If I said I was a keen follower of the Need for Speed series then you could immediately call me a liar. Since, for me anyway, Road Challenge on the original Playstation, there hasn’t been a decent NFS title since. Midnight Club showed that the arcade driving sandbox could work better than Underground and EA started to lose its way. Last year’s almost appalling Pro Street was the last straw and gave the gaming giants the wake up call the series needed.
Now we have a new developer behind the wheel in the form of Slightly Mad Studios, made up of some coders who worked on the critically acclaimed GT-R series on the PC, so at least the credentials are good. To say that this move has brought through a whole sweep of change would only begin to scratch the surface of the sheer amount of difference there now is between not just the previous games in the series, but the entire franchise itself. No more towns to aimlessly drive round to find a race with some ponce in a done up motor with a paint job resembling a baby’s bib after breakfast. Police cars are back at the precinct and public roads have been given back to the people.
This is a proper racer now, with a 38 course mix of fact and fiction, all based around the Forza mentality of tracks. Some of the real places will be instantly familiar, if not a little long in the tooth now, like Laguna Seca and the hardcore favourite of the Nurburgring. Other additions are very welcome, such as Belgium’s infamous Spa Francorchamps and a few British Touring Car icons like Brands Hatch and Donnington Park. Ambush Canyon and Tokyo Club are some of the highlights from the made up circuits, but as choices go, things are good here, with a real mix of easy to drive certainties to those tough and demanding efforts that require a good deal of knowledge before attempting.
The types of races are split into four categories. You have the standard, of course, as well as the now obligatory Time Attack, but Drifting has began to take more of a front seat with there being more chances to get the back end out here than in most other driving games I’ve come across. I’m sure the chavs and their Corsas are rejoicing at the news. The fourth and final mode is the Car Battle section, or Driver’s Duel as it’s known in the multiplayer. This allows 2 people to race against each other, one of who has a slight head start. The objective is simply to either pass your opponent and win or just stay in the lead, dependent on the viewpoint of the hunter or the hunted.
The Forza link is also felt in the tuning sections. It may well be a little more simplified, but there is still plenty for the amateur racing enthusiast to get stuck into, with almost all aspects of the car changeable once unlocked. Be prepared for a lot of effort to do this though, as in order to get stuff you have to gain stars through race wins, which not only unlocks more equipment to use, but helps you to progress through the 4 tiers of events standing between you and the NFS World Tour. As a way of taking away from the more serious side of things, there is a points meter allowing people to gain more stars by driving fairly or aggressively, depending on how you feel at the time. Personally, I feel this detracts from the direction Shift is trying to go, but like most things in life, it can be more difficult to let go of the past than people think.
It’s certainly one of the better looking titles on the grid as well. The cars have that usual EA glossy shine to them and the cockpits are all finely detailed, giving Turn 10’s upcoming racer a run for its money. The tracks are also nicely done, with the surrounding scenery given just as much of a boost as the tarmac and tyres. This is not to say there aren’t any glitches to be mentioned. Every so often, for example, you will see that rarity of the world which is a flag bearer standing slap bang in the middle of the vehicle she is trying to draw attention to. Unless she’s going to a fancy dress party in the style of a Subaru Impreza then there is clearly something wrong.
If there was one word to describe the audio side of things for Shift it would be interesting. The music is only kept to the post race scoreboards, in game menus and selection screens, with your ears being bombarded by what some would deem as cool, but for the most part just seems kind of strange. Your career is accompanied by a hard talking Brit who seems to have become a fan of the US, as some of the words he bashes out do seem to have that “have a nice day” twang to them. It’s possibly another sign that the game has been Americanised towards a mainstream audience, but it can make some people chuckle. The races are simply revving engines, squealing tyres and banging crashes. For the most part you do get some mighty fine sound hitting your ear drums, but the burning rubber seems to have become distorted in its transition and sounds more badly sampled than the rest of it, which is a bit of a shame.
Online is a pretty basic affair, with a standard versus mode for up to 8 players and the aforementioned Driver’s Duel. It’s not to say that they don’t work, but I was expecting just a little more from this, as multiplayer sections are becoming the breadwinners in gaming, as you need to have plenty to keep the customer entertained after the main event has finished and the audience have walked out, so to speak.
Up to now, it all sounds pretty good doesn’t it? The thing is though; this game fails to deliver on one of the key qualities of the driving game, in my opinion. Graphics and sound are both fine and dandy, but the handling for these high horse powered beasts is something that defies belief. I can understand how some tweaking may need to be done to allow people to get the most out of the cars they choose, but when you have to get your hands dirty with immediate effect to stop a basic motor having it’s arse stick out more than a sumo wrestler at a rave is just wrong. If you look at ANY other racing title worth it’s salt (GRID, DiRT, Forza, Gran Turismo, PGR and so on) you know that you can get stuck in without you fighting so much for control that people will think you’re attempting a hostile takeover. With a steering wheel this may not be a problem, but for all of us pad users, this could be a make or break problem, so be well advised.
Overall Shift is showing signs of improvement. It’s certainly heading Need for Speed in the right direction and I do hope this acts as a good foundation to improve the ageing series to get it back in amongst the contenders. As it stands though, the feeling is that of disappointment. I had high hopes for this after seeing all those smart pieces of video footage before release, but the handling issue has just left me a little deflated. If you do like a challenge in your driving games then there’s no harm in looking at this, but with Forza Motorsport 3 just around the corner, you can only feel that it just doesn’t have the complete package yet. Next year should be interesting though.
VideogameUK verdict: 6.5/10
