SHIFT 2: Unleashed Review

By Simon Parkin Published 29 March, 2011

Second gear.

Version tested: Xbox 360

By now, the Need For Speed brand has come to mean little more than 'EA-published video game featuring cars'. It's an umbrella term broad enough to encompass everything from the Burnout-inspired cops-and-robbers thrills of last October's Hot Pursuit to SHIFT, a simulation racer with its eye firmly on Gran Turismo and Forza Motorsport's trailblazing exhaust pipes.

With Need For Speed games tearing off in all manner of creative directions, it's clear that EA's plan in recent years was not to create a cohesive brand so much as a synonym for the term "Racing Game" that is specific to the company's output. Nevertheless, while the Need For Speed name is guaranteed to sell copies, in the case of SHIFT, it may have had other, less desirable effects.

This is clearly intended by developer Slightly Mad Studios to be a Serious Racer (TM), but it is now detrimentally associated with a clutch of titles that are anything but.

So Need For Speed: SHIFT becomes SHIFT 2: Unleashed for the sequel, freeing the game from the supposed shackles of its lighter-weight cousins. But with Forza 3 and Gran Turismo 5 both released following the original SHIFT's debut, it's going to take more than a tune-up of the name to help the sequel catch the pack.

The raw building blocks of the experience are solid yet familiar, because SHIFT 2's feature list almost exactly apes that of Turn 10's Forza titles. There is a slew of modern road and race cars to purchase, a mixture of real-world and imagined race tracks to drive them on, deep and involved tuning and decal options to customise them with and a stable of sequentially unlocked championships in which to compete while growing your collection of virtual automobiles.

That collection is never going to rival that of Polyphony Digital's latest. There are far fewer cars on offer here than in SHIFT 2's rival titles, but the limited catalogue supposedly reflects focus rather than stinginess. At least, it does according to the game's lead designer. And he has something of a point. In limiting vehicle selection to major manufacturers and their standout or iconic models (145 in total), the emphasis shifts from Pokémon-style collecting to the racing itself.

It's easier to familiarise yourself with the full range of models available in each racing class, to learn their idiosyncrasies and characteristics, and to tune each for the track and conditions set before you. It also means that all eyes are on the pitch and timbre of the racing itself.

As with its predecessor, SHIFT 2's cars have a twitchy, unruly feel in the hands. There's none of the slick grace of Forza's cars, nor the dry, studied realism of Gran Turismo's cast. There's still a great deal of oversteer, and cars will spin out at the slightest provocation. This certainly gives races a taut, sometimes fraught feel, but there's a harsh edge to the driving that takes some getting used to.

Hot Lap events let you try out new cars without having to purchase them.

Hit a barricade or slam into the bodywork of another vehicle and the screen drains of all colour, slipping into a disorientating blur. The intention is to penalise careless driving but it's an unsubtle, somewhat heavy-handed solution. In strange contrast, damage to the bodywork of vehicles, even in a head-on collision, is somewhat inconsequential in visual and mechanical terms.

Despite these reservations, SHIFT 2's handling (especially when played with a wheel or, if using a controller, tweaked to suit the input device) is wholly acceptable. What grace it lacks is made up for by the thrill of racing up to 15 other competitors and the creativity of championship design, which has you racing around Tokyo's docks at night in 1980s Japanese street cars one minute and taking on the tall endurance demands of the FIA GT1 the next.

But what causes SHIFT 2 to catch up with the pack are the innovations found in the metagame layer that sits over the basic racing. Autolog – the brilliant and engaging online competitive overlay introduced by Hot Pursuit – is present and correct, posting your best time in each and every event to a virtual wall, encouraging friends and rivals to top it.

As such, you are never merely racing against the other cars on the track in any single event. You're also racing against your friends list, and your and their best times become arcade-style high scores, with all the hustle and bustle of micro-competition that they demand.

Perhaps more profound to the second-by-second game experience, however, is the experience system, a prestige economy into which every positive action you perform in the game feeds.

Perform a slick start from the grid and you earn experience points. Overtake a competitor and you earn experience. Draft, block, stick to the green racing line marker on the track or slide with elegance around a corner and the gauge will fill. You earn points for where you place in a race, and how many of your friends you beat on Autolog. The sizeable experience gauge that sits in the centre of the top of the screen where the wing mirror normally would go may be a desperately unsubtle reward read-out, but it sure works.

