Need For Speed Undercover (Wii) Review

Posted by Gregory McDougal on 02.07.2009

Can this game entice newcomers to enjoy the speed, or should it just remain undercover?



Title: Need For Speed Undercover
Developer: Black Box
Publisher: Electronic Arts
Genre: Racing
Players: 1-4 Players
Also available on Xbox 360 and Playstation 3


Ever since the mid 90’s, if you wanted a game that involved nice cars, speed and police chases, players did not need to look any further than the “Need for Speed” series. For many, this is considered one of the most venerable series to grace home consoles. A lot of gear heads love the idea of customizing their cars to add nitro, rims, vinyl and more. I however, was not one of those people. Do not get me wrong; when I played the first “Need for Speed” on the original Playstation, I thought it was interesting. However, I have not played the games following that. I was more of a “Burnout” person, who is more interested in crashing my cars than “pimping” them out.

In 2005, EA brought the franchise to next-gen with “Need for Speed: Most Wanted,” on the Xbox 360. From what I have seen and read, the only things added to the game were the inclusion of hot women and FMV (Full Motion Video) sequences. For those unfamiliar with FMV, this is when developers decide to use real people in their cutscenes as opposed to CG (Computer Generated). Back then; the acting was horrendous in FMVs (“Resident Evil”). Now it is only a tad better, although not many companies use them anymore. Two more games in the series followed. Now, EA has released the latest entitled “Need for Speed: Undercover,” for the Nintendo Wii. As stated before, I am not a fan of the series, however, I decided to give this one a shot for two reasons: it must be reviewed and Maggie Q is in the game. Has this game enticed me to want to hop on the bandwagon? Nope, but it is not that bad either.


Gameplay:

When it comes to porting games over to the Wii, one of two things will happen. Either the controls make the game more interesting than it would have been on any other console, or it is just an outright terrible port. This game happens to fall in the category of the former. You move the controller like an actual steering wheel. For added effect, it seems more fun if you attach the controller to the Wii steering wheel (the one that came with “Mario Kart”). There are various modes throughout the game. From your traditional “Quick Races” to the “Challenge Series,” this has players racing against tough opponents, granting them more challenging races if you are successful. I honestly did not play these modes more than once, as they are not appealing.

The mode that you will “invest” most of your time with in the game is “Career Mode.” It is the story mode where you purchase new cars, unlock new tracks, while modifying your existing cars. There is a map within this mode that will display your rank, as well as the number of missions that are needed to be complete before you unlock the next part of the story. This so called story has your character (who you never see) going undercover (pun intended) to infiltrate an illegal underground racing circuit. At least that’s what I think is going on as the so-so acting barely kept my interest. In fact, unless you want to see the lovely Maggie Q (like me), you can skip the cutscenes. She didn’t need to do this game. Along the way you will take various missions. It can range from a standard race to escaping from the cops to “lap knockout.” This is actually my favorite race, which eliminates the person in last place at the end of each lap.

Earlier, I mentioned your rank, which is needed to complete the story. It earns you respect in the undergound circuit. There is a downside to this. As your rank increases, so will your heat level. The higher your level, the more cops are on the lookout for you. It will come to a point where even the helicopters will come in after you. It is reminiscent of "Grand Theft Auto," albeit to a lesser extent. The amount of cops on your tail can be rediculous at times. It comes to a point where you will have to find shortcuts to shortcuts in order to loose them.

The best challenge in the entire game to me is "Bounty." This is the mode where you have to rack up as much collateral damage as you can before the timer runs out. Your quota is on the top righthand side of the screen and your damage has to equate that. Sound familiar. What's interesting about this mode is if you do enough damage and the cops catch wind of you, it now becomes a new priority to not only meet your quota, but escape the watchful eye of johnny law as well.

