics models are simply fucked UP at times. Don't expect a car to handle how it should. There's a learning curve. The game tends to reward driving styles that lean towards oversteer. You have to be aggressive. You have to rethink how cars handle. I can't tell you how pissed I've been at certain points where things should have been different. I upset my M3 on a chicane on the 'Ring, and the car would NOT settle down for the next goddamn five seconds. Don't countersteer, just let go of the joystick, that seems to work. It doesn't make sense, just remember that.

It gets frustrating...like I wanna break my controller kind of frustrating...

The AI is a large reason for the fuck-this-shit moments. I don't know WHAT the developers were thinking...these are some broke-ass CPU drivers. They do NOT know about proper racing etiquette. They will gladly ram your ass off the road if you're obstructing their racing line. They'll slow down if you fall behind though, and they'll go beyond what should be the limits of their cars if they're behind you. It's the goddamn rubberband style gameplay that I hate. I don't give a shit if it makes races more "interesting". It breaks the gameplay and it ultimately means it doesn't matter how you drive for the first half of the races.

Another thing...you are not punished in any way whatsoever for ramming opponents. Feel free to pit-maneuver your rival in a duel match. It's a guaranteed win. Better yet, try flipping the dude. It doesn't matter, you get awarded for being "aggressive".

Back to the handling. It takes TONS of tweaking in the menu to get the steering to be remotely acceptable. Decrease the deadzone and the cars will actually respond when they're supposed to. This is mandatory if you're the kind of guy who plays racing games smoothly, none of that tapping shit.

The customization is neat, but the vinyl system is broken. It's a less than mediocre attempt at copying Forza's. The camera sucks, the scaling system inverts at the wrong times, there's a lack of good vinyls, and it takes forever to scroll through the menus. It was painful to do the vinyl job on my 135i and E92 M3.

The modding is pretty sweet though. Everything is generic, like "Increased boost" or "Stage 1 Engine Tune" or whatever, but it works and it adds some depth to the game. The visual mods are actually impressive, despite the lack of choice. I love the fact that I could get a Vorsteiner trunk lid, Ericsson side skirts and some cool looking front lip for my M3. That shit is cool.

There isn't a large selection of cars, which is a shame. They have a good selection of popular performance cars (and old iconic ones too), but not much more.

Anyways, overall, I'd give the game an 7.5-8 out of 10. It's good, but there are a number of flaws that will just ANNOY you at times.

+Graphics
+Sound
+Interior views
+Customization
+Adjustable control settings
-Broke ass AI
-Broken physics
-Rewards dirty driving
-Lack of cars
-Rubberband style gameplay

FYI: I changed my settings to make it as realistic as possible.

Difficulty: Normal
Handling: Realistic
Traction Control: Off
Stability Control: Off
ABS: On
Transmission: Manual

Oh, and the "best line" is almost never the actual best line. It's more of a guide, but you get rewarded for sticking to that line, despite you being slower and all.

[- Paul -]

Nice balanced review Nikka - thanks.

[c0nstant]

Originally Posted by - Paul -

Nice balanced review Nikka - thanks.

lmao

[xtac]

Nikka did you use a wheel or joystick, which console or pc

[Year's_End]

360 + gamepad

[darkphantom]

dude the PC version sucks balls trying to race with a keyboard...joystick isn't any better....

Yes, it did bring me back to the old days of NFS...but the handling is shit...could have been better.

Atleast it wasn't like pro-street ...that was total garbage

[Greatest335I]

Originally Posted by darkphantom

dude the PC version sucks balls trying to race with a keyboard...joystick isn't any better....

Yes, it did bring me back to the old days of NFS...but the handling is shit...could have been better.

Atleast it wasn't like pro-street ...that was total garbage

ya of cz handling sucks bc you on your PC with keyBOARD LLOL

[taliesen]

I agree with almost everything Nikka said, and have a couple of more things to add.

The precision/aggression ranking setup is a nice concept - but in the end it's still lacking. If you are leading someone and brake for a corner, you get aggression points for 'blocking' (and are likely to get more aggression points for trading paint when the shit AI rams you or flys past you on the inside and runs you off the road). By the same token, drafting/slipstreaming is always considered as aggressive driving. Clean drafting should be precision points - save the aggression points for bump drafting.

Maybe they should have done a four way ranking - clean/dirty tactics, and precision/aggression style.

My ratio so far is something like 8 to 1 for precision over aggression - but it would be an even bigger ratio if I didn't get slapped with aggression points due to the AI's tactics.

[.:bHd:.]

Anyone have this game on a pc with a wheel? My wheel is so unresponsive. I got annoyed with it and don't even wanna play it. The force feedback doesn't work at all either. I have a driving force pro if that helps.

[Year's_End]

Originally Posted by taliesen

I agree with almost everything Nikka said, and have a couple of more things to add.

The precision/aggression ranking setup is a nice concept - but in the end it's still lacking. If you are leading someone and brake for a corner, you get aggression points for 'blocking' (and are likely to get more aggression points for trading paint when the shit AI rams you or flys past you on the inside and runs you off the road). By the same token, drafting/slipstreaming is always considered as aggressive driving. Clean drafting should be precision points - save the aggression points for bump drafting.

Maybe they should have done a four way ranking - clean/dirty tactics, and precision/aggression style.

My ratio so far is something like 8 to 1 for precision over aggression - but it would be an even bigger ratio if I didn't get slapped with aggression points due to the AI's tactics.

I agree. It doesn't make sense at times. I'd say my precision/aggression ratio is somewhere around 10:1.

I found out what really breaks the handling physics in this game: Steep upward gradients. They will annoy the hell out of you, or at least they do for me. I guess the developers were trying to follow the exaggerated-everything theme too closely, because if you drive any car with even a moderately stiff suspension on a rising slope, the car will compress, skid, bounce, basically do everything but keep its composure and go where it's supposed to.

I don't know how they don't catch these things. Tracks like the Nurburgring (and this one course in desert-esque settings with tons of vertical fluctuations and small-radius turns) are broken at times when you get to these upward slopes. You have to back off of the throttle and just let go of the joystick and the car will sort of just figure itself out, hopefully. It shouldn't be like that.