Can a game make sounds other than what’s included on the disc?
Yes. It’s this: suck.
DO: You are an undercover cop looking to bring down all sorts of really unspecified “crimes” of street racers.
TYPE: Open world racer
PLATFORM: Pretty much everything (PS3 reviewed here)
PRICE: $60 (360 and PS3)
MEAT: You’re an undercover cop-street racer who can break the law in order to keep it. Basically it’s done by driving around in an open world that is pointless because it offers nothing in extra game play other than cop chases (which are good for some laughs). If you need to do a race, you just bring up the map and select it. (This game actually does a good job of validating Criterion’s decision to leave the races of Burnout Paradise truly open. Actually, it does a good job of validating a lot of Burnout Paradise. OK, all of it.) The graphics are well below the norm of current generation systems. A caveat: it’s 720p only. You have an HDTV that doesn’t support it, say 1080p or 1080i only, it scales the graphics down to 480p. the result is that games on the PS2 look better. It’s so bad, that you can barely read the text on screen. Oh, did I mention that the game almost comes to a stop when a pack of cars are in front of you. Fortunately, the game is easy. Super easy. You’ll win almost every event–every time. We ended up just driving around trying to set off the cops for chases. It’s was good for some laughs. There is a camera option, but no kudos for the PS3. Save the images to the hard drive? No. They go to EA’s website. Of course, even some of the images you take are out of proportion. Oh, and the cops are crazy…
PERKS: a good selection of cars; it’s over quick; fun for laughs
SCREAMS: to not get that good selection of cars so fast; to have built upon another EA game’s experience with open-world driving; to be made for the standard, accepted resolutions of HD (hint: there are only 2-3. Hitting the odd one doesn’t cut it. Maybe both?); to have an actual, procedural plot; to not, uh…suck
VERDICT: Pass. Come on down to Paradise City. It’s cheaper and better. Don’t even give this a rent. Having not played a Need for Speed game before this did not convince me to try others. I’m glad this game cost me nothing. I am ashamed.
I’d post my gamer card to show I finished the game, but you know, Sony is cutting edge with their stuff right now. Also, has anyone else noticed a trend with the PS3 side of multi-platform games being full of problems?