Also, whenever you are finished with an event, you can cruise the city to your liking. That's right, the latest installment has a "Free Roam" mode within its "Career Mode." This allows you to explore the city to uncover hidden events and new races. It is not a bad touch, but honestly this doesn't work for this type of game. It seems too much of a hindrance, especially when you are given the option of pressing the start button and going strait to the next race. Most of the places I want to go to end up being on the opposite end of the map, which doesn't give me the incentive to want to explore what the city has to offer. Also, pressing start will take you to the overall map where you can select the next event you want to partake in. Speaking of map, you can also access your safe house from here as well. This is the place you need to go in order to customize your existing cars, purchase new ones and increase your vehicle's performance. These great enhancements cost money and you earn it by completing events. The player can also scrap their existing car if it is not to their liking. FYI, you need to purchase nitro for your car ASAP. Because I am relatively new to the series, I was under the assumption that it came installed within the cars automatically. Boy was I in for a rude awakening five races in.

There are some issues with this game. As fun as the Wii controls can be, there are moments when they are imprecise. There were times I drove into walls and railings on the opposite side of the street and all I did was barely turn the controller so I could make a smooth turn. For example, there is mode in entitled "Tollbooth," which has players racing to reach the various checkpoints before time runs out. The imprecise turns as I was racing to beat the clock cost me many a victory (even with the nitro). Also, what is with the A.I? It seems like a race will either be too easy or frustrating. There is no way a cop should be able to catch up with you if you are using your nitro, regardless or your heat level. If I am on the run, the minute I activate my nitrous, the cops should be an after thought.




The cops are always on ya


Graphics:

This game is nothing to write home about. I guess this is to be expected because the Wii is not the powerhouse like Microsoft and Sony’s respectable behemoths. It looks passable as a Playstation 2 port. I am tired of Wii ports getting half-assed graphical treatments when games like “Super Mario Galaxy” and “Metroid Prime 3” prove the system can pump out nice looking games. Also, what’s with cars not showing the amount of damage I have put into them. One mission that requires you to keep the car in good condition has a damage meter at the top of the screen. One time, the meter was halfway gone and the car looked as if I only nudged another car, when in reality I crashed into two cars and hit the side of a building. Also, this game has some serious clipping issues. Long story short, putting this game on an HDTV will not help at all.






Sound:

What I wouldn’t do for the custom soundtrack feature from my 360. As I am racing, I listen to my ipod and concentrate on winning. There are some catchy tunes, but overall no one would fault you for hitting the mute button. The in game audio is good at times as car engines and nitro sounds are accurate, while the collisions sound a bit lame. When I hit something, I don’t get that sense of damage like I did with “Burnout Revenge.” The acting is almost laughable. The characters are trying to be tougher than what is needed of them. Come on people, it is a T rated game, lighten up.



Lasting Appeal:

When you are done with the single-player “Career Mode,” there are multiplayer modes, in which you and three friends can take on a few challenges. One is the “Cops and Robbers” event, which has the robbers pick up stolen cash and deliver it to drop off points, while being chased down by the fuzz. Then there is a mode entitled "Heist." This has players grabbing loot in order to take it back to the safe house and the first one to reach $50k wins. Honestly, there is not much incentive for me to go back to this game once the single player is done. That's even if you decide to complete the "Career Mode," because as you get further in, the challenges become redundant. The mode is not bad by any stretch, however, you end up getting that "been there done that feeling." The FMV's don't help the situation either. When I invite my friends over, we would play either “Burnout Paradise” or “Burnout Revenge” instead. Also, no online play really hurts this game. Come on Nintendo, enough with this "only select first party games get the online" treatment.


The 411:

This game is okay, but unless you are a “Need for Speed” fanatic, you could pass on this. However, if you are curious about the controls, an evening rental will do just fine.

Graphics	6.0	Not the ugliest thing on the system, but using component cables won't help either
Gameplay	7.0	If not for the fun wii-mote control scheme and okay career mode, this score would be a bit lower
Sound	5.0	Terrible soundtrack and the inauthentic in game audio really hurt this game
Lasting Appeal	6.0	Even with local multiplayer, once the career mode is done, there is no incentive for repeat plays. Oh yeah and no online either
Fun Factor	6.9	It was a interesting distraction, but I am ready for the next burnout instead
Overall	6.2   [ Average ]

Screenshots
All 5 Need for Speed: Undercover Screenshots