Fill the gauge and your character levels up, earning money and unlocking new races, vinyls with which to decorate your vehicle, and championships. It's a system lifted straight from Dungeons & Dragons (or, to put it in car game parlance, it's Project Gotham's Kudos system taken to an extreme).

Each of the game's 30-odd courses also has a completion rate, a stat that reveals how close you have come to mastering its corners and racing line. This statistic is persistent between sessions. So, for example, next time you return to Brands Hatch you have the opportunity to improve upon the 'mastery' rate for that course, literally ticking off corners on the mini-map as you successfully complete them, and colouring sections of the track green like de Blob on wheels as you take the perfect racing line through them.

More on Shift 2: Unleashed

There will be those who baulk at all this RPG-ification of the racing game. But the core racing experience is robust enough that the constant stream of rewards and micro-challenges never feels like it's trying to make up for something crucial that's missing, so much as it's heightening the effectiveness of what's already there.

Besides, one crucial benefit of the system is that even when you're in last place it still feels as though it's worth persevering and racing well in order to net experience. For once it really isn't just the winning so much as the taking part that counts.

Online, the game has enough flexibility to allow players to set up matches to suit their tastes. Lobby owners can set the time of day, force particular in-car views and, of course, dictate the vehicle class and whether downloadable cars are permitted or not. If you want to get into car modification then the setup is identical to that of the Forza series, each car given a 'score' based on its power and potential, and then slotted into a class based on that number.

Once you've pushed a vehicle to the edge of a class you can then fine-tune its behaviour on the track, even saving out specific tuning setups for specific tracks and conditions and tweaking values live on the test track.

As an update to the previous SHIFT title, Unleashed is a significant draft forward. While the driving itself retains the boisterous character of its predecessor, there's been a considerable tightening of focus in the experience system, which makes every race feel meaningful whether you win or lose.

In a sense, the designers are following a general trend in game design, rather than defining it, but never before have extrinsic rewards been used with such determination and to such great effect in a racing game. Combine this with the brilliance of EA's Autolog and SHIFT 2 becomes a significant proposition.

Many will consider the game a third place to Forza and Gran Turismo's slicker, more exacting odes to motor racing, but in terms of its social features, SHIFT 2 leads the pack, even if Autolog really is a debt owed to the Need for Speed heritage it is so eager to pull away from.

8 / 10

Read the Eurogamer.net scoring policy
Picture of Simon.

About Simon Parkin

Simon Parkin is an author and journalist on video games. A core contributor to Eurogamer since 2005, he is also a critic and columnist on games for The Guardian.

Read more articles from Simon by visiting the Simon Parkin archive page.

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Comments (83) Latest comment 11 months ago

Comments for this article are now closed, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • Big-Swiss #1 1 year ago

    First!

    and its another 8/10! some good games this year! The year of the 8/10!
    too bad, too many race games latley, I can't play one race game after the other, need some variety.

    Edited by Big-Swiss at 29/03/11 @ 10:27

  • BillMurray #2 1 year ago

    Hmm, still not keen on the handling from the description. Really do wish they'd done a demo.

  • Der_tolle_Emil #3 1 year ago

    I didn't know the first Shift was out before Forza 3. It all sounds very nice but I think I'll stick with Forza since I don't race online anyway and thus don't really need the social features. The review did remind me to pick up Hot Pursuit though.

  • SYS64738 #4 1 year ago

    "As with its predecessor, SHIFT 2's cars have a twitchy, unruly feel in the hands."

    1/10 and no buy for me then. The end.

    Edit: So while I'm getting negged for merely stating my opinion and purchasing decision I'll elaborate a bit more then:

    I'm tired of twitchy controls, whether you can tweak them or not. A formula car can be twitchy but still that doesn't explain why people (see VVV's videos on youtube) can't keep a normal roadcar straight on a straight bit of track. That's not how cars behave in the real world, and given that the Dev's want to sell this as a Sim this is a dealbreaker for me. If this would handle like GT5 or Forza I'd buy it for the racing aspects, but in light of the comments and especially based on what I've seen on youtube, I certainly won't be burned again by an EA 'sim'.
    Edited by SYS64738 at 29/03/11 @ 10:44

  • dr_zoidthrob #5 1 year ago

    If the handling is no better on the joypad than the last one, then no sale. However, if it can be tweaked, I'm interested. Shame there's no demo (yet - it could be a delayed demo, like the Black Ops one)

  • Murbal #6 1 year ago

    Much as I've tired of racing games of late, that actually sounds pretty good.

