Need For Speed Shift confused many people when it was first released. EA decided to attach the Need For Speed name to a half way simulation racing game and that rubbed a few people the wrong way. For Shift 2, EA has wisely dropped Need For Speed from the title of the game(although the words Need For Speed is still on the box, at the bottom). Shift 2 Unleashed, slightly over a year after the release of the first, takes the formula Shift introduced, tweaks it a little, improves the bits around it.
Shift 2 still goes for the simulation angle of racing. As you start out the game, you’ll be jumped into a Skyline GTR for a few laps around a track. The game then sets your control scheme(with assists and stuff like that set up) based on how you do in this race. You can always change your settings or over write the recommended settings.
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| I love my old school BMW M3 |
They’ve clearly went out of their way to implement a better online experience with the inclusion of the auto log. The auto log(first seen in Need For Speed Hot Pursuit) will prompt you about your friends records and shames you when anyone has beaten your lap times. You can share your photos and replays here too almost making it like a less interactive Facebook wall(you can’t type out comments for instance). It doesn’t put these things in your face and notifications on the auto log pop up as a small text bubble on the bottom left corner of the screen.
Uploading your videos is a simple click of a button. They’ve given you the option to upload replays to YouTube right in the game which is pretty handy. What’s rather odd is that despite the online auto log improvements, Shift 2 doesn’t make it easy to join your friends race. Getting invited to races is one thing but you have to give players the ability of joining a friends game in a single click. But no. You’ll be forced to go on the online lobby and find it yourself. Which is rather odd.
“Shift 2 is like a wild beast, it doesn’t seem to have the grace of a Gran Turismo as every turn or a gentle tap of the accelerator shakes and stirs your car into action”
On to the racing
As I have said before, Shift 2 Unleashed is a simulation racing game. You aren’t going to be burning rubber down tight corners at 200 kmph. You’ll need to be mindful of the track(how much G force you’ll have to deal with at that section of the track), how to approach a corner, and the type of car your are using(front engine, mid engine etc).
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| Night driving in tracks can be quite precarious |
Where I think Shift 2 beats out its competitors is in immersion. Shift 2 has undoubtedly the best cockpit view in a car with a camera that shakes with every little bump on the track, nudge of a car, or when you hit the throttle on your car. It’s violent in a way(well you’re driving a 400 horse power race car, what did you expect). Shift 2 is like a wild beast, it doesn’t seem to have the grace of a Gran Turismo as every turn or a gentle tap of the accelerator shakes and stirs your car into action.
Hitting the left or right keys(or on a gamepad) will jolt your car through a corner or chicane like it just got electric shock treatment. Rudely awakened from a nice slumber on a comforting long straight. There’s also some lag in control responsiveness by default. If that’s throwing you off your A game, you might want to adjust the responsiveness and steering deadzone.
That should take care of the lag. Which get’s me to my next point, Shift 2 really isn’t a keyboard friendly game. I suppose you could do with a keyboard and get used to tapping the keys to have precision in you turns(you’ll have to use some assists to help even things out). But the trouble is perhaps not worth it, you’re better off using a controller with analog sticks that will give you the ability to turn more precisely.
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| Drifting is still a tough act to master |
Even more impressive is the helmet cam which takes immersion to a whole new level in a racing game. You now don’t just view the track from a static camera behind the wheels but the camera moves to look around the turn like how a real driver would. This is disorienting in the beginning as it will confuse you into thinking the car is turning when it is just the camera that’s messing with your view point. But you’ll get used to it. It’s rather useful too as you get to see what type of corner you are turning into better.
The physics seem improved from the first game and damage modeling on cars seem a lot better but not quite perfect or realistic. Your cars can get pretty messed up but they are quite hardy. They don’t crumple like paper when they hit a wall like in the Burnout games, but if you have an accident such as that, you can kiss your position goodbye and other cars will over take you. Loosing a hood is the least of your concerns really. You can set damage modeling to have an affect on your car performance, but this is turned off by default and I never noticed anything major with this feature on.
Single Player Campaign
The career mode is pretty standard fare like most racing games these days. You have different classes of races and you unlock higher tier as you complete events in subsequent ones. Winning races and earning podium finish earns you money that you can then spend on tuning up your car or buying a new car entirely. You also earn experience points for doing small ‘good things’ on the track. Leading a race for one lap, following the proper racing line, and drafting, all earns you small amounts of experience points. Each time your driver levels up, you earn some new paint scheme, or some other rewards(sometimes you earn some cash as well).
