This is a guest post by Mark – Go follow him on Twitter.

The Run is the latest installment in the Need For Speed series, and it takes a different path than the previous games. You play as Jack, an illicit underground racer who’s in trouble with the mafia. You get the offer from a friend to participate in ‘The Run’. A race from San Fransisco to New York, all out of cash and the mafia wants him dead. Jack signs up in hope to win the price money to pay off his debt. This is the first Need For Speed game that has an action packed story, and you’re not just racing against other drivers all the time. Remember, the mafia wants you dead. You’ll be spending time running from the mafia while you are trying to win the race. This is also the first Need For Speed game where you set foot outside your car. However there isn’t a lot of freedom when you are outside the car, as the events outside the car is heavily scripted and everything from running faster or jumping is decided by quick time events.

The racing is smooth and it’s a nonstop adrenalin rush, everything from racing to escaping the police to dodging bullets from the mafia. You’re in for one helluva ride. However its strength lies in the multiplayer and challenges series. Seeing as some of the racing events are scripted, your road will be block by a truck, car, explosion and you have to quickly dodge that and drive down another road. It decreases replay value, as you are most likely to learn when it will happen and what will happen after a while. The game is different from your traditional Need For Speed game, it feels new and fresh and the driving is more arcade style with a hint of realism. Unlike the previous titles that have come out recently. It is, nonetheless, a very fun game.

The game utilises the Frostbite game engine created by DICE, this makes the quick time events transition smoothly, it also gives you a beautiful scenery and detailed cars. The soundtrack of the game is really good, a lot of great songs on there. However the multiplayer aspect have fallen into decay recently, there is a lot of ruthless and respect-less drivers playing, thinking it is a demolition derby. Now that isn’t that annoying, but it kinda removes the whole racing experience when everyone is just going pedal to the metal and crashing into walls and whatnot instead of actually turning in turns. And it seems like the game in a way rewards that kind of driving, as there isn’t really and consequences for driving like that, it gets slightly annoying when you see someone drive head first into a wall, and not total their car. They just bounce off and drive on without any penalty. And when they can just touch your car softly and you magically fly into a wall. This is possibly something that is wrong in the game engine, it doesn’t happen all the time. But I have seen quite a lot of cheaters playing recently, unlimited nitro, as soon as you touch them you fly off the race track, their cars are faster than they should be, so on and so forth.

It’s a great game when you don’t get put in the same lobby as cheaters and ruthless drivers. Also, when the game engine doesn’t muck up. Best played together with friends, though!

Need For Speed: The Run Review, 10.0 out of 10 based on 3 ratings