Need for Speed: Most Wanted Limited Edition Review for the Xbox 360

Need for Speed: Most Wanted
Open World Racing Has Never Felt So Good

For Easter this year, I was happy to find a copy of Need for Speed: Most Wanted Limited Edition in my basket. After getting home from Church, I fired up my Xbox 360, opened my tray, and started up possibly one of the best games I have played in a long time.

When the opening cutscene began, I was completely blown away by the stunning graphics. And then when the cutscene ended, it threw me behind the wheel of a white Porsche Aston Martin. As I was cruising through the streets of Fairhaven, I noticed all the life and depth of the city itself. The city has a variety of cars driving around the vast open world. I had never seen so much depth in a free-roam racing game in my life!

I had a blast just exploring the map itself. From the city to the towering mountains to the scenic overlooks and bridges, this game looks all-around amazing. The lighting effects look beautiful, and the game looks its best when the sun is setting and you are speeding across one of the bridges in the huge world. The lighting looks perfect on the bridge, and the car's shadow is also spectacular.

Now, I'm going to talk about gameplay. At first, the cars feel a little hard to handle. But, after a good 5 minutes, you really get the hang of things. In terms of racing, this is the best that the Need for Speed franchise has ever been. Every race feels fun and very smooth, but now and then after a big crash, I would experience framerate issues. Now, that didn't happen too much, so it is nothing to worry about.

Overall, I would say that this a very high quality game that you could definitely sink a good deal of time into. And nothing is more rewarding than beating the most wanted cars, wrecking them, and getting a nice new ride after such a challenging race. Need for Speed: Most Wanted sets a whole new standard for driving games, or just open world games in general.

The NERDict:

+ Stunning Visuals

+ Smooth Gameplay

+ Gripping Police Chases

- Sensitive Driving Controls

Rating: 9.5