SLICK SHIFTER

ABOVE: If you've got great audio turn it on

ANYONE who sat through last year’s Need For Speed Pro Street will know EA hasn’t always got racing right.

So the claws were out for the latest release, Need For Speed SHIFT.

Unfortunately, EA has thrown a rather large spanner in the works by delivering what might be the best NFS game to date, a title far in advance of last year’s broken-down offering.

It’s an odd game to pigeonhole. Part-arcade racer, part-simulation with lots of customisation, the game manages to successfully straddle two genres to deliver a novel and enjoyable racing experience.

At the core of the game is the career mode. Starting out with a basic motor, you work your way through the tiers, winning races and scoring points which lead to you unlocking more events and difficulty levels.

Throughout the career mode you’ll also develop your character as a racer.

Each driver has an individual style determined by how you score points – aggressive moves (knocking opponents off track) or precision moves (perfect cornering, bump-free overtaking). Your character, and that of the other drivers, is then accessible when you race online.

There is a good selection of cars to begin with – and more than 70 to unlock as you progress – sorted into US, European and Japanese garages.

You can also go down the customisation route, for those to whom building an eyesore complete with spoilers, rims and a paint job is the main thrust. (I once saw a car on Forza that had been customised to look like the Lexus driven by Alan Partridge, including “Cook Pass Babtridge” on the side.)

The visuals are impressive, particularly the cockpit view, which creates a realistic feeling of speed.

The tracks are individual and, in the case of Brands Hatch, easily recognisable. If you’ve got a decent audio system hooked up to your console, turn it on. The sound boys have spent lots of time on this one.

The multiplayer is strong, offering eight-player races, as well as giving instant access to drivers’ lap times and points.

To throw out one criticism there’s no provision for file sharing, particularly video. Also you can’t exchange cars (unless I’ve missed it).

Yet these are small splutters in an engine that runs as smooth as any racing game out there. I was expecting EA to drive by in a Vauxhall. Instead, they’ve shot past in a Porsche.

This really is a SHIFT in gears.

» MORE 'GAME ON' HERE...

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