Need for Speed: Undercover

 PC
User Score
5.3

Mixed or average reviews- based on 394 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 99 out of 394
  2. Mixed: 159 out of 394
  3. Negative: 136 out of 394
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  1. Kishiradarken
    Mar 12, 2022
    7
    It turns out as a good game if you do some modding, screw EA because they rushed this game for 2008, even though it says nfs09 and mw2 on everywhere!
    First of all, I never liked the "Heroic Driving Engine", it plays fun but pretty unrealistic and sometimes buggy and frustrating. The graphics are pretty buggy and the yellowish filter from MW returns! Some car sounds are pretty inaccurate    It turns out as a good game if you do some modding, screw EA because they rushed this game for 2008, even though it says nfs09 and mw2 on everywhere!
    First of all, I never liked the "Heroic Driving Engine", it plays fun but pretty unrealistic and sometimes buggy and frustrating. The graphics are pretty buggy and the yellowish filter from MW returns! Some car sounds are pretty inaccurate like, an Audi TT 3.2 V6 does not sound like an Evo or a BMW S85B50 V10 never sound like a V8. The story is just filled up with cliches and it's just boring, the player is just simping for Carmen Mendez and Chase Linh! Pointless FMV cutscenes and terrible framerates, even setting core affinity to single core does not fix. The tachometer doesn't show any numbers on it, and if you read with lines, every single car has a redline between 6400-7200 RPM, which is not correct in anyway! The open-world is too soulless and cops are absolutely idiots! They mostly don't caught you until you reach 100 km/h or ram into some traffic car/cop car. And getting busted is almost impossible, they're not even trying to bust you, they are too loose and slow that you can easily evade them. Also if you caught by a spike strip, there's a bug in graphic preferences that fixes your tires (Car Damage). The game is too repetitive and the job missions are just boring. Although it has bunch of sins, I still liked it, heck I actually finished this game not 1 but 4 times! Game Score: 70/100    … Expand
  2. mrshytle
    Nov 2, 2011
    5
    It's a good addition to the NFS collection if you're a fan, I liked the actual actors used, even if the scting was poor, the cars were good, however prices were way unrealistic (you get a $700,000 discount off the Veyron but overpay by atleast $100,000 for the Shelby GT500). Sound FX were good, cop chases were really fun and intense, however I do agree that an SUV K-9 unit will never doIt's a good addition to the NFS collection if you're a fan, I liked the actual actors used, even if the scting was poor, the cars were good, however prices were way unrealistic (you get a $700,000 discount off the Veyron but overpay by atleast $100,000 for the Shelby GT500). Sound FX were good, cop chases were really fun and intense, however I do agree that an SUV K-9 unit will never do over 150mph. Why a K-9 unit anyway? They're busting street racers, not drug traffickers. It's a MW clone by far, I don't know why people are having perormance issues on their systems, my rig takes a nap when I play this, with settings maxed. Cop AI is to be desired, and the cars handle like their on a magnetic track, which can be fun if you're a casual gamer, or just wanna drive a fast car and piss off some cops (always fun). This isn't an epic title by anymeans, but it has it's strengths, and it can be fun if you're not an immature hater. But I cant see myself giving it above a 5, it just doesn't have the juice that Underground2 and MW did, now if you mix the customization and soundtracks of the Underground series with the pursuit features, possible even add some night time effects (it's always daylight in this game, if anyone else noticed, even in freeroam) then you would have one bad-ass NFS title! Oh, for other thoughts, disband Criterion, I'm very disappointed in the BS excuse for a game that you guys turned Hot Pursuit into, should be called Burnout Pursuit. Terrible game.… Expand
  3. SlowJustice
    May 20, 2009
    5
    It really is the worst NFS that has come out to date. Today's games seem to be more about the money than the game, They tend to forget that if they keep making junk we will go to other games. I read the other day that the new NFS Shift isn't going to support steering wheels, seems to be kind of stupid seeing as they are calling it a race sim. Oh well. as I said.. plenty of goodIt really is the worst NFS that has come out to date. Today's games seem to be more about the money than the game, They tend to forget that if they keep making junk we will go to other games. I read the other day that the new NFS Shift isn't going to support steering wheels, seems to be kind of stupid seeing as they are calling it a race sim. Oh well. as I said.. plenty of good racers out there if you look… Expand
  4. CRL
    Jul 25, 2011
    7
    This game... I don't see what's so bad about it. The physics are unrealistic and the story is just bad, but the racing itself is fun and there's plenty of it. Both the sprints and circuits are enjoyable and the checkpoint races get to be a bit challenging. As in every NFS title the cars are customizable and great in themselves. The graphics were great (and my system is not high-end).This game... I don't see what's so bad about it. The physics are unrealistic and the story is just bad, but the racing itself is fun and there's plenty of it. Both the sprints and circuits are enjoyable and the checkpoint races get to be a bit challenging. As in every NFS title the cars are customizable and great in themselves. The graphics were great (and my system is not high-end). The only thing I didn't like was that the cop chases do get monotonous after a while, and once you get to the level where they start sending Feds it becomes unreasonably hard. But all in all, it's not a bad game.… Expand
  5. dfjaljfdal
    Mar 15, 2012
    7
    Crappy physics, silly story, and why is it "open world" if you can't get to the destination by your own route. Cop chases are good though, and the overall racing experience is decent, despite all the shortcomings.
  6. Atyne
    Sep 18, 2021
    7
    +fun gameplay and level design
    +soundtrack
    +atmosphere
    +decent story