  • joelstinton #7 1 year ago

    odd review, i'm no closer on deciding whether to buy this or not. Some of the features introduced in the first shift i quite liked (mastering courses especially), and i guess combine this with autolog, i might give this a punt in a few months.

  • RegorTtenneb #8 1 year ago

    "Besides, one crucial benefit of the system is that even when you're in last place it still feels as though it's worth persevering and racing well in order to net experience. For once it really isn't just the winning so much as the taking part that counts. "

    This is why I loved the original shift. This alone is what makes shift stand out from Forza & GT. Pumped for this!!

  • cianchristopher #9 1 year ago

    How are the graphics, Simon? Are they better than Forza/GT due to the lower 30fps framerate (in theory allowing higher detail)?

    Anyway, it looks cool, but ultimately pointless as Forza/GT are so far ahead in terms of handling, and that's what it all comes down to in the end. Still, I agree about not needing 1,000 cars in a game (especially when it turns out to be more like a hundred cars, with some small variations on each).

  • TaniumZX #10 1 year ago

    These 8/10 scores are getting really predictable. Either do the rating out of 100, or bin the rating altogether.
    Edited by TaniumZX at 29/03/11 @ 10:41

  • rojjer #11 1 year ago

    Excellent - going to trade cryshit 2 for this

  • IkariW #12 1 year ago

    For a game with the tag line "This is real racing" to make the handling twitchy like the first one is just maddness. :/

    Ask any racing driver, they try to make as few imputs on the wheel as possible. The aim is to get smooth lines through corners to maximise acceleration and traction and minimise oversteer and understeer which slows you down!

    Why in the name of all that is holy didn't they just tone it down a little?! I know its a game and everything, but don't say its 'real racing' if its just, well, not...

    Twitching up the handling is not a great way of making your racing seem more exciting... close AI battles, persistent rivals on track, AI making errors, consequence for your actions... thats how to make it exciting, in my opinion. Give the player something to lose and then winning is made much sweeter!

  • CaLeDee #13 1 year ago

    As has already been mentioned, Eurogamer seems to have turned into an 8/10 site and I'm sure the staff have already noticed this. Not saying the scores are wrong but it's starting to just look silly, really.

  • Murbal #14 1 year ago

    @TaniumZX - how is a rating out of 100 going to help? The larger the range of possible scores the less I have faith in them.

  • parky69 #15 1 year ago

    I quote "SHIFT 2's cars have a twitchy, unruly feel in the hands" Ask Lewis Hamilton if his F1 car drives like a saloon, or if Jason Plato would take his family out for Sunday spin in his touring car. Racing cars are animals, I dont want another Forza or GT5, far too predictable. Anyway i'm buying :)

  • hippyjump #16 1 year ago

    Social features?
    "U SUCK BALLS"
    "LOL"
    "TROLOLOLO"

  • waggy79 #17 1 year ago

    @Rojjer

    lol @ Cryshit 2, i see what you did there. Wish i had your way with words.

  • Firedshot #18 1 year ago

    If the physics suck and you get points for knocking people of the track you might as well name the game destruction Derby. If after that review from your comments your think the game is 8/10 you lack the experience in racing sim's.

  • Vlad27145 #19 1 year ago

    @all of those saying "shame there is no demo"

    I know I'm going to get negged to oblivion for this, but this is one of the BIG reasons of piracy on PC. The dev can't be arsed to give us a demo? Well, with some games we can't be arsed to part with 60 notes without trying them first. If this was a game I was interested in (the review is enough for me to know I am not, I hated the handling in the first Shift), I am not ashamed to admit I'd torrent it first, and if I liked it, I'd buy.

  • mrhand #20 1 year ago

    I played this a lot last week and to be honest I loved it to bits.

    I was really surprised just how good the helmet cam is. Usually I hate using the in car views, but with SHIFT 2 its pretty much the only view I used all day.

