Get Your Drive On: Need For Speed Underground 2

Need for Speed: Underground was not only the Xbox's first really in-depth stray into the car customization market, but perhaps the most in-depth look at tuner and import culture ever seen on a consoleЕ from the visual standpoint, at least. There were certainly a plethora of performance upgrades (for those who don't remember) but unfortunately they weren't as customizable as one might have hoped, allowing only basic tiered (and linear) upgrades. That aside, the most glaring issues with the game were not so much what it did, but what it didn't do Ц replays or online play (at least not on Xbox). This time around the team at EA Black Box has taken it a step further and not only have they greatly improved what the first game did do, they're adding to the menu with a whole rack of new features.

The most welcome one is online play. Perhaps the biggest letdown of the first game, the single-console approach was both disappointing and short-sighted, company policy or not. Since then, however, EA and Microsoft have come to an agreement and this November we will have the opportunity to take our decked-out rides online and compete with each other. Whether or not cross-platform matches will be available is yet to be seen, but the possibility is certainly there.

An instant replay feature has also been added, so at any point during a (single-player) race, you'll be able to pause, rewind and re-watch the preceding action. How in-depth and controllable these replays are is also up in the air, but if we're lucky you'll be able to control the cameraЕ. If not, at least you'll finally get to watch your sweet ride whipping along the city streets without having to concentrate on not winning your race.

Much like the recently released Street Racing Syndicate, you'll also be able to free-roam around the massive city that EA has created. That's right, no more linear game progression: Underground 2 features around 200 km's of fully fleshed out road/track, set through 5 distinct city areas (including industrial, up scale and of course, the freeway). The city (dubbed "Bayview") will allow the player to composite his or her racing career as s/he chooses, meaning if you'd rather stick to drag races and circuit races, you can keep your involvement in the other types to a minimum and still finish the game.

A couple new race types have also been added, the most intriguing of which is the "Outrun" mode Ц you'll find another racer cruising the streets of the city, tail them for a while and eventually engage in a race where the winner has to get 300 m ahead of the other racer. The twist, of course, is that the leader gets to designate the route, meaning if you get to know the city well enough (and your car's fast enough) you've got a pretty good chance of winning every time. Having said that, these races can reportedly last between 1 and 20 minutes, so they aren't by any means freebies.

Throwing in some Burnout influence for good measure, your Nitrous meter (once you acquire a kit, of course) is no longer refilled automatically in-between races. You will instead have to perform dangerous and daring manoeuvres such as grabbing air, drafting and drifting to get your boost back. While this takes away from the realism some (which is kind of ironic, since the designers claim they wish to represent the import culture authentically by limiting all the races to night time) it can certainly make for more intense racing (and also prevents you from having to make a stop after every race).

Since there are no longer any real in-game menus (a GPS-like PDA system will be your navigational guide and menu) you'll have to stop at around 20 various shops for your visual and performance upgrades. As in its predecessor, Underground 2 will have an absolute wealth of upgrades at your disposal, meaning that while there will certainly be at least a few nearly identical cars out there once the online racing starts, the repetition will be minimal.

What really made the first game was not only its 40 km's of track, or even its limited selection of cars or impressive track design (though those were all important aspects) but rather it's customization and it's sense of speed. Not to be outdone by a predecessor, Underground 2 has absolutely flooring visuals, and without a side-by-side comparison to Burnout 3, it's tough to say whether or not this will be the fastest feeling street-racing game to hit a console yet. There's no doubt in my mind, however, that the drag races will still be an exhilarating experience to say the least, even more so when you have the privilege of competing against other real players on the streets Ц legally, nonetheless. I should also mention that there is not only a greatly increased library of upgrades, but the car list has increased in size as well to over 30 choices, yet another sign that EA is actually listening to the people playing it's games.

And finally, we can't forget that EA is now implementing TRUE performance upgrades instead of the almost after-thought feeling set that we were exposed to the first time around. Even your gear ratios will be customizable this time around, meaning you can really drive how you want to. Underground 2 will feature literally hundreds of after-market performance parts, and this time they aren't just "packages".

With over twice the count of last year's visual options (including wide-body kits and scissor doors!), hundreds of performance upgrades and an astounding free-roam city, Underground 2 will very likely acquire the title of the Xbox's most definitive racer, almost certainly from a tuner standpoint if not overall.

On-Target: Sequel to the grand mother of Xbox Tuner games; real-time weather system; AMAZING cityscape with over 200km's of open road.

Hit or Miss: Still takes place only at night!

Dead Centre: Taking your totally customized ride online; incredible sound, amazing visuals and uncanny sense of speed; racing on the freeway.

Interlude: Last on the list is the relatively far-off Forza MotorsportЕ but a later release won't necessarily prevent it from sweeping the market.