Need for Speed: Underground 2
Encyclopedia
Need for Speed: Underground 2 (NFSU2 or NFSUG2) is a cross-platform
racing
video game published and developed by Electronic Arts
. Released in 2004, it is the direct sequel to Need for Speed: Underground
, and is part of the Need for Speed
series, available on Nintendo GameCube
, PlayStation 2
, Xbox
, Game Boy Advance
, Nintendo DS
and Microsoft Windows
. It was developed by EA Black Box. Like its predecessor, it was also commercially successful, and sold nine million copies worldwide.
The game is based around tuning cars
for street races, resuming the Need for Speed: Underground storyline. Need for Speed: Underground 2 provides several new features, such as a broader customization, new methods of selecting races, the "explore" mode (just driving around freely, like the Midnight Club
series, in a large city known as "Bayview"). Underground 2 also introduces several SUV
s, which could be customized as extensively as other Underground 2 vehicles and used to race against other SUV racers. Brooke Burke is the voice of Rachel Teller, the person who guides the player through the story.
On the Nintendo DS
installment, users are able to design custom decals to adorn any vehicle in the game. The PlayStation Portable
equivalent is Need for Speed: Underground Rivals.
after the events of Need for Speed: Underground
. The prologue begins with the player driving in a Nissan Skyline R34 in Olympic City probably renamed Bayview, the setting of NFS:UG. He then receives a race challenge from a rather ominous personality who offers him a spot on his crew, but "won't take 'no' for an answer." The player races off — despite Samantha's calls to stay — only to be ambushed by a mysterious driver in a black Hummer H2 who blinds the player with his headlights, and the player loses control over the car, sliding to a wall that totals his Skyline. The driver, who has a unique scythe
tattoo, makes a call confirming the accident, saying: "Everything is cool, i just needed to take care of a....little problem." and the flashback fades out.
Fast forward to the present day, 6 months later, where we see the player arriving in Bayview via airplane, with a note from Samantha referring him to her friend Rachel (Voiced over by Brooke Burke
), who will set the player up there. He also has the keys to Rachel's Nissan 350Z
, which is waiting for him outside the airport. The player then has the option to complete a few races in the car before inevitably returning it to the car lot, where Rachel will give him an earful for being late before allowing him to choose his first car. This one is free, as it was paid for by the player's insurance from his totaled Skyline.
It is then that the player embarks on a quest to become the top racer in Bayview and eventually take down the man who sabotaged his ride months ago. After winning many races and getting many sponsorships, the player runs into street racing crew called The Wraiths, run by a man caled Caleb. The crew has the same vinyl, paint, and rim set. The player challenges them to a series of URL (Underground Racing League) races and eventually gets Caleb's second in command, Nikki, to join his side. Rachel tells the player that Caleb has been manipulating the sponsorship deals throughout Bayview towards him. After the player beats The Wraiths, an infuriated Caleb challenges the player to one final race in his custom Pontiac GTO
, revealing that he destroyed his car. After Caleb's defeat, the player get's his role back as the best driver in Bayview, and moves on.
In addition to the racing modes included in the previous Underground game (Circuit, Sprint, Drag and Drift races), 4 new variations of races have been provided in Underground 2. One racing mode was dropped, this being the Knockout competitions. Still, a Lap Knockout option is available when racing Circuit in non-career races.
A circuit race is a standard race that involves up to four cars driving around a track that loops back to the start line of itself. A circuit race is typically a maximum of four laps and minimum of 2 laps. A sprint race is just like a circuit race except that the track does not loop back to the start line. It's a race from A to B involving a maximum of four vehicles, and because of the track design there is only one lap. Street X races are similar to Circuit races, but they take place on closed courses similar to Drift races.