    -stuttering
    -strange physics and handling
    -soulless open-world
    -irritating cops
    -AI
    -forced 60Hz refresh rate (SpecialK can be used as workaround)
    -repetitive
  7. {Rx}i807
    Mar 1, 2009
    7
    So close yet so far. I love you EA. BUT come on. I can run Crysis full out at 57 FPS with no problems. Even on low settings in N4S I was consistently tearing. As Red Code Has said A SUV that does 200+? a Porshe that when you drive barely keeps up. But a Porshe police cruzer that womps a Mclaren F1? But beside the negatives I enjoyed the game. Largest map by far. For an arcade it was a So close yet so far. I love you EA. BUT come on. I can run Crysis full out at 57 FPS with no problems. Even on low settings in N4S I was consistently tearing. As Red Code Has said A SUV that does 200+? a Porshe that when you drive barely keeps up. But a Porshe police cruzer that womps a Mclaren F1? But beside the negatives I enjoyed the game. Largest map by far. For an arcade it was a little easy to handle the cars. The game has so much potential. I hope you clean it up for the next NFS.… Expand
  8. ChoicestGames
    Mar 3, 2012
    6
    If you can get this game cheap, then Need for Speed: Undercover can be considered passable as it is almost inferior in every regard to previous Need for Speed titles.
  9. morfil
    Nov 1, 2013
    7
    Cool cars, horrible acting, bad sound recycling, bad GFX and VSYNC, but adrenaline was delivered Steering seemed taken from an racing anime, which I loved it, of course, who doesn't love anime Overall, a quite entertaining game.
  10. Nickolababaiko
    Jun 5, 2016
    5
    Проходная NFSка! Графика не очень! Физика не очень! Сюжет не интересный! Тюнинг более менее сойдет!На мой взгляд одна из худших Need for Speed! Прошел её без особого энтузиазма!
  11. LowRyderMS
    Mar 12, 2014
    7
    The game isn't one of the better of the NFS series, but it has a nice story, cool cars with essential tuning and a certain level of challenge at the pursuits but is very easy to win some races. I didn't like the game's graphics because it has few adjust options and menu isn't well organized. It's worth to buy when it is on at 50% or more discount offer on Steam, but there are games wellThe game isn't one of the better of the NFS series, but it has a nice story, cool cars with essential tuning and a certain level of challenge at the pursuits but is very easy to win some races. I didn't like the game's graphics because it has few adjust options and menu isn't well organized. It's worth to buy when it is on at 50% or more discount offer on Steam, but there are games well better than Undercover. Sorry, my English is bad.… Expand
  12. ElvisMiks
    May 24, 2015
    5
    Need for Speed: Undercover is a bad game. The graphics are mediocre for 2008, the story is just terrible and the game is easy too. You can literarily race in a Nissan 240SX against a Lamborghini Gallardo. Yeah, and like the cops would help much either in the difficulty aspect. It is possible to evade the police without even pressing the turn buttons. What comes back is a city, which youNeed for Speed: Undercover is a bad game. The graphics are mediocre for 2008, the story is just terrible and the game is easy too. You can literarily race in a Nissan 240SX against a Lamborghini Gallardo. Yeah, and like the cops would help much either in the difficulty aspect. It is possible to evade the police without even pressing the turn buttons. What comes back is a city, which you can explore at your will, but it serves no purpose. Why? Well, first of all, there aren't any unlockables or hidden secrets you can get by exploring the city, second, there isn't much to see. Like i said earlier, the game looks pretty blank, thus you wont see any breathtaking sights, and third, like in the previous Need for Speed installments, you can't drive to an event. You can only start it from the map screen. So what is the purpose of the city? There are some new game modes. there is a Highway Battle, which throws a million traffic cars at you and can get frustrating, the outrun mode comes back from previous Need for Speed games and there are some new game modes where you compete against the cops, which aren't fun, because, again, the difficulty of this game is too low. Seriously, speaking about the difficulty again, it is too low. I can even manage to finish with a 20 second lead. What keeps the game from being a total flop, are the car selection, customisation and soundtrack. So ,yeah, that is pretty much it. I don't recommend Undercover. If you are looking for a classic Need for Speed game, pick up Underground, Most Wanted or Carbon.… Expand
  13. rezo_21
    Sep 18, 2021
    5
    ====================IIIIIIIIII GAME SCORE : 52 IIIIIIIIII====================
  14. MrPajamas
    Mar 28, 2021
    7
    After Carbon, came ProStreet, which I was not interested in, because it left the idea of ​​street racing in cities and replaced us with a track in the form of a race that is adapted to it. Race track and not a proper city. But Undercover is returning to us in all its beauty in city races. Although Carbon was a good game, it did not reach the quality of the legendary Undergrounds or MostAfter Carbon, came ProStreet, which I was not interested in, because it left the idea of ​​street racing in cities and replaced us with a track in the form of a race that is adapted to it. Race track and not a proper city. But Undercover is returning to us in all its beauty in city races. Although Carbon was a good game, it did not reach the quality of the legendary Undergrounds or Most Wanted. Can Undercover rekindle the glory of the series? In short, no, but beware, this does not mean a bad game in the final at all. I would start with the aforementioned city, which came to me simply dead in Carbon. On the contrary, it lives here thanks to a strong sunny glow. The developers have relied on a used but several-year-old start in the form of a fast car, which will then be collected quite quickly. Then we all know it. You will get some trickle, with which you will drive the races to the fastest cart in the game. We will get classic races, but again also police chases, which obviously worked in Most Wanted, and thus the developers were not afraid to use them here as well. But they are not a problem and I have no problem with them. A luxury soundtrack plays into all of this. To all this, I would like to add that paradoxically, as was already the case with Carbon, the game is drawn to the story in which you, as a player, are a secret policeman and therefore the whole part bears the subtitle Undercover. It totally reminded me of the first Fast and Furious, but I'm turning somewhere else. The tuning of cars here is fine. No problem, like with Carbon, where I lacked neons, which logically can't be here in daylight. In the final, Undercover repeats what Carbon does, but it only improves it a bit for me. A livelier city, but again, where Need for Speed: Undercover fails, is vehicle maneuverability, which I don't understand why the authors change when it used to work with absolutely no problem. For me, a good game that I can recommend.… Expand
  15. Marick
    Sep 28, 2014
    5
    Yeah, it is a mediocre score. Sorry, but this game, for me, the worst game in the entire series. A lot of graphical problems, anything that has to do with physics not related to the game. The story is also there, but useless. The only good things in this game is the music.
  16. dimike
    Jan 10, 2021
    7
    Graphics - bad
    Handling - ok
    Music - ok
    story - ok
    gameplay - ok
    game had a few good ideas but all of them were very poorly done
  17. ui876will
    Mar 18, 2019
    6
    Just finished the game after all these years.
    - The gameplay is entertaining. It is quite fluid, and actually pretty fun.
    - The graphics are good (for a 2008 game). But I have to admit, the orange filter is really tiresome to look at for long periods of time. - The races are cool but often feel repetitive. I constantly had the "Did this, done that" kind of feeling, and that is not a    Just finished the game after all these years.
    - The gameplay is entertaining. It is quite fluid, and actually pretty fun.
    - The graphics are good (for a 2008 game). But I have to admit, the orange filter is really tiresome to look at for long periods of time.
    - The races are cool but often feel repetitive. I constantly had the "Did this, done that" kind of feeling, and that is not a good thing.
    - The story is boring to say the least. The characters are not likeable, and none of them is well developed. For most of the time you will just want to play the questline to get it over with it asap.
    - The tuning is cool. I still prefer Carbon and Most Wanted a whole lot more, but Undercover gets the job done.
    - Some of the mechanics are plain awful. You can defeat a Toyota Supra in the game using a Volkswagen Scirocco, or a Dodge Charger using a Ford Escort. I actually had a Bugatti Veyron fully upgraded, and an Audi TT actually defeated me on a highway battle. Absolutely no sense.

