Metacritic Games

Need for Speed Most Wanted (GameCube)

Combining the thrill of illicit street racing and tuner customization with the intensity of strategic police pursuits that rivals any Hollywood-style chase scene, Need for Speed Most Wanted challenges players to become the most notorious and elusive street racer. Players instantly feel the thrill of the ride as they hit the streets in an open world environment where drivers can tune their cars to compete against any class of vehicles or use their wits to out-fox the law to satisfy their need for speed. Need for Speed Most Wanted delivers a unique, fast-paced and gripping ride in the racing genre as players build up their Rap Sheet and street cred to move their way up the Black List to become the most wanted racer on the streets. Players go head-to-head with the top drivers on the scene as well as strategically evade more than half dozen cops at any one time. Also included are a dynamic open world, new gameplay and customization as well as tuners, supercars, muscles and sports cars. [Electronic Arts]

Electronic Arts
Racing, Driving
Players: Multi
T (Teen)
Developer: EA Canada
Released November 15, 2005

Overall Metascore

This is a weighted, normalized average of all individual scores given by critics, on a scale of 0 (worst) to 100 (best).

80 / 100

Critic Reviews

92	Game Chronicles It's nice to see a slew of exotics alongside sport compacts. The newest Need for Speed may be the most wanted of the season, being one of the best racing games for now.
90	Stuff Making a name for youself by climbing the game's Black List, aka series of bad-ass mo-fos you must beat, is good fun.
87	The New York Times Wanted's story won't win any awards, and the game would still be tremendous fun without it, but it gives your racing added significance.
85	Game Over Online It’s been missing for a while, but the simple inclusion of the police catapults Most Wanted into one of the best racers in recent history.
85	IGN The stylistic presentation and graphic sensibilities are impressive, and they're complemented by excellent engine sound effects and smart cop chatter.
85	Game Informer While I yearned for a little more in a few areas (difficulty curve and graphical polish in particular), the overall experience lies somewhere between the first "Underground" and the second...meaning it's easy fun, but not genre-defining. [Dec 2005, p.148]
84	GameSpot The actual racing hasn't changed too much, but the ever-present police make this game a whole lot more interesting.
81	Gamer 2.0 Most Wanted brings the police back in force, and the game benefits greatly from it.
80	N-Europe Another solid addition to the Need For Speed franchise, even if it does have a few annoying flaws here and there.
80	Sydney Morning Herald The addition of smart and relentless police pursuers has reinvigorated this popular driving series.
80	Nintendo Power This may be one of the smoothest racers ever, and definitely a most-wanted on my list. [Jan 2006, p.115]
80	Kombo I’m personally glad to have crawled out from "Underground" and to have started something fresh, even if it is a rehashed concept.
80	GameSpy With three dozen licensed cars ranging from the new Mustang to the perennial street racing favorite Subaru STi, a meaty 15-20 hour story mode and loads of optional challenges beyond that, Most Wanted is one game you're going to be playing into the wee hours.
77	Ferrago The only thing stopping it achieving a better score are the aforementioned niggles coupled with some below par AI. Their computer-controlled abilities switch from laughably amateur to 'one mistake and its race over' Terminator-style brutality in a matter of moments which seems more than a little unfair.
75	Electronic Gaming Monthly A solid, fun racer, but its repetitive single-player events and limp four-player online multi (Xbox only) sap its power. [Jan 2006, p.120]
70	Total Video Games The story mode does provide a challenge and will last most around the 15 hour mark, however once that’s past the game has very little to offer largely because of the fundamental online options.
65	NintendoWorldReport It seems obvious, now, that this game is for the hardcore Need for Speed fan. If you love the series, get it; it’s a marked improvement.
60	games(TM) It’s a nice, clean package that delivers enough hi-octane chases and enjoyment to warrant a purchase. [Christmas 2005, p.121]