Drifting is one of the easier types of racing (depending on difficulty level) in Need for Speed Underground 2. One difference to the drifting mode compared to the original Need for Speed Underground is that the player drifts with the other competitors at the same time. Players race against a maximum of three competitors. Points are awarded when the player successfully slide the car and finishes the drift without hitting any walls .Like the Street X mode in Underground 2, no nitrous oxide
is allowed. There are also some special downhill drift races where the player starts at the top of a hill and has to slide down from top to bottom, a drifting equivalent of a sprint race (from point A to point B). In these races, there are no other racers, however there is normal city traffic. Players increase their points by sliding past city cars. Drag racing is a point-to-point race that forces players to use a manual transmission. Steering in this mode is simplified to simply allow for line changes, while the game handles the steering along the lines, and the player focuses more on maintaining an optimum speed for the car. The Nitrous Oxide meter is enlarged and displayed on the bottom right of the screen.
The Underground Racing League (URL) is a set of tournaments which takes place in a specific set of closed tracks outside city streets - either actual racing circuits or airport runways. URL tournaments typically consist of one to three races, with the player racing against five opponents. In tournaments with two or more races, a points system is used. At the end of each race, drivers receive a specific amount of points according to their standing in a race. The total score at the end of these races determines the winner of the tournament.
While cruising around the city, players can challenge other cruising opponents in a one-on-one race(these are called "Outrun Races"). The leader is given the freedom to pick his/her racing route, and must attempt to outrun the opponent and distance itself from him/her to as much as 300 metres (984.3 ft) to win. This racing formula is similar to that of Tokyo Xtreme Racer
and Wangan Midnight
video games, which uses health bars instead of distance to determine the winner. Once a certain amount of victories have been won by player in certain levels, the player is awarded a unique part free of charge by another racer.
s as racing vehicles, which may be modified more extensively than their compact counterparts. A total of 29 vehicle models are available for both versions of the game plus 2 unique for each of them, the PAL
version of the game offers an additional two cars (Peugeot 106
and Vauxhall Corsa) while the NTSC
version offers two different alternatives (Acura RSX
and Honda Civic
).
Customization in Underground 2 was significantly expanded compared to previous iterations from the series. Visual customization has expanded with the ability to customize the car's front and rear bumpers, side skirts, spoiler, hood, exhaust tips, doors, roof scoop, wheels (including the ability to put on spinners
), headlights and taillights, side mirrors and paint. Vinyls and decals can also be added, as well as car stereos (amps and speakers), hydraulics, nitrous bottles and under glow neon. Most visual modifications to the car have no actual effect on vehicle performance. The sound systems, for example, could be put in the trunk of cars, but served no purpose other than visual cues. The performance and handling of the car is affected by cosmetic modifications like spoilers and hoods, which affect the downforce of the car.
The car's performance can also be enhanced by upgrading the car's engine, engine control unit (ECU), transmission, suspension, adding nitrous oxide, tires, brakes, reducing the car's weight, and adding turbos. The player has the ability to either upgrade the performance through upgrade packages or by purchasing individual parts of each performance category. NFS: Underground 2 also introduces a dyno-tuning system which allows players to specifically tune certain aspect of the car such as suspension springs, front / rear shocks gear ratios, aerodynamics, brake bias, individual tire grip, etc. The player could then test the setting via a dyno test at which point they would be given specific information such as 0 – 60 time, max torque, etc.
SUVs, also known as Sport utility vehicle
s, was a new element added to Need For Speed: Underground 2. In this mode, players could modify, tune, and drive SUVs in the same manner as they could with normal cars. Players could choose to race in an event with SUVs only or in a mix of Cars and SUVs. Like cars, users are able to add on parts to SUVs to increase their performance and handling, however, the added weight of SUVs makes them much harder to maneuver, especially at higher speeds. SUVs were not featured in any later editions of the Need For Speed series (except as non-playable police vehicles), thus making them exclusive to Need For Speed: Underground 2.
. EA shut down the online servers for PlayStation 2, PC, and Xbox making the multiplayer function of the game inoperable.
and GameCube's Player's Choice
).
