Need for Speed Unbound

 PlayStation 5
User Score
6.0

Mixed or average reviews- based on 587 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 318 out of 587
  2. Mixed: 58 out of 587
  3. Negative: 211 out of 587
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  1. Aminp1
    Jul 22, 2023
    0
    It's not nfs It's totally GARBAGE !!!!!
    Hey criterion Don't making any nfs You just ruined good memories
  2. ONEEX
    Mar 17, 2023
    1
    Возмущает бездумное следование трендам и глухота к аудитории. Ещё сильнее портит серию жажда наживы взамен качеству и проработки.
    Последнее Дополнение лишний раз доказывает, что игру делал без энтузиазма и желания выпустить качественный продукт!    Возмущает бездумное следование трендам и глухота к аудитории. Ещё сильнее портит серию жажда наживы взамен качеству и проработки.
    Последнее Дополнение лишний раз доказывает, что игру делал без энтузиазма и желания выпустить качественный продукт!
  3. Kaschej
    Apr 2, 2023
    5
    Sorry to say. Regret that i bought it digital and can't sell it. No physics, no story.... Have a lot of cars, that's nice. But doesn't save the game.
  4. orchideea
    Sep 11, 2023
    4
    Please, fire guys from UX/UI.

    Game does not show most important things, but it was great idea to show which random player leaves server.

    Flying NCPs, disappearing (not destroyed, disappearing) world elements. That's the worst and most expensive DLC EA ever published.
  5. DavidUFA19
    Jul 29, 2023
    0
    The stupidest game mechanics are the cops, there are more of them than normal citizens in the city, such nonsense, at the same time they are the dumbest cops I've seen in games, it's not hard to get away from them, but because they often notice you it's stupid.
  6. Tavo1994
    Feb 2, 2023
    7
    Good game overall. It felt kinda like underground 2. My only complaints are
    The music sucks and the story is to short
  7. Don_Rolando
    Feb 16, 2023
    5
    The game is not fun at all to play. Just to much is going on. Please just focus on the game as it was in NFS Underground back than. That was simple but fun game! Here you have to work to much and the flow will not start coming.
  8. RatchetClank111
    Feb 12, 2023
    7
    This game is definitely an improvement over payback and heat. Payback's story was just hampered by random car improvements, terrible characters trying to copy a generic script of fast and furious, and Heat was too short, bad music, and boring characters

    This game takes gameplay elements from both, and surprisingly improves and makes a better overall game. I like the overall art    This game is definitely an improvement over payback and heat. Payback's story was just hampered by random car improvements, terrible characters trying to copy a generic script of fast and furious, and Heat was too short, bad music, and boring characters

    This game takes gameplay elements from both, and surprisingly improves and makes a better overall game. I like the overall art direction of the game as it gives NFS an identity and the effects were really cool when drifting or using the nos boost. driving is well done in this game, like the overall map and environment, and like how the game overall progresses for the final race.

    However, the game needed different events, as the game is split into four weeks, but by week three it starts to get repetitive. I think at that point they should of added some drag races, time trials, or maybe even like elimination style, just something to switch it up a bit. Because by the end of it the game starts to get stale.

    That's due to the story is okay, but the characters range from cool to downright annoying, it also didn't need the satire that many comments will mention, like it's just annoying commentary that becomes cringe. It is what it is but the game didn't need the annoying podcast commentary and the main characters can say some random bs too that doesn't make any sense.

    Overall, I like this game though, and hopefully it sells well enough so we can maybe get something similar to this game, but with some better writing for once.    … Expand
  9. Random124
    Aug 22, 2023
    0
    worst need for speed and I played Almosen all of them !!!!!!!¡!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
  10. bolzouki
    Aug 26, 2023
    5
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Whose stupid idea was it to implement balance between income and cost for racing in a timed schedule to get to the end? You have to pay to race without any certainty to get max result, because the IA is an absolute cheat (which means that winning is generally not an option), knowing you have to have a certain amount of money by a fixed moment in time and invest in your car so you can compete, you have the risk not to have reach the goal by the end....
    The cops are EVERYWHERE EVERYTIME, it is a chore. They are not too bad too loose, but they are on you all the time, it is tiring and boring

    I have rarely play a game so not fun and not inticing in his beginning. It does not make you want to play more.