    I compared the handling of the MP4-12C car on SHIFT 2 to GT5. SHIFT 2 for me wins hands down. I really didn't have a problem with the handling of any of the cars. It's GT5 with added fun.

  • linea #21 1 year ago

    I so so wish that what EA had done was get SimBin to do the car physics, and retained the graphics and Autolog stuff from this.

    That really would have been a game to hold its head up with Forza and GT

  • CraigMcG #22 1 year ago

    @murbal
    I think he meant use the entire scale and rate poor games at 2, below average games at 4 and above average games at 6, scores of 8 and above should be reserved for only the best games

    Personally I'm not a fan of review scores, I get my impression of a game from the reviewers words not an arbitrary number tacked on at the end
    Edited by CraigMcG at 29/03/11 @ 11:24

  • dr_zoidthrob #23 1 year ago

    @vlad27145 - I was thinking about the 360 version actually, but I see your point.

  • swisstony #24 1 year ago

    What is it with Autolog? Unless you've got a bunch of mates all playing that game and posting times anywhere near yours surely it's irrelevant?

  • bodhi85uk #25 1 year ago

    Wouldve really liked a demo, vids look nice but i just cant be doing with twitchy "sim-lite" handling and 30fps in racing games, i also cant stand racing games where crashing/contact isnt modelled correctly, complete immersion breaker when you tap someones rear and you stick to them or they stay on rails.

    Accidents are a part of racing and need to be modelled correctly when they happen, i was so disapointed at f1 2010s pathetic damage model, front wings made of granite and suspension that took 3/4 wall slams to break. I would rather race for an hour and accidently bin it on the last lap into a gravel trap or wall and get a DNF than have the game forgive me after a stupid mistake and bounce me back off the wall unharmed, i feel like ive cheated.

    Ive taken to putting money id waste on console racing games and put it into an iracing.com subscription. Some amazing racing to be had once you get out the rookie leagues and a excellent community of people who want to race you hard, not spin you or use you as a brake into turn 1 like in gt/forza MP

    edit: spelling mistake
    Edited by bodhi85uk at 29/03/11 @ 14:27

  • dr_zoidthrob #26 1 year ago

    Is it called 'helmet-cam' because that's what you look like when you're driving and missing every apex?

  • UncleLou #27 1 year ago

    Shame about the handling, thought the first one's was awful (without tweaks at least), so it's a no buy (especially as I'd buy it for the PS3 this time, not the PC). Particularly strange as I love Simbin's games, but whatever arcadey tweaks they made for Shift just doesn't work for me. :-/

  • Gruff #28 1 year ago

    @swisstony

    I think its a bit like the system Trials HD had, which going by the Eurogamer forums at the time, certainly got everybody playing, and added a lot to the game.

    I think I have seen enough to pre order anyway

  • Anciegher #29 1 year ago

    Was hoping for 9/10 :(

  • maxb #30 1 year ago

    day 1 for me,after i got used to the the 1st one i loved it and although im shit at racing games i quite liked autolog in hot pursuit but prefered shift as a game so im looking forward to this.
    anyone wanting some autolog action but doesnt take things to seriously (coz i am shit)add me,gamertag is zombie facelift

  • UkHardcore23 #31 1 year ago

    Surprise Surprise an 8

    GT5 sent me to sleep due to the terrible AI and lack of events forcing me to grind....hoping this is better!
    Edited by UkHardcore23 at 29/03/11 @ 11:49

  • udat #32 1 year ago

    Racing cars *are* twitchy... feed in the throttle too early and generally round you go. This can happen on a straight quite easily. If I nail the throttle on a straight in my rear-wheel drive road car then the back can overtake the front if I don't use steering inputs to keep it pointing the right way.

    Of course this can ruin a game when you are using the crummy analogue sticks, but make it more fun if you have shelled out for a wheel.

  • metalangel #33 1 year ago

    It sure as heck doesn't read like a 8/10... it sounds like it's exactly the same as the overrated first one.

    Laggy controls, twitchy handling, pointless graphical effects, all present again. Plus we have the completely ridiculous Autolog system (how many times? it's an online leaderboard, same as every game has, it is NOT 'revolutionary') and also now a stupid Kudos-alike system.

    A racing game should be able to stand up on the strength of the racing alone, it shouldn't require novelties and distractions to keep you interested.