Reviews were positive,and the addition of "Free Roam" was widely praised, but many elements were criticized, such as having to drive excessive amounts to get to specific races, bland voice acting and strong product placement
for companies with no connection to auto racing, such as integrating the logo for Cingular, an American wireless communications company, into the game's messaging system and displaying it on-screen for much of the gameplay. The GameCube version was also criticized for its unstable frame rate
and inferior graphics. The hip-hop slang used by the characters (such as calling the money "bank"), the comic book
cut scenes, and a lack of police
also garnered criticism.
Chingy - "I Do"
Christopher Lawrence - "Rush Hour"
Cirrus - "Back on a Mission"
Felix Da Housecat - "Rocket Ride (Soulwax Remix)"
Fluke - "Switch/Twitch"
Freeland - "Mind Killer (Jagz Kooner Remix)"
Helmet - "Crashing Foreign Cars"
Killradio - "Scavenger"
Killing Joke - "The Death & Resurrection Show"
Ministry - "No W"
Mudvayne - "Determined"
Paul Van Dyk - "Nothing But You (Cirrus Remix)"
Queens of the Stone Age - "In My Head"
Rise Against - "Give it All"
Septembre - "I am Weightless"
Skindred - "Nobody"
Sly Boogy - "That'z My Name"
Sin - "Hard EBM"
Snapcase - "Skeptic"
Snoop Dogg feat. the Doors - "Riders On The Storm (Fredwreck Remix)"
Sonic Animation - "E-Ville"
Spiderbait - "Black Betty"
Terror Squad - "Lean Back"
The Bronx - "Notice of Eviction"
Unwritten Law - "The Celebration Song"
Xzibit - "LAX"
Cross-platform
In computing, cross-platform, or multi-platform, is an attribute conferred to computer software or computing methods and concepts that are implemented and inter-operate on multiple computer platforms...
racing
Racing game
A racing video game is a genre of video games, either in the first-person or third-person perspective, in which the player partakes in a racing competition with any type of land, air, or sea vehicles. They may be based on anything from real-world racing leagues to entirely fantastical settings...
video game published and developed by Electronic Arts
Electronic Arts
Electronic Arts, Inc. is a major American developer, marketer, publisher and distributor of video games. Founded and incorporated on May 28, 1982 by Trip Hawkins, the company was a pioneer of the early home computer games industry and was notable for promoting the designers and programmers...
. Released in 2004, it is the direct sequel to Need for Speed: Underground
Need for Speed: Underground
Need for Speed: Underground is the seventh racing game in the Need for Speed video game series developed by EA Black Box and published by Electronic Arts in 2003...
, and is part of the Need for Speed
Need for Speed
Need for Speed is a series of racing video games published by Electronic Arts and developed by several studios including Canadian-based company EA Black Box and British-based Criterion Games...
series, available on Nintendo GameCube
Nintendo GameCube
The , officially abbreviated to NGC in Japan and GCN in other regions, is a sixth generation video game console released by Nintendo on September 15, 2001 in Japan, November 18, 2001 in North America, May 3, 2002 in Europe, and May 17, 2002 in Australia...
, PlayStation 2
PlayStation 2
The PlayStation 2 is a sixth-generation video game console manufactured by Sony as part of the PlayStation series. Its development was announced in March 1999 and it was first released on March 4, 2000, in Japan...
, Xbox
Xbox
The Xbox is a sixth-generation video game console manufactured by Microsoft. It was released on November 15, 2001 in North America, February 22, 2002 in Japan, and March 14, 2002 in Australia and Europe and is the predecessor to the Xbox 360. It was Microsoft's first foray into the gaming console...
, Game Boy Advance
Game Boy Advance
The is a 32-bit handheld video game console developed, manufactured, and marketed by Nintendo. It is the successor to the Game Boy Color. It was released in Japan on March 21, 2001; in North America on June 11, 2001; in Australia and Europe on June 22, 2001; and in the People's Republic of China...