    Good graphics and driving mechanics though.    … Expand
  11. bLaHsHmiAh
    May 17, 2023
    3
    There used to be a time when you would hit your nitrous, and your car would ACTUALLY go faster than the racers around you - if they WERE NOT hitting boost at the same time. This is gone. Nothing but rubber banding bullsh!t for the last 5 or 6 titles. This is so disappointing as I used to love the franchise whole heartedly and believed it to be the "COD" of Racing titles. It's nowThere used to be a time when you would hit your nitrous, and your car would ACTUALLY go faster than the racers around you - if they WERE NOT hitting boost at the same time. This is gone. Nothing but rubber banding bullsh!t for the last 5 or 6 titles. This is so disappointing as I used to love the franchise whole heartedly and believed it to be the "COD" of Racing titles. It's now unrecognizable and just a total waste of money imho on ps5 at least. Almost trash. Bought for $23+tax and it's still almost trash.… Expand
  12. karetski
    Jun 26, 2023
    2
    I thought it’s impossible to make a racing game worse than nfs heat. Criterion managed to do that.
  13. Andb
    Jun 14, 2023
    10
    NFS unbound é muito bom, traz tudo do universo e ainda mais. Com relação ao anterior Heat tem apenas uma leva aparência gráfica porém o Unbaund é muito superior e a jogabilidade melhorou muito. 10/10.
  14. solarcoke
    Jul 10, 2023
    2
    Immensely dull. Worst racing game I've played on PS5. Repetitive, gimmicky, and un-enjoyable.
  15. AaronCharles
    Dec 7, 2022
    5
    This series has gone backwards over the last decade, i have not enjoyed a need for speed since Most Wanted (2012). As for Unbound it starts you off with a decent car you then end up doing events and earning cash for over an hour only for the cringe story to take away your car and money just for an introduction of a tutorial. It's the most stupid way to introduce you to a racing game. AfterThis series has gone backwards over the last decade, i have not enjoyed a need for speed since Most Wanted (2012). As for Unbound it starts you off with a decent car you then end up doing events and earning cash for over an hour only for the cringe story to take away your car and money just for an introduction of a tutorial. It's the most stupid way to introduce you to a racing game. After that you proceed to play the same repetitive events over and over again while earning next to no cash. The progression system in this gane is a joke with the repeated events making the game really stale quickly. Another annoying aspect of this game is the cops, after races you will get heated levels and they patrol nearly every road stopping your fluidity to continue with multiple events at once, it really does become frustrating after a while. The online part of the game is even more disappointing, you are put in a session with 15 other players where most of the time they will not join your races. You end up joining a randoms race with a few others and that's about it. £70 for an average racing game in 2022 it's unacceptable to be charging this much for this sinking ship of a franchise, the name is the only thing that's giving it sales, i do not reccommend.… Expand
  16. emhaxkar
    Jan 10, 2023
    7
    O jogo é bem divertido. Levando em consideração a proposta mais arcade do game gostei muito da jogabilidade. Os gráficos são OK. Um ponto que não curti foi o endgame. As tarefas de desafios e coletáveis são muito repetitivas e infindáveis. Platinar o jogo foi uma tortura.
  17. technophile822
    Jan 29, 2023
    5
    Story mode is decent, but becomes old after the first (in-game) week, just repeated 3 more times. "The Grand" finale race wasn't different from any other qualifier other than mixing car tiers. ASAP Rocky didn't add much to the game - his main role being to give you some pep talks, and act as another npc racer. Cops are tough at first, but once you figure out their habits and get at leastStory mode is decent, but becomes old after the first (in-game) week, just repeated 3 more times. "The Grand" finale race wasn't different from any other qualifier other than mixing car tiers. ASAP Rocky didn't add much to the game - his main role being to give you some pep talks, and act as another npc racer. Cops are tough at first, but once you figure out their habits and get at least an A+ car, they're little trouble. Online is overall, a disappointment. The cars and garage parts are mostly copied over from Heat, but the online mode lacks day/night and has no cops. How can you have a multiplayer NFS game without cop chases? Race modes found in Story such as drift, and takedown are not found in Online (yet). Bugs and glitches are annoying, cars tiers need balancing, and odd omissions need fixing, such as lack of fast travel. There is still fun to be had, especially with friends online. Performance tiers allow a wider variety of cars to be useful, and the jump to current gen consoles gives a welcome boost to resolution and 60fps. After a disappointing first "update", the online may improve with new content and much needed bug and QOL fixes, but i'm not holding my breath for EA to deliver.… Expand
  18. Lundstrom
    Aug 7, 2023
    0
    Over the past few years, the NFS series of games has turned into a piece of **** This game is absolutely impossible to play.
    The heat system is completely unfair to lose all the money you earned because the game forces you to engage in a race with the police, which is almost impossible to escape from when the heat level is high, which is probably what the fans of the series deserve. One    Over the past few years, the NFS series of games has turned into a piece of **** This game is absolutely impossible to play.
    The heat system is completely unfair to lose all the money you earned because the game forces you to engage in a race with the police, which is almost impossible to escape from when the heat level is high, which is probably what the fans of the series deserve. One of the reasons is that after a while, if you don't manage to escape, a bunch of police cars will magically appear around you, including big trucks that are also impossible to get rid of. I hope that the game designer has a special cauldron in hell for such a "great solution". I also wanted to note that the developers have absolutely killed the drift system, or you need to collect only drift cars of each tier, but you won't have the money for it, because you either get little money but bring it to the garage for safekeeping, or lose it because of the chases with the police.
    I don't recommend the game at all.    … Expand
  19. Hardkov
    Feb 23, 2023
    8
    one of the best NFS I've ever played, I don't understand why there are so many toxic reviews, the game is not perfect, but anyone who loves racing should try it, when I read negative reviews, I get the impression that people played it on YouTube, well, you get the idea. ..

