Need for Speed Rivals Review: A Gorgeous Open Road to Explore

Need for Speed Rivals has cops and racers going head-to-head in some of the best and most chaotic racing yet. Players are able to play as both a racer and a cop, and can switch campaigns at any point during the game through the main menu. So if players are feeling tired of one race after another and feel like dishing out some damage against other racers instead, they can easily switch on over to the police campaign.

From the beginning players feel right in the middle of all the action. They start out with beautiful looking cars and can easily unlock more by completing challenges. It’s a huge world to explore with many objectives to complete to earn points. Earning points allows players to upgrade their vehicles and purchase pursuit tech like a shock weapon or jammer. Both sides of the law have pursuit tech to use against one another and players will absolutely love unleashing it against their enemies.

The pursuit tech is great for players to use when racing against other racers or to keep the police from using their own technology against them. It changes the gameplay just enough, but not in a significant way that takes away from the skill of racing. It’s still going to come down to the speed and skill of handling what the roads throw at the player and using the boost at the right moment.

Need for Speed Rivals is absolutely gorgeous! One of the biggest reasons that makes the open world such an enjoyable place to play is that it features multiple locations types with varying terrain. This includes desert, forest, and mountain locations that each have their own distinct look that makes them lovely to see. The visuals in this game are some of the best yet that I’ve seen in a racing title, and it’s wonderful looking at random leaves and particles being blown around the roads. The trees look lovely and it’s awesome when coming across changing weather conditions.

The weather conditions are probably my favorite thing about the game. I love when it starts raining, but it’s amazing when it turns into a big thunderstorm and players can see the lightning flashing above. My first thunderstorm experience was incredible, and I can’t wait to come across more! I also love the changing hours from day to night, and witnessing a heavy snow storm in the middle of the night with cops chasing me down also looked quite lovely.

The storyline in the game isn’t really anything great, but who cares! It’s all about the racing here with players creating their own story with every pursuit and every race. There are random races that take place on the open roads, set races, speed zones, high speed cameras, jumps, and more. Players are also challenged with losing the cops in a specific amount of time to complete an objective. There is just so much to do and that’s on top of the random driving that tempts the players as they explore these new and beautiful open roads.

Another interesting feature in the game is that players earn points when completing objectives and challenges. Their ranking will increase every time they race and win, complete more challenges, and escape the police. However, every time their ranking increases, the harder the cops will come after them. So, the longer players spend in the open world causing large amounts of chaos, the larger amount of points they’ll earn. Players can lose their points, though, if the cops bust them, so it’s a big gamble to stay out in the open world at the higher heat ranking. This is especially true if players don’t have good pursuit tech installed and a maxed out vehicle ranking. It’s a fun challenge though!

When playing a game, players have the opportunity to choose between single player or in a world with friends or random players. Random rooms hold 6 total players and play exactly the same as a single player room; it’s just more likely that one of the cops that are chasing down racers happen to be a player. It makes the experience a little more interesting for players when having to deal with other live opponents. This can also be turned on and off at will to make sure the player has the best possible experience.

Need for Speed Rivals entertains plenty for all racing fans, allowing them to easily fall in love with this title. Most importantly, it handles extremely well when it comes to racing. It feels very smooth when drifting around tight corners or navigating precisely between two vehicles. It’s also exciting to use pursuit tech and to make a large jump over specific zones. With wonderful control, fun pursuit tech, and an absolutely gorgeous world to explore; Need for Speed Rivals is a game that shouldn’t be passed on at all.

Score: 9/10

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