, Nintendo DS
Nintendo DS
The is a portable game console produced by Nintendo, first released on November 21, 2004. A distinctive feature of the system is the presence of two separate LCD screens, the lower of which is a touchscreen, encompassed within a clamshell design, similar to the Game Boy Advance SP...
and Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal...
. It was developed by EA Black Box. Like its predecessor, it was also commercially successful, and sold nine million copies worldwide.
The game is based around tuning cars
Import scene
The Import Scene or Import Racing Scene or Tuner Scene refers to the subculture that revolves around modifying imported brand cars , especially those of Japanese brands, for street racing.-History:...
for street races, resuming the Need for Speed: Underground storyline. Need for Speed: Underground 2 provides several new features, such as a broader customization, new methods of selecting races, the "explore" mode (just driving around freely, like the Midnight Club
Midnight Club
Midnight Club is a series of racing video games developed by Rockstar San Diego and published by Rockstar Games. The games are similar to the Midtown Madness series previously developed by Angel Studios, focusing on competitive street racing in open world urban environments. Midnight Club however,...
series, in a large city known as "Bayview"). Underground 2 also introduces several SUV
Sport utility vehicle
A sport utility vehicle is a generic marketing term for a vehicle similar to a station wagon, but built on a light-truck chassis. It is usually equipped with four-wheel drive for on- or off-road ability, and with some pretension or ability to be used as an off-road vehicle. Not all four-wheel...
s, which could be customized as extensively as other Underground 2 vehicles and used to race against other SUV racers. Brooke Burke is the voice of Rachel Teller, the person who guides the player through the story.
On the Nintendo DS
Nintendo DS
The is a portable game console produced by Nintendo, first released on November 21, 2004. A distinctive feature of the system is the presence of two separate LCD screens, the lower of which is a touchscreen, encompassed within a clamshell design, similar to the Game Boy Advance SP...
installment, users are able to design custom decals to adorn any vehicle in the game. The PlayStation Portable
PlayStation Portable
The is a handheld game console manufactured and marketed by Sony Corporation Development of the console was announced during E3 2003, and it was unveiled on , 2004, at a Sony press conference before E3 2004...
equivalent is Need for Speed: Underground Rivals.
Plot
Need For Speed Underground 2 takes place in a fictional city on the west coast called BayviewBayview
-Places:Australia* Bayview, New South Wales* Bayview, Northern TerritoryCanada* Bayview, Calgary, a neighborhood in Alberta* Bayview Avenue , a road in Ontario** Bayview , a subway station located on the above roadNew Zealand...
after the events of Need for Speed: Underground
Need for Speed: Underground
Need for Speed: Underground is the seventh racing game in the Need for Speed video game series developed by EA Black Box and published by Electronic Arts in 2003...
. The prologue begins with the player driving in a Nissan Skyline R34 in Olympic City probably renamed Bayview, the setting of NFS:UG. He then receives a race challenge from a rather ominous personality who offers him a spot on his crew, but "won't take 'no' for an answer." The player races off — despite Samantha's calls to stay — only to be ambushed by a mysterious driver in a black Hummer H2 who blinds the player with his headlights, and the player loses control over the car, sliding to a wall that totals his Skyline. The driver, who has a unique scythe
Scythe
A scythe is an agricultural hand tool for mowing grass, or reaping crops. It was largely replaced by horse-drawn and then tractor machinery, but is still used in some areas of Europe and Asia. The Grim Reaper is often depicted carrying or wielding a scythe...
tattoo, makes a call confirming the accident, saying: "Everything is cool, i just needed to take care of a....little problem." and the flashback fades out.
Fast forward to the present day, 6 months later, where we see the player arriving in Bayview via airplane, with a note from Samantha referring him to her friend Rachel (Voiced over by Brooke Burke
Brooke Burke
Brooke Burke Charvet , better known by her maiden name, Brooke Burke, is an actress, dancer, model and television personality...