    tuning is just 10 points, it's gorgeous, the gameplay is arcade style, but what should it be? it's not a simulator,    one of the best NFS I've ever played, I don't understand why there are so many toxic reviews, the game is not perfect, but anyone who loves racing should try it, when I read negative reviews, I get the impression that people played it on YouTube, well, you get the idea. ..

    tuning is just 10 points, it's gorgeous, the gameplay is arcade style, but what should it be? it's not a simulator, I liked it, the effects are cool, the story is nice, the previous ones were just terrible, the cons are that it's a little short, unbalanced in terms of money, I want to try more cars but I'm not ready for the grind... well, idk why, but online is dead, this game deserved 7-8 points    … Expand
  20. Nelone
    Feb 27, 2023
    7
    Gameplay and visuals are very appealing. Customization is just what I wanted and custom characters give a nice touch on top of that. However, soundtrack is low/mid and cop chases are more of an annoyance than real challenge. I also would’ve liked more variety of opponents. Haven’t finished the story yet but I don’t think that’s the main point in racing games (for me at least).
  21. BeckyGG
    Apr 2, 2023
    7
    I enjoyed the style and the new risk and reward gameplay. but oddly enough it feels more like a criterion remix of a ghost era game rather than being a fresh start for criterion and the series as a whole. If you liked HEAT you'll like this.
  22. Luis2345
    Jun 20, 2023
    2
    Um dos piores jogos de carros que ja joguei, corrida estilo mario kart, dificuldade forçada pela IA para o jogo durar mais tempo, renderização péssima, carros aparecem 2 metros para te atrasar, não vale a pena, comprei em promoção e ainda achei caro para o jogo que é. Mais um jogo generico da EA, ponto positivo e unico sistema de aposta.n
  23. dams_hyuga
    Sep 11, 2023
    8
    C'est un très bon jeu need for speed si il est si mal noté c'est car les gens veule toujours plus toujours plus vite le jeu est bien les graphisme et le mélange réaliste et animé et parfait certe il a des défauts mais on peu quand même très bien apprécié le jeu
  24. NickMG
    May 28, 2023
    8
    The game is like "NFS Heat" but just better in every aspect!