    Overall, the game is okay, and does it's job of entertaining you. It's better than just about all NFS games that came after it (except Hot Pursuit 2010), but is absolutely not on the same league as Underground 1/2, Most Wanted and Carbon. Summing up, it is a forgettable game, but it will amuse you for a week or two. Do not pay more than $!0 on it or you will be disappointed. G'day/night.    … Expand
  18. gold
    Jul 2, 2018
    6
    Вот я и добрался до чуть ли не самой худшей части в франшизе. Я поразился графикой на минималках, но когда увеличиваешь до максимума, более удобоваримо. Машины, заполняющие карту, появляются перед игроком только через полуметра. Игра оказалась клоном "NEED FOR SPEED: MOST WANTED" (2005), и графически, и, почти, сюжетно. Сюжет, кстати, на 9. и самое главное - музыка... Она здесь отлична,Вот я и добрался до чуть ли не самой худшей части в франшизе. Я поразился графикой на минималках, но когда увеличиваешь до максимума, более удобоваримо. Машины, заполняющие карту, появляются перед игроком только через полуметра. Игра оказалась клоном "NEED FOR SPEED: MOST WANTED" (2005), и графически, и, почти, сюжетно. Сюжет, кстати, на 9. и самое главное - музыка... Она здесь отлична, всю игру тащит.… Expand
  19. KingJailson
    May 10, 2018
    7
    A volta do árcade depois do simulador de NFS Pro Street, até que é legal, mas se comparamos com Most Wanted, Carbon, Underground etc, o Undercover é bem fraco
  20. killer1237
    Oct 24, 2018
    7
    Not a bad game, but pales in comparison to previous titles and is very forgettable.
  21. Genek13
    Nov 19, 2019
    6
    Step down to previous installments. They try to back to the roots, which failed in some points.
    Still playable and enjoyable experience in NFS franchise.
  22. FRIST_008
    Jun 14, 2021
    7
    То с чего всё закончилось. То где было всё средне, от тюнинга до гонок, от музыки до сюжета и роликов. Тут пошло что-то не так
  23. The_D4RknesS
    Nov 5, 2022
    5
    repetitive game, horrible graphics, lots of bugs, scenarios rendering in front of you.... BURNOUT PARADISE is a game from January 2008 and surpasses it in all aspects like graphics, physics and gameplay while undercover is from December 2008 and has bad gameplay, rotten graphics and even NPC cars are almost all recycled from BURNOUT
  24. Giero
    Jan 4, 2023
    5
    --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
  25. CarlosS15
    Feb 9, 2023
    7
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. In his time he was very poorly received, and it is understood.

