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Mixed or average reviews - based on 18 Critics What's this?

User Score

Generally unfavorable reviews- based on 131 Ratings

  • Summary: Need for Speed Undercover has players racing through speedways, dodging cops and chasing rivals as they go deep undercover to take down an International crime syndicate. The game heralds the return of high-intensity police chases and introduces the all-new 'Heroic Driving Engine' -- a unique technology that generates incredible high-performance moves at 180 miles per hour during breathtaking highway battles. A mix of computer graphics and live-action movies immerses gamers in the rich world of the Tri-City Bay Area. The city’s open-world environment features over 80 miles of roads, including an enormous highway system that sets the stage for highway battles. These high-speed, high-stake chase sequences push players to the limit as they fight off cops and opponents while whipping through traffic at 180 miles per hour. An intelligent new A.I. mechanic delivers a realistic and high-energy action driving experience. Going back to the franchise’s roots, Need for Speed Undercover features more aggressive and intelligent cops whose sole purpose is to take down the player quickly and by any means necessary. Need for Speed Undercover also features the series' signature car customization, real-world damage and realistic driving physics. The game includes some of the hottest licensed cars such as the Audi R8, BMW M6 and Lexus IS-F. [Electronic Arts] Expand
Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 4 out of 18
  2. Negative: 0 out of 18
  1. Undercover is significantly more fun than ProStreet and offers far more long-time playing motivation as well. [Issue#17]
  2. Instead of being some kind of "Best of" Need for Speed: Underground is nothing more than an uninspired generic racing game with high hardware requirements. It's a good game, but still very disappointing, because the good parts of the game are just like in NfS: Most Wanted and the new bits don't work very well.
  3. Without pursuits, this game would be an overly-easy, bland rehash of earlier racing titles, devoid of any actual plot. As it stands, it could be attractive to any PC gamer looking for a new racing game. But with Burnout Paradise coming to the PC in February, some may find it prudent to wait. [January 2009, p.57]
  4. Too many promises came with new installments of NFS series but not all were fulfilled. There is a great feeling of driving superb cars and some modes are cool but the rest? We have seen it before – and done better. [Dec 2008]

See all 18 Critic Reviews

Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 8 out of 31
  2. Negative: 18 out of 31
  1. sdfsdfsdfdsdf
    10
    good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good good Expand
  2. This game really is a diamond in the rough. It's hands down the best Need For Speed game since NFS Carbon, Most Wanted, and the Underground series. The graphics are pretty good even with today's standards, the car selection is okay, and the car customization is a little limited, but much, MUCH better than the newer games. It's basically NFS ProStreet, on the street, except the physics have taken a turn for the better. Instead of the really bad understeer that all of the cars in ProStreet had (even when drifting! how can you have understeer when drifting is all about oversteer?!?! ProStreet managed it somehow...), the physics of Undercover are entirely different. Now, at high speeds, all the cars in Undercover grip the road insanely well. Seemingly, the faster the car goes, the more grip it has, so if you go 240 MPH, you can practically take 90 degree turns without letting off of the gas. Humorously beneficial and just as weird as ProStreet's handling but on the opposite end of the spectrum. The only real downsides to the game are that the story line is pretty weak and the cut scenes are even lamer, the soundtrack is pretty bad (the game has just about every song you've NEVER heard of), and it's a little glitchy on the PC. I've heard many stories about people having problems getting the game to run well.The only problem that has happened to me personally is that the game tends to freeze and crash when using autosculpt in the garage. I've installed and played this game on multiple computers and it happens on all of them. The bottom line is that the game has many more pros than cons and is undoubtedly the best NFS game of recent times. Expand
  3. 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. Expand
  4. The game, from the start, was pretty fun, exciting, and so on, but later, when I got through half of gameplay, everything gets harder, some races are just impossible to win. Just saying, to play this game, you need really good skills, otherwise you couldn't possibly win a race. And there is one minus about cars. You cant pick ANY car, and win whole game. You need to choose it wisely, check stats, and so on, but it sucks. Every car I really like, for example BMW M3, have fu***d up handling. It isn't possible to drive with it! Example: On NFS: MW I could possibly win game by every car. Another minus. On dual-core CPU's Autosculpt will freeze your game. And I couldn't possibly find any patch for it. Deal with it. EA possibly will never, ever, ever make almost perfect game, like NFS:MW (2005) Expand

See all 31 User Reviews