Product: Need for Speed: Most Wanted Black Edition Price: $300 Pros: Addictive single-player game with stunning visual effects and plenty of fancy car models Cons: Lack of pursuit mode online
The thrill of illicit street racing permeates the air in the special release Need for Speed: Most Wanted Black Edition game for Microsoft's Xbox. The game from Electronic Arts (EA), the makers of the hit racing game series Need for Speed: Underground, covers new territory.
EA has created a new process that takes high-definition video footage of live actors and converts them into synthetic-looking game characters. This revolutionary new process integrates characters, motion and facial effects into 3D game environments.
Need for Speed: Most Wanted challenges players to become the most notorious and elusive street racers. To do that, players must build up their street credibility and criminal record via gripping, white-knuckle, head-to-head races with the top drivers on the streets.
Players must also pull daring, evasive moves to outrun and outfox the police who patrol the open road.
The intensity of these police pursuits surpasses any Hollywood-style chase scene.
The player starts the game as an unknown driver arriving in the city of Rockport in a souped-up BMW sports car with an eye to compete against the best street racers, and soon encounters the appropriately-named Sergeant Cross, a crooked cop who wants to take over the illegal racing circuit.