    How does the AI compare to the first? Where it crawled around 60mph bends at 20mph? What about the much-vaunted helmet view? Does it still make everything impossible to see due to the stupid 'blurring' effect, including the interior of your own car?

  • lostlain #34 1 year ago

    I think a better Rating system is Binary, I mean a game is either good or bad according to an opinion, the text will reflect how good or how bad. Eurogamer don't seem to stick to their own scoring system. It seems they have now set 8/10 = Average. I think a Binary system encourages people to read the text more too! Which is what we all want, Someones opinion cannot be reflected in a score of any kind.

  • brseg #35 1 year ago

    TeamVVV 'first look' video says: "the car waves around", "[handling] not really any different to Shift1 at all", "disappointing", "underwhelming".

  • Snaggletooth #36 1 year ago

    If a racing game handles like shit.....it's a no purchase from me I'm afraid. I'm actually quite disappointed as was hoping for some proper simulation, as they advertised it :) I am kicking myself for believing, I should have known better from a NFS game.

    /goes back to GT5

  • 32768Colours #37 1 year ago

    I must say I'm rather impressed with how EA are managing to turn around the previously rather patchy NFS franchise. To be honest, I'm rather impressed how EA have turned themselves around generally.

  • Deckard1 #38 1 year ago

    Needs a demo. I hated the handling in the first one, and I won't be touching this till I have a try of it first.

  • spookalilly #39 1 year ago

    Just as Codemasters took their only good track racer (TOCA Touring Car Championship), and converted it into a brainless arcade racer for the sequel and every game since, EA haven't made a good one since The Need For Speed. I'd even argue that to all intents and purposes both firms are still releasing games with the same physics models as TOCA 2 and NFS 2 respectively. Lowest. Common. Denominator.

  • secombe #40 1 year ago

    Is it still mainly street-based tracks? The previous game worked much better on proper circuits, which were few and far between.

  • metalangel #41 1 year ago

    Ah, something I forgot: Is there still an obnoxious tosser shouting "GO GO GO IT'S ALL YOURS" in your ear?

  • Big-Swiss #42 1 year ago

    fuck these comment sections!

  • BigDaddy82 #43 1 year ago

    @metalangel

    There's a guy now who shouts 'It's green go go go!' now at the start of races, it's a bit anticlimatic

    Anyway reading this review it seems that this game has no original ideas at all, or am i wrong? It states that the only good things about the game really are Autolog (ripped from Hot Pursuit) and the experience system (ripped from the first game)...apart from that the game apparantly has dodgy handling and has copied forza's track list....so an 8/10?

  • Ryze #44 1 year ago

    60fps?

  • FaceInTheCrowd #45 1 year ago

    its got Bathurst,haven't had a good blast around that since TOCA RD2,shame what codies did with that franchise,as racing those Aussie V8s and the DTM cars was great fun,we need someone to pick those licences up.Just realised past w/end how i miss those Aussie V8s after watching the Adelaide round on motors tv. :( , on order from shopto hopefully arrive thur to give it a go

    Edited by FaceInTheCrowd at 29/03/11 @ 13:28

  • orangpelupa #46 1 year ago

    @Ryze
    60fps on PC.. but that IF the frame rate not capped.... (some multiplatform game cap the PC frame rate to 30fps for no good reason...)

  • weblaus #47 1 year ago

    So no word about the helmet cam or the very aggressive AI, but lots and lots on the experience stuff that wasn't all that different in the first game? Hm..

    Also, how can you get the track number so wrong (funnily enought Eurogamer.de also made this mistake)? Yes, it's 30-odd locations, but most have more than one course layout, so the actual amount is more like 90.

  • Numbat #48 1 year ago

    I hated the demo for Shift, especially when using a wheel, so avoided. But I picked it up a lot later for about Ł7 new, and have really loved it - the handling just had not been optimised for the demo but is great in the full game. So I can see why they've been nervous to make a Shift 2 demo. I'd say I've enjoyed this more than Forza, and the handling also feels comparable to Race Pro, which was by Simbin.

    My only question is do I get this now, or wait a few months?

  • muttler #49 1 year ago

    Sounds good. If it wasnt for the fact that I've already decided to get Motorstorm Apocalypse instead, I would've actually gone and got this.

