Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit Review

Beyond
sports titles bolstered by exclusivity deals, there are few genres
dominated by a single developer. While studios such as Bungie or
Square-Enix have crafted some impressive games, both Halo: Reach and Final Fantasy XIII
failed to drastically outshine the competition. This isn’t the case in
arcade racing, where Guildford-based Criterion Games has been at the
forefront of the field since the release of their second Burnout
game in 2002. Combining a consistently fluid framerate,  controls as
sharp as piranha teeth, and an adrenaline-pumping sense of speed, the
series has unfailingly outclassed all opposition for the last two
console generations.

Naturally, elation overflowed when I first heard the developer was helming the next title in the long-running Need for Speed franchise.
Yet, as I followed the title’s progress, a few worries set in.  Early
reports mentioned that Criterion’s blissfully intuitive handling had
been augmented with a slight sim feel. Even more concerning was news
that the upcoming title would abandon the series’ trademark sixty
frame-per-second refresh rate- which seemed to be the basis for Burnout‘s unswervingly intuitive controls. After spending the last week with recent release Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit any worries about the title have been displaced by a vigorous and plentiful serving of full-throttle euphoria.

Abandoning
the bloated narrative of past franchise iterations, the title’s impetus
is ingeniously succinct. In the coastal state of Seacrest, an
escalating battle has erupted between thrill-thirsting racers and
heavy-handed cops. Further clarification would likely have been
detrimental in explaining the landscape’s persistently picturesque
beauty, or the reason why roads are crammed with contemptibly expensive
cars. Players are able to switch between the two conflicting factions,
building twin careers packed with competitions, time trials, and the
sporadic test-drive of an exotic sports coupe. When gamers are driving
the black and whites, they’ll tackle the game’s signature highlight-
interceptor missions which tasks Johnny Law with destroying the vehicles
of renegade racers. Here, players are encouraged to apply excessive
force as they careen into bulleting bad guys, occasionally ramming them
off elevated embankments. Conversely, fugitives persevere by evading the
ham-fisted actions of law enforcement while staying ahead of their
rivals.

As players progress they are rewarded with a liberal
amount of offensive and defense measures, new cars, challenges and
routes. From vehicle-slowing spike strips, roadblocks, electromagnetic
pulses, and radar jammers, a robust amount of equipment allows players
to screw with the opposition. Along with a specific number of tool,
Criterion has also implemented a device cool-period period, which forces
players to be careful with their deployments. As such, Hot Pursuit‘s
race and chases are filled with a sense of competition not unlike an
accomplished kart racer. To compound the sensation, the game’s AI
mirrors the growing expertise of gamers. I’ve seen renegade racers peel
off toward shortcuts or make impromptu and complex e-brake maneuvers. 
Even NPC vehicles react in different ways- realistically breaking,
swerving or occasionally creating a crash scene as they attempt to avoid
careening cars.

Whereas many games boast about the depth of their vehicular roster, Hot Pursuit wisely
focuses its efforts on developing each car’s personality. Beyond
differences in handling and appearance, the title’s proficiently penned
and  well-delivered bios endow description absent from most racers.
Criterion rarely misses an opportunity to detail the history, and
intermittently – exclusively of a car, shrewdly elevating the
proceedings. Of course, it doesn’t hurt that the game’s autos are all
fastidiously rendered, fulfilling the fancy of having Lamborghinis serve
a standard issue police cruisers. Visually, the same amount of care was
poured into the game’s environment-  which look remarkably different
based on the time of day and weather conditions. Sonically, the growls
often ten cylindered beast are perfectly realized, but players will tire
of the licensed-music soundtrack long before the title’s sensation of
gratification lapses.

Like the developer’s last effort- Burnout Paradise, Hot Pursuit
takes advantage of the connectivity of consoles, fostering constant
rivalry through its “Autolog” feature. This component shows real-time
updates of the player’s progress against their friends- tracking
records, user-created challenges and stats. An element named “Autolog
Suggests” even scans your friends list, proposing specific challenges
for players to take on. Gamers without a wide-reaching social network
are even given proposals for new pals, as not to miss out on the action.
In execution, Hot Pursuit strives to keep participants engaged-
whether through the game’s campaign or through stimulating friendly
competition between acquaintances; I found myself playing the game for
much longer than I estimated on a number of occasions.

With so many virtues, it might seem like Hot Pursuit
left me completely fulfilled. For the most part it did, although I was
left with one lingering hint of regret. As a fan of the open-ended
puzzling found in the racing junctions of Criterion’s Burnout
series, I was hoping for a similar diversion to complement the heated
antagonism. Alas, no much time sink exists- perhaps to forge a
distinction between this game and  the renowned series.