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| There's a variety of events. Such as this old model vs new model race |
The selection of cars are not as huge as say Gran Turismo 5 but varied enough to give you a nice selection of exotic cars. Fans of old retro cars might be a tad bit disappointed as the selection of retro cars here are not as impressive as the modern cars(which I suppose is the focus of the game). What kind of makes up for it is that the customisation options can turn most cars into a racing beast. A lot of the lower tier cars can be upgraded to the point where they aren’t completely useless outside of their base class.
Most of the early to mid game events are all 2/3 laps races which makes things like tire wear irrelevant(but makes accidents a major set back). You’ll get the usual endurance runs/races a lot later in the campaign. There’s a nice variety of race type from retro cars, muscle cars to drift events(these have been tweaked a little in Shift 2, they are better but still not easy).
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| They've brought levelling up into a racing game. Every game is better with some levelling mechanic right? |
The AI is very aggressive and will give you a run for your money(unless you’re the guy on my auto log friends list that steam rolls through the game). You’ll find AI drivers pushing you if you slow down a tad bit too much. Even on easy the AI is quite ruthless. You’ll have to respect the racing line and if you try some audacious over taking manoeuvre, don’t expect the AI to respect that. They wont give you an inch of space.
The Internetz
The online multiplayer portion of Shift 2 has the usual create your own race type and invite a friend(or wait in the lobby for someone to join in) but is seriously missing the important feature of easily inviting a friend in. As I’ve said, invites are kind of flawed at the moment and don’t work the way they should work.
And then there is what’s called the driver duel championship. It’s a tournament mode where you take on a random driver on a random vehicle on a selection of tracks that get progressively harder. It’s a knockout type tournament so if you lose one stage, you go back all the way to the qualifying round. If you manage to win the tournament, you get a crown and bragging rights.
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| I felt this mode had a lot of potential, but Slightly Mad Studios never really made this any interesting by expanding on this idea |
The problem I have with multiplayer modes in simulation racing games is that since most races are going to be only a couple of laps(you are going to have a hard time convincing someone to join your 10 lap Nurburgring match), there is a big problem with other players playing dirty. Expect to get bumped off of your first place and not be able to do anything about it. It’s not my type of ideal racing game for online play other than comparing time and perfecting you run(which thankfully the auto log feature helps you with).
Conclusion
Shift 2 Unleashed is a very competent racing game. On the console, you’re spoilt for choice really with Forza 3 and Gran Turismo 5. But on the PC, Shift 2 Unleashed is perhaps the best option for those looking for a blend of simulation racing that is approachable and not as daunting as a full out simulation. It really doesn’t do anything remarkably new with a lot of the systems borrowed from other racing games(Auto log from Hot Pursuit 2, and racing lines are very much like in Forza Motorsport etc). Shift 2 Unleashed is nevertheless, a refinement of the first game. If you're looking for a sim racing game on the PC, you won't go wrong with Shift 2 Unleashed.
Pros:
- Auto log is a good addition although be prepared to be spammed with notifications if you have a big friends list
- Despite the smaller selection of cars compared to other titles, the single player campaign is surprisingly lengthy.
- It’s a rather pleasing looking game. Tracks and cars look really good. There’s some smart use of motion blur to make things look a lot better
- The soundtrack is surprisingly good.
- The AI is pretty Aggressive and will put pressure on you. No rubber banding AI.
- A lot of customisation options for your cars that may not offer the same depth as say some other racing game, but makes it easy to tune your cars. The game allows you to undo your changes with no penalties so it doesn't penalise you for removing modification(which you'd probably have to do to be allowed to race in some car classification)
Cons:
- Despite the auto log feature, they’ve not made joining into a race you got invited easy.
- Online multiplayer is pretty standard and they didn't explore the tournament idea to its fullest which is sort of implemented rather half heartedly.
- Not that keyboard friendly. You’ll want a controller at the very least.
Verdict: A competent simulation racing game that is a refinement of its predecessor
Note: The review copy for this review was sponsored by Gamers.com.my. The official distributer for EA products in Malaysia. You can win prizes by buying original EA games. Go here and fill up the form to be entered into the draw. You'll need to keep this sticker(shown below) that is found on the plastic cover of the game you bought.
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