  • 43n1m4 #50 1 year ago

    If the handling is unchanged from the first game, I'm not buying. Played the first Shift 4-5 hours, and then placed it in its rightful home: the shelf. Perhaps I hoped for more, but I really need good handling with the standard controller, and the controls were downright bad in the first game. Perhaps Forza 3 had spoiled me, but nevertheless that's the driving game I keep coming back to, because of its tight, responsive controls and smooth 60 fps.

  • SYS64738 #51 1 year ago

    To some commenters here: If you're driving a car (racing spec or not) down a straight and you lose control by applying the gas pedal you should head straight to the garage to sort it out:)

  • rojjer #52 1 year ago

    @waggy79

    Thankyou :-) It fits with the standard of the game. If I wanted to play a slideshow I'd use powerpoint.

  • mcmothercruncher #53 1 year ago

    While it may be a good game then, it ain't a sim then, as promised.
    As I blathered somewhere else, I don't think EA have it in them to really make a proper simulation. That's fine, but they should stop promising that they are.

  • IronGiant #54 1 year ago

    What is it with the reviews here recently, how good are the sound effects.. How stable is the framerate.. Have they improved the audio/visual presentation from the previous game? These are important things to know especially if you've spent a good chunk of cash on surround sound and a big HDTV!! I'll have to look elsewhere for a decent review.

  • rottingbadger #55 1 year ago

    After reading the review I didn't feel like I had learnt anything, it did seem to mention a whole load of stuff that existed in the first game (e.g. the points scoring for clean driving etc). I'll also be looking elsewhere for a detailed review before buying.

  • SvennoJ #56 1 year ago

    Nothing about the performance? Is it 30 or 60fps. Is the sound better, the first one would sometimes cut out with dts output. Are the slowdown issues gone? There was a weird bug in the ps3 version where the frame rate would remain stable but the simulation would run at half speed for 30 sec at a time at certain parts of the track. Are there still parts in the tracks where your car will start bouncing out of control? The first game was playable with 4wd cars and knowing where to go slow to survive the bumps of doom.

  • Soton4084 #57 1 year ago

    Sounds good, I'll definitely be picking this up at the weekend

  • AdamAsunder #58 1 year ago

    Are EA the only publisher that can afford to make games?

  • metalangel #59 1 year ago

    @AdamAsunder: no, but they can afford to make crappy games punch well above their weight by throwing layer upon layer of OTT presentation on them.
    Edited by metalangel at 29/03/11 @ 16:31

  • BrokenSymmetry #60 1 year ago

    Mmm, very bland review, especially compared, for example, to the recent MotoGP review. Not very much about the helmet cam, the tracks, the racing experience in general.

  • dubdivision #61 1 year ago

    Shift 1 was the best non anal racer since PGR4.

    Hope for more of the same.

    Apart from drifting which does not belong in a racing game.
    Edited by dubdivision at 29/03/11 @ 17:52

  • Tallon4 #62 1 year ago

    The cockpit view and engine sounds in shift 1 were really great.
    I bet this is gonna be a hell of a ride!

    Buying it asap

  • Seansy #63 1 year ago

    Tdu2 is now traded.

    Thank fuck.

    But I still can't believe I'm trading it in for a NFS title.

  • secombe #64 1 year ago

    @SYS67438

    Trust me, there are plenty of cars that will spin if you mash the throttle whilst pointing straight ahead. Youtube 'Renault Crash Dubai' for my favourite (and most expensive) example.

  • Scimarad #65 1 year ago

    I really hope Forza 4 'copies' the autolog thing.

  • agparrot #66 1 year ago

    The sizeable experience gauge that sits in the centre of the top of the screen where the wing mirror normally would go

    WING Mirror? Are you sure?

  • bluemax #67 1 year ago

    I have to agree with other posts, this review is severly lacking (again, see Crysis 2) no mention of graphics, sounds, in depth handling etc. thats really disappointing for someone like me who hasn`t made his mind up yet, and no demo on the horizon.
    Come on eurogamer you can do better seriously!!
    Edited by bluemax at 29/03/11 @ 22:01

  • Lucodeath #68 1 year ago

    Any know what its like with G27 on ps3?