    But almost 15 years have passed since its launch and many are beginning to appreciate it, in my case I just tried it yesterday and here is my opinion.

    About graphics and gameplay it is understood, the game was made in a hurry, if EA would give them time until 2009, another rooster would crow, the only bad thing for me is that exaggerated brightness that damages the eyes, but it is solved by lowering the visual effects.

    And in gameplay, at first you will feel the handling very strange but when you get used to it you will feel fun, especially in difficult difficulties.

    About the story, it's a bit boring, yes, but I did like the idea of being a police officer undercover and the missions of stealing cars or arresting racers, I like that in those years EA offered new ideas, not like in the Today they copy and paste Fast and Furious year after year.

    I give it a 7 because I don't consider it so bad to consider it one of the worst NFS, nor so good to compare it with Carbon, Most Wanted or the Underground.    … Expand
  26. DharcSlayer
    Jun 9, 2023
    6
    For a small time of development, it's quite decent, but for the most part, it's a big let down from all other NFS series. The really bloomy aspect of the game is just way TOO MUCH. The storyline felt like it lacked some direction, and overall it's just not replayable.

    Only good thing on this game is the busted scenes. That one is badass. But that's literally it. The entirely of the game    For a small time of development, it's quite decent, but for the most part, it's a big let down from all other NFS series. The really bloomy aspect of the game is just way TOO MUCH. The storyline felt like it lacked some direction, and overall it's just not replayable.

    Only good thing on this game is the busted scenes. That one is badass. But that's literally it. The entirely of the game is just really bland as hell.    … Expand

Awards & Rankings

27
#27 Most Discussed PC Game of 2008
23
#23 Most Shared PC Game of 2008

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
65

Mixed or average reviews - based on 18 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 4 out of 18
  2. Mixed: 14 out of 18
  3. Negative: 0 out of 18
  1. PTGamers
    60
    The game modes are not particularly intense, and the vehicles, although very detailed, fail to offer the feeling from the best of the series.
    Read full review
  2. Cheat Code Central
    70
    One can't help but notice that the franchise has seen better days.
    Read full review
  3. G4 TV
    60
    Need for Speed: Undercover is a game that both satisfies and disappoints on a regular basis. While the chases provide top-notch thrills and spills, you can’t help but feel like you’ve just done it too many times to really care anymore.
    Read full review
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