    •Let's start with the graphics: They are just amazing and the whole graffiti effects aren't bad at all, I really enjoy them and I find them to be quite the charm. Love how Criterion wants to experiment and not be the same game with same graphics but just different map that is even inferior to the last one. *Cough cough* Forza    The game is like "NFS Heat" but just better in every aspect!

    •Let's start with the graphics: They are just amazing and the whole graffiti effects aren't bad at all, I really enjoy them and I find them to be quite the charm. Love how Criterion wants to experiment and not be the same game with same graphics but just different map that is even inferior to the last one. *Cough cough* Forza Horizon 5 *cough cough*
    •Map: the map which is based on Chicago is very lively. It really feels like the RL city.
    •Races: While they aren't the best in the series I gotta say, they are very fun and not *that* repetitive.
    •Car selection: Maybe not the best and recycled from "NFS HEAT", it's let to be desired.
    •Car Customisation and Upgrading: The car customisation is probably one of the best in the franchise and maybe in racing games in general, it's really full with variety of car parts that can make the car you want to build. The upgrading is really grindy, but honestly I really don't mind it, I was quite sick of racing games where I can have Porsche 911 Turbo S in just 1 day of good playing. I wanted that raw and slow and "realistic" tune sistem that shows you just how far you went with your whip.
    •Cops: *phew* here we go, are the cops in NFS Unbound good are they just plain Need for Speed 2015 horrible, well they are in between. Because they are better than 2015 and Need for Speed Payback, they aren't quite fun as NFS HEAT's cop difficulty or just Need for Speed: Most wanted. They tend to be sometimes annoying, when you get to heat 5, because they are easy to get away, they are everywhere. And can't just drive around normally without 5 cops being behind you just because they SPAWNED NEXT TO YOU.
    •Last but not least story: The story while not as good as NFS Heat's it's better than 2015 and Payback's whatever those were trying to be. Atleast Unbound KNOWS what story it should have and doesn't copy other franchises and be confused. The voice acting and characters are OK, they are cringe but hey! When didn't NFS have cringe dialogues and character, atleast now it is selve awared about it and I love it!
    •So NFS Unbound is a big Hit or Miss for some people but if we look at the positives and not negatives we might see a nice crafted game with some respect and maybe care.    … Expand
  25. Shahriarairia
    Jun 8, 2023
    0
    Old mechanic old AI force you too lose game EA put **** on the game everything is boooring waste of money and time
  26. Serega_1415
    Jun 12, 2023
    8
    Игра хорошая! Нормальная физика вождения, тюнинг и стайлинг на высшем уровне. Стиль персонажей интересный , но сделан не очень. История интересует в начале потом провисает. Считаю ее лучшей NFS за последние 8 лет .
  27. AGCR
    Jun 25, 2023
    2
    Bastante mediocre para lo que significa la saga Need for Speed, ni siquiera es mejor que el Heat, si cumple con su objetivo de entretener pero es el primer NFS en años que te lo pasas y se convierte en un pisapapeles, 2/10
  28. llllllllllllllk
    Jun 24, 2023
    10
    Gooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooood
  29. IvanTS
    Jun 26, 2023
    0
    Malísimo, está muy mal hecho, la IA te adelanta sin sentido aunque tengan coches mucho peores que el tuyo. Cuando vas primero te spawnean coches de policía que se estrellan contra ti y te hacen perder la carrera. El peor juego de carreras que he jugado en toda mi vida. Repetitivo hasta la saciedad. Tienes que huir de la policía después de cada carrera, es horrible. La historia no tieneMalísimo, está muy mal hecho, la IA te adelanta sin sentido aunque tengan coches mucho peores que el tuyo. Cuando vas primero te spawnean coches de policía que se estrellan contra ti y te hacen perder la carrera. El peor juego de carreras que he jugado en toda mi vida. Repetitivo hasta la saciedad. Tienes que huir de la policía después de cada carrera, es horrible. La historia no tiene interes ninguno y el progreso en la campaña es tedioso, estresante y aburrido. Ahorraros el dinero e invertirlo en otro juego que merezca la pena, esto es basura.… Expand
  30. CaptainAngeo
    Jul 29, 2023
    0
    Too much rubber banding and police phase through objects. Game feels very offbrand from heat or 2015.
  31. Athe_O
    Aug 5, 2023
    0
    EA… Why?… I thought you couldn’t create a game that is worst than the Heat, but here we are. Is it that hard to turn off cartoon visuals?!
  32. Swagforever
    Aug 9, 2023
    7
    Pros:
    - Enjoyable open world racing game.
    - Graphics are okay. - Fair number of cars and customisation options. Cons: - Nothing new from NFS heat really. - Races are very repetitive. - Cops are too easy. - Rubberband AI. - Online is limited. - Collectables have no challenge to them (unlike previous games). - Frame rate drops if multiple online players on screen. - Car handling is not    Pros:
    - Enjoyable open world racing game.
    - Graphics are okay.
    - Fair number of cars and customisation options.

