Review: Need for Speed: Shift

Need for Speed: Shift improves on a wayward franchise.

Plus The Need for Speed franchise has been there, done that _ some of it good, but some of it terrible. Electronic Arts has now turned the series in a new direction, aiming to catch the imagination of sim-style racing game fans by offering a more genuine experience. This works, to a degree, although there is still plenty of evidence of the game's arcade lineage. The first drive in Career mode is a test lap that the game uses to evaluate your skills and suggest driver aid and difficulty settings. Next you start entering championships and earning money to buy new cars or upgrade existing ones. Extra points are earned in Precision and Aggression categories for meeting driving challenges _ this is where it gets "arcadey". Tracks are superb, with some of the world's best circuits represented. Car handling is reasonably good, but suspension and drivetrain upgrades help to build an effective package.

Minus HD, granted, but Shift could only run to a maximum resolution of 720p on the PS3 version tested here (it is available on all formats) . In game, the full HUD is extremely busy and can be quite difficult to keep track of, especially at 270km/h using the well-rendered cockpit view, but the scaled-down option is just too basic. My main gripe was a controller issue _ when using the PS3's right stick for accelerator/brake in one of the preset configurations, it triggers an online friends list. This is a nice web 2.0 feature _ but totally annoying when the stick gets accidently pushed down, which is usually when braking heavily into a corner.

Verdict: Need for Speed is back on track, turning its back on some less-than-brilliant incarnations over recent years.

4/5