Publisher: EA/Infogrames
Developer: Eden Studios
Release Date: 11/16/1999
Date Played: 10/11-14/2019
Region: USA
Time Played: 2 hours
What’d you think?: The way I’ve determined what constitutes a “loss” in racing games has historically meant that any sort of “cup” or “tournament” with multiple races where you receive points in each based on your placement, and your point total at the end determines success has to be seen all the way through. The shortest of these, in V-Rally 2: Need for Speed, (the only Need for Speed game, as near as I can tell, to trail with the franchise name rather than lead with it) is 8 races, so I played quite a bit more of this game than I usually get to do with racers, and I’m not really disappointed. Critically, driving just feels good. I’ve played lots of racing games, and I still struggle to elaborate on what exactly makes driving feel good or not, but it feels good here. There’s a decent selection of tracks and track surfaces, and a track creator that seemed to be quite good, letting you build the road’s curves and elevation changes like you were building a roller coaster track. You then choose a geographic location for the track, and it automatically populates the (walled-off) sides of the road with the appropriate scenery. Rock-solid racing game right here.
YouTube Link: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL8OIYTfquVfdMxN1G0tdTerJ5st566AwM
