Need for Speed Heat

In the end, Need for Speed Heat is a return to the series' old form, with an emphasis on "old." It's not completely stuck in the past but clearly tries to emulate different features from different past titles and consolidate them into one experience. That means returning players will find many things to like here, but not all of that is purely great. Looking at the bigger picture, NFS Heat is a small win for a franchise that has lost its way for years and is slowly getting its stride back. Heat plays it a little too safe, so it'll be interesting to see if the series builds on this progress with a bolder next entry to deliver a great experience instead of a decent one.

Need for Speed: Heat is the first good step for the franchise in years. Devoid of micro transactions, providing some Underground-like neon vibes with it’s best customization system, it can provide more than a dozen of hours of fun, despite it’s dead like world design and irrelevant and boring story.

The Heat meter effectively turns GTA’s wanted level into score attack, which is awesome. But the open-world busywork, generic city, and too-flimsy obstacles dilute the otherwise decent gameplay. [Issue#170, p.88]

When Need for Speed: Heat is producing its promised fantasy, it’s a wonderful game which I’m always happy to keep coming back to. Ghost Games have improved their engine and systems to make the city and cars feel better than ever, and Heat’s core gameplay loop is designed to last. Occasionally there are the moments which require suspension of disbelief, and it’s possible for the more misguided elements to build tedium in an otherwise strong entry to the series. Heat is a marked improvement on the last few Need for Speed games, however, and I hope that further refinement will see the series better deliver on its legacy.

A fantastic sense of speed and exciting night-time racing help make Need for Speed Heat the best entry into the series in a while, even though the online component is mostly dead-on-arrival and progression can feel like a grind at times due to a stingy economy.

Need for Speed Heat has a lot of fun ideas, intense police chases, an incredible look and great sense of speed. It does however lack something to make it stand out from the pack, and after the story's done, there's not much keeping me coming back for more.

It took four attempts, but Ghost Games has finally managed to create a Need for Speed game that rivals the best entries of the long running series.

While it’s got a long way to go to hit the heights of the Forza Horizon competition, the improved story telling, inventive Night vs. Day structure, and fun driving make Heat worth picking up even if Payback and 2015’s reboot put you off the series.

Need For Speed Heat is easily one of the better Need For Speed games of the Frostbite engine era. If it wasn't up against some extremely impressive rival racing games like GRID this year, then it would probably be more of an essential purchase, but even so Need For Speed fans will want to get hold of this one. Unless, of course, the lack of live-action cutscenes is a complete turnoff.

While the racing is fun and the customization is deep, Need for Speed: Heat feels far too familiar. The day-night gameplay loop does mix things up a little but this racing title does very little to separate it from its predecessors. Its story is predictable and its presentation is underwhelming. Need for Speed: Heat is fun but predictable and slightly stale.

Need for Speed Heat is far from the revival of the series which fans have hoped for, and makes you wonder what happened to Criterion. Ghost games did a decent job steering back Need for Speed into safer waters, but it lacks the passion and the visceral fun which made Underground legendary. Need for Speed Heat is a decent game, but not a memorable one.

By fusing the design and feel of Most Wanted and Underground, Ghost Games created a game that is by all means better than Payback, but is still struggling to find its place in the market. And with the competition now -in the form of Forza Horizon 4- galloping, Ghost Games must surely up their game with their new project.

With only a select few events, no discernible difference between each car's handling, and a simplistic driving model, Need for Speed Heat does stumble into repetition during its final few hours. It's not quite a rip-roaring return to form, then, but this latest entry puts the Need for Speed series back on the right track.

Palm City is a lot of fun to explore at night, yet kind of boring during the day. Lots of tuning options and exciting chase sequences will keep you playing, though the same can unfortunately not be said about the game's lackluster story.

Need for Speed Heat is the best entry in the franchise for quite some time, but it's still not quite where it needs to be. The day vs. night gameplay is a compelling loop, and it's a big step in the right direction for the series in general. It's a solid effort with fun handling and lots of customisation options. It's a shame the open world lacks personality, and the police are perhaps a little too hardball, but there's still plenty to like. At the tail end of this generation, Need for Speed is back to being good -- let's hope it can be great in future.

The best Need For Speed in several years, which may sound like mild praise but despite a lack of variety this is a fun arcade racer hybrid that respects its roots.

Need for Speed: Heat can be a ton of fun but is held back by incredibly questionable AI. The vehicle customisation and tuning is incredible and the games has plenty of content to keep you racing for weeks. The story feels a little silly but the racing itself is a joy to play. This is the course-correction the series so desperately needed, and I can't wait to see Ghost Games build on this solid foundation for their next entry.

To the game’s credit, the police presence on the track feels less like a gimmick than a genuine menace.

Need for Speed Heat is a full open world racing game. It does just about everything the competition offers, but without thinking outside the box. Less generalist than Gran Turismo or Forza Horizon, which he comes closest, he is far from equal. However, it offers a good alternative to change the mood. Racing games in open world are no longer jostling at the gate anyway.

Great modding and a decent game engine can’t disguise the tired story and simplistic driving.

Unfortunately, Need for Speed: Heat is not the game that will bring back the magic to the franchise, but nonetheless, it's still a solid entry which certainly deserves your attention, only if you're a fan of this kind of game.

It wouldn’t be totally fair to call Need for Speed Heat a bad game, but given the exciting high-speed material it’s defined by, it is a disappointingly boring one. Small blessings like the lack of over-aggressive microtransactions and an incredibly in-depth car customization suite can’t make up for gameplay and progression loops which, at best, feel routine and archaic, and at worst frustrating and obtuse. It’s understandable that publisher Electronic Arts would want to recapture the glory of Need for Speed’s heyday, but all Need for Speed Heat proves is that maybe the series just needs to rest for a while.

Need for Speed: Heat clearly shows why the series needs a serious pause to reorganize itself.

Need for Speed Heat is an average game that maintains some essential elements of the franchise, with some poor implementations that sabotaged the project itself.

Need for Speed: Heat needs a better balance, both in the progression system and police chases, to make it all fun, instead of frustrating.

You can have a lot of fun tinkering with the car's trim, you can spend hours changing your car's livery, and some chase with the police will no doubt be remarkable, but beyond this Heat it remains a Need For Speed ​​without too much momentum.

This is pure mediocrity. The simple driving physics deliver solid arcade feeling, but the boring story and some disputable design decisions throw a spanner in the works.

Need for Speed Heat ditching its predecessor’s heavy-handed microtransactions and live-service nonsense is commendable, but in most other ways, this is actually a step back for the series. The game provides some solid arcade thrills, but a limited map, so-so visuals, slapdash action, and irritating cops weigh the experience down. If you’re desperate for a new open-world racer, Need for Speed Heat may be worth a spin, but most will want to wait until this one hits the used car lot.

Need for Speed Heat’s driving is a step in the right direction for a franchise that’s stuck at the back of the pack. However, its poor story, severe balance problems, and complete lack of an online presence stop it from ever reaching top speed.

Need For Speed Heat is a fun racing game that is still held back by a weak, multiplayer, story, and lack of event variety.

Need for Speed Heat is a conglomeration Need for Speeds past. A little Payback, a little Rivals, a little Hot Pursuit, a little Underground. The result is a good foundation to build upon, but weird AI issues, a lack of variety in events, and some poor tuning in cop chases mean it's not great. Maybe next gen will see Ghost Games bringing a little more real heat.

This Need for Speed has everything it needs to please the players, especially those looking for an heir to Most Wanted. But Heat lacks of driving sensations, of a proper physic management, and has plenty of balance problems, making the game more frustrating than fun.