Need For Speed Most Wanted (T)
Exciting racer on wrong side of the law, teens up.
(Flash is loading. If this text does not disappear you need to install the latest flash version)
- Publisher: Electronic Arts
- Genre: Video Games - Racing
- Release Date: 02/17/2006
- Online Enabled: Yes
- ESRB Rating: T
- Price: $39.99
Parents need to know
Families can talk about the dangers of street racing and irresponsible driving. When a high speed car crash left a Canadian man dead, a police officer made the game partially to blame. Do you agree? Does playing a game like this make illegal actions seem more attractive in real life? Should game makers stop glamorizing destructive and illegal activities?
Message
Social Behavior:
The game celebrates illegal street racing. Races speed through city streets and over sidewalks. Players are rewarded for running from and smashing through police cars, and demolishing some structures.
Consumerism:
The cars in the game are all branded. In-game advertising in the form of billboards and stores dots the landscape. Licensed songs on the soundtrack are announced with a pop-up on-screen display.
Drugs/Alcohol/Tobacco:
Educational Value:
Violence
Lots of cars crash into buildings and other cars, but very little damage is depicted. Some crashes involve innocent traffic, but the streets are free of pedestrians.
Sex
Some car-related sexual innuendo equating cars and women, like "She's mine now and I'm going to ride her like you never could."
Language
Common Sense says
What's the story?
Reviewed by Chris Jozefowicz
NEED FOR SPEED: MOST WANTED turns freeways and neighborhood streets into racetracks. The single-player game is dominated by a Career Mode, in which players challenge a collection of street racers known as the Blacklist 15. Players must complete a series of driving challenges before they can compete with each member of the Blacklist.
Players roam freely, selecting challenges as they encounter them, and they have the option to simply jump to a challenge from a safe-house garage. The challenges include an impressive variety of races, such as head-to-head contests against other drivers and beat-the-clock timed runs along highways. Tangling with the cops adds "heat" to a player's car, making future chases more difficult but also winning bounty points and improving the player's reputation.
Is it any good?
Need For Speed provides a nice variety of customizable cars that look and sound great. Many have noticeably different driving characteristics. The sense of speed ramps up accordingly, and the controls are generally responsive within the absurd allowances of arcade racing (due to very noticeable "rubber banding," challengers are usually never too far away, no matter how well players drive).
The Career Mode is quite lengthy and should provide at least 15 hours of gameplay. But if players tire of it, they can compete in Challenge Modes (things like creating the costliest damage possible) or take the racing online. Flying through back alleys and across sidewalks produces plenty of vicarious thrills in this excellent arcade racer, but the game does celebrate illegal and dangerous behavior. Parents may want to think carefully before giving this one the green light.
How to play
- Playability: Good. Starts off easy but difficulty ramps up to very challenging.
- Reading Required: Medium
- Graphics: High. Light reflects off surfaces, detailed cars and backgrounds
Other choices
|
Parents and kids say
All Reviews
There are 32 reviews.
Adult Reviews
There are 9 reviews.
Kids Reviews
There are 23 reviews.
Sweet car game.