  • bosseye #69 1 year ago

    I don't get this bumming of Autolog - they did it with Hot Pursuit too, as if a subtly altered leaderboard feature was in some way revolutionary. It really isn't.

  • xandoodle #70 1 year ago

    I really hope GT copies the autolog thing... I mean they are still updating it, right?

  • labassa #71 1 year ago

    Either you want hard to master amazing game or you want a long race, dull realism and as thank you you'll be rewarded a 1979 datsun, yes gran turismo I'm talking to you

  • SteveV #72 1 year ago

    Why does the review say there are 145 cars? There aren't. There's about 120.

  • Darksjeik #73 1 year ago

    nfs shift 2...and the world shrugged

    @ steve: There probably are 145 printed on the disc and EA will gladly unlock the rest of them for $ ;)
    Edited by Darksjeik at 30/03/11 @ 13:10

  • 5h1nj1 #74 1 year ago

    I don't give a damn about all the "social" features, all I want is a strong single player experience with an option for an occasional multiplayer.
    I hated autolog in the previous game, how it couldn't be turned off and slowed down the menu navigation. Geez, let me CHOOSE at the start whether I want MP or not and don't bother me with some "autolog" if I say no.
    All these mandatory "social" things really start to get on my nerve lately.

  • Miths #75 1 year ago

    I am so utterly disappointed right now that I can scarcely believe a game could cause it. I've just been making my first attempts at playing the PC version (my EA store download unlocked at Midnight), but it's just been flat out terrible so far.

    I should perhaps preface this by saying that I was among those who actually kind of enjoyed the severely flawed Shift 1 (certain cars at least) - where I played the PS3 version with a Logitech G25.

    So far I'm having too major problems with the PC version that are pretty much putting me on the verge of just giving up and forgetting all about this game (and after I'm done writing this I'm going to do a bit of hotlapping in iRacing or netKar Pro to calm my nerves :)).

    1. The handling and force feedback, I'm playing again with a G25, is really just rather bad - which is admittedly only based on the two cars I've tried so far (a Nissan GT-R and an Audi S4). Sluggish and imprecise, and far worse than I remember from Shift 1, although I do suspect my memories of that game are probably more rose coloured than they should be. I imagine they are probably actually quite similar in terms of handling.

    2. No matter my in-game or driver settings - including lowering screen resolution, turning off AA and Vsync and changing all the graphics settings between high, medium and low - I'm completely unable to get framerates higher than 30-35 when I'm on track, and it was as low as 22 during the initial race.
    I've tried running Rivatuner in the background to monitor temperatures and fan speed, and my GPU barely even gets warm and the fan stays at its usual quiet 40% operation mode I usually only see on the desktop.
    So a CPU bottleneck perhaps? Well, it's not state of the art, but I am running an Intel Core 2 Quad CPU, plus 8 GB RAM and a Geforce GTX 260.

    Edit: A graphics driver update from 260.89 to the latest official 266.58 took care of my framerate issues. I can't recall ever seeing such a massive performance increase with a driver upgrade before - from an unstable 30ish fps at low graphics settings to 45-60 (vsynced) at higher settings.

    Well, I guess GT5 will have to remain my best option when I want to drive road legal supercars - which I would be perfectly fine with if it wasn't for the mostly anemic engine sounds in that game. They really spoil the experience for me.
    But for now I'm gonna load up netKar Pro to relax a bit with proper car physics and high framerates :).
    Edited by Miths at 31/03/11 @ 16:04

  • Miths #76 1 year ago

    I think I'll have to revise my initial terrible impression of this game.
    After solving my severe framerate issues with an upgrade to the latest Nvidia drivers (I'm getting 40-60 fps now at 1920x1200 instead of barely 30), spending some time (and I'm probably not quite done yet) fine tuning the force feedback of my G25 in the Logitech Profiler - including taking the suggestion made by people on the NoGripRacing forums to take the rather unusual approach and uncheck the "allow the game to modify settings" options - and last but not least installing a small mod someone has already released that tweaks and improves tyre physics a bit, I actually find the driving quite enjoyable in the cars I've tried so far (Nissan GT-R, Audi S4, Alfa 8c, Aston Martin V8 Vantage and a Porsche GT3 RS).

    Input lag is the main problem that remains, but the actual input delay isn't quite as severe as the animated steering wheel in the cockpit would make you think, and I'm too busy looking at the road ahead to pay much attention to the steering wheel anyway.