    Cons:
    - Nothing new from NFS heat really.
    - Races are very repetitive.
    - Cops are too easy.
    - Rubberband AI.
    - Online is limited.
    - Collectables have no challenge to them (unlike previous games).
    - Frame rate drops if multiple online players on screen.
    - Car handling is not great.
    - Car rating system is broken.    … Expand
  33. Ziege_UK
    Aug 28, 2023
    3
    This game is a mess. I'm only writing this review to counter all the fake 5 star Google reviews that sound like a EA chat bot.
    This is finally the end of the road for me and this franchise. I know it's an arcade racer but there's fun arcade racing and then there's this cheesy pile of crap. It's like the dev's thought they had a good idea with the heat system and just went all in on that    This game is a mess. I'm only writing this review to counter all the fake 5 star Google reviews that sound like a EA chat bot.
    This is finally the end of the road for me and this franchise. I know it's an arcade racer but there's fun arcade racing and then there's this cheesy pile of crap. It's like the dev's thought they had a good idea with the heat system and just went all in on that and didn't bother putting any effort in the rest of the racing. The whole tuning/upgrading system is pointless as it makes zero difference against the cops or the other racers. This game had so much potential but misses the mark by a mile for me. The careers just a long boring repetitive slog.
    3/10    … Expand
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Awards & Rankings

50
#50 Best PlayStation 5 Game of 2022
13
#13 Most Discussed PlayStation 5 Game of 2022

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
77

Generally favorable reviews - based on 53 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 36 out of 53
  2. Mixed: 17 out of 53
  3. Negative: 0 out of 53
  1. PLAY
    Feb 11, 2023
    80
    Terrifically fast, well-balanced street racing that really makes the most of PS5. Not quite as cool as the new art stylings would suggest, but still a fine game. [Issue#23, p.68]
  2. Games.cz
    Jan 19, 2023
    90
    Need for Speed was seriously starting to look dead and buried – and here comes the rescue party! The combination of beautiful, realistic-looking graphics and effects borrowed straight from an anime works surprisingly well, the story doesn’t get in your way and the driving model hits exactly the right spot. Even the open world is fun! This is how you make an arcade racing game.
    Read full review
  3. PLAY! Zine
    Jan 6, 2023
    80
    Need for Speed Unbound is the best modern NFS to date. It is still riddled with issues like rubberbanding and weird drifting physics, but it still provides its players with the best handling system in years, with grip racing finally back. With the best visual design NFS has ever had and some interesting campaign decisions, it gives hope that the series is back on track to becoming something great.
    Read full review
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