  • Lucodeath #77 1 year ago

    Maybe the ps3 will get a patch so it can get 120fps on two screens.

  • jthorne19 #78 1 year ago

    I have mixed feelings about this game. I have just bought a copy and played a few races so I can't really offer my opinion on the whole product, however, from what I have played, I feel that this game feels like it hasn't got a soul. I don't really feel attached to it. Maybe it's because it doesn't really have a story.(debatable as to wether a racing game should have one or not.)

    I have however, just come off the back of playing metal gear solid 4 and that has an awesome story. I know you can't really compare them but for me I feel like I have gone from playing something with a massive amount of soul to something with no soul or very little soul. It's just the feeling i get from the game.

    I also don't really like the new helmet cam. It turns awkwardly and it just makes for a strange game mechanic in my opinion. For me I felt it detracts from the game where as when helmet cam was introduced in the first game it seemed to add to the experience.

    I am hoping the 2nd game will grow on me as I play it more.

  • jthorne19 #79 1 year ago

    I have mixed feelings about this game. I have just bought a copy and played a few races so I can't really offer my opinion on the whole product, however, from what I have played, I feel that this game feels like it hasn't got a soul. I don't really feel attached to it. Maybe it's because it doesn't really have a story.(debatable as to wether a racing game should have one or not.)

    I have however, just come off the back of playing metal gear solid 4 and that has an awesome story. I know you can't really compare them but for me I feel like I have gone from playing something with a massive amount of soul to something with no soul or very little soul. It's just the feeling i get from the game.

    I also don't really like the new helmet cam. It turns awkwardly and it just makes for a strange game mechanic in my opinion. For me I felt it detracts from the game where as when helmet cam was introduced in the first game it seemed to add to the experience.

    I am hoping the 2nd game will grow on me as I play it more.

  • jthorne19 #80 1 year ago

    I have mixed feelings about this game. I have just bought a copy and played a few races so I can't really offer my opinion on the whole product, however, from what I have played, I feel that this game feels like it hasn't got a soul. I don't really feel attached to it. Maybe it's because it doesn't really have a story.(debatable as to wether a racing game should have one or not.)

    I have however, just come off the back of playing metal gear solid 4 and that has an awesome story. I know you can't really compare them but for me I feel like I have gone from playing something with a massive amount of soul to something with no soul or very little soul. It's just the feeling i get from the game.

    I also don't really like the new helmet cam. It turns awkwardly and it just makes for a strange game mechanic in my opinion. For me I felt it detracts from the game where as when helmet cam was introduced in the first game it seemed to add to the experience.

    I am hoping the 2nd game will grow on me as I play it more.

  • sinco #81 1 year ago

    It felt strange to buy a NFS title for me.
    Not a fan. In fact I dislike all the NFS releases.
    But I gave it a go and have to say it's a great racing game. Forza seems sterile, F1 2010 makes me fall asleep now.
    Shift is, in a way, what I was expecting from Race Pro... With steroids. Great game!!
    Flaws on the 360: input lag - plz solve it. My wheel, porshe gt2, randomly looses ff. Tires should be louder. Aside from that, And I happily ignore it - my racing game of preference, by miles, on the xbox 360. This on Elite - racing model and with zero aids on - the only way I played it - onthe other modes I can't tell you anything and I'm not even curious to try.

  • steveyou #82 11 months ago

    I am finding it very hard to control any car even on the lowest speeds and the Novice setting is way too slow. I have tried to adjust the game setting but it is still impossible to use i.e. the stick to steer and any car cannot grip and will skid everywhere.
    I have also had my buddies try it and they also find it difficult to use…I would go so far in describing it as unable.
    I also have the original Need for Speed Shift which is a great game and controls correctly.
    I would recommend they try a normal range of XBOX 360 users and see how they get on with it…
    I have done some searching on the web… and I am not the only one having problems
    I was also told in Game the UK store that many are returning this game and buying something else so they have many pre used Shift Unleashed 2 limited Edition for sale.
    How did this get past test? And quality of insurance?

  • skankyjoe #83 11 months ago

    There's a mistake in this review, it should read 'Shift 2's handling is wholly UNacceptable'. This is a waste of money, play GT5.