), who will set the player up there. He also has the keys to Rachel's Nissan 350Z
Nissan 350Z
The Nissan 350Z is a two seat sports car that was manufactured by Nissan from 2002 to 2009 and marks the fifth generation of Nissan's Z-car line. The 350Z entered production in late 2002 and was sold and marketed as a 2003 model. The first year there was only a coupe, as the roadster did not debut...
, which is waiting for him outside the airport. The player then has the option to complete a few races in the car before inevitably returning it to the car lot, where Rachel will give him an earful for being late before allowing him to choose his first car. This one is free, as it was paid for by the player's insurance from his totaled Skyline.
It is then that the player embarks on a quest to become the top racer in Bayview and eventually take down the man who sabotaged his ride months ago. After winning many races and getting many sponsorships, the player runs into street racing crew called The Wraiths, run by a man caled Caleb. The crew has the same vinyl, paint, and rim set. The player challenges them to a series of URL (Underground Racing League) races and eventually gets Caleb's second in command, Nikki, to join his side. Rachel tells the player that Caleb has been manipulating the sponsorship deals throughout Bayview towards him. After the player beats The Wraiths, an infuriated Caleb challenges the player to one final race in his custom Pontiac GTO
Pontiac GTO
The Pontiac GTO is an automobile built by Pontiac Division of General Motors in the United States from 1964 to 1974, and by GM subsidiary Holden in Australia from 2004 to 2006. It is considered an innovative, and now classic muscle car of the 1960s and 1970s...
, revealing that he destroyed his car. After Caleb's defeat, the player get's his role back as the best driver in Bayview, and moves on.
Characters
- Rachel Teller - Samantha's best friend and the player's helper, mentor and part time agent. Rachel will call the player, via SMS, throughout the game letting the player know about unlocks, upgrades, sponsorships, and racing tips. She drives a Nissan 350Z. She is mentioned in UndercoverNeed for Speed: UndercoverNeed for Speed: Undercover is the 12th installment of the popular racing video game series Need for Speed, developed by EA Black Box and published by Electronic Arts . It was released on PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Wii, Microsoft Windows, PlayStation Portable, Nintendo DS, and mobile...
. Rachel is voiced by Brooke Burke. - Caleb Reece - A dangerous street racer who is and leader of The Wraiths. Caleb controls most of the underground racing in Bayview. He drives a black modified Pontiac GTO. He is mentioned in UndercoverNeed for Speed: UndercoverNeed for Speed: Undercover is the 12th installment of the popular racing video game series Need for Speed, developed by EA Black Box and published by Electronic Arts . It was released on PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Wii, Microsoft Windows, PlayStation Portable, Nintendo DS, and mobile...
and is portrayed by David PalffyDavid PalffyDavid Palffy is a Canadian film and television actor of Welsh and Hungarian descent. He has a degree from the University of Calgary . He attended the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, and was cast in Stanley Kubrick's Full Metal Jacket. Palffy has many television/film credits as an actor and as a...
. It is revealed that he broke the player's Skyline. - Nikki Morris - A female Wraith who will join the player after he beats her in a URL race. She drives a Modified Ford Mustang GT and is voiced by model Kelly Brook.
Gameplay
A circuit race is a standard race that involves up to four cars driving around a track that loops back to the start line of itself. A circuit race is typically a maximum of four laps and minimum of 2 laps. A sprint race is just like a circuit race except that the track does not loop back to the start line. It's a race from A to B involving a maximum of four vehicles, and because of the track design there is only one lap. Street X races are similar to Circuit races, but they take place on closed courses similar to Drift races.
Drifting is one of the easier types of racing (depending on difficulty level) in Need for Speed Underground 2. One difference to the drifting mode compared to the original Need for Speed Underground is that the player drifts with the other competitors at the same time. Players race against a maximum of three competitors. Points are awarded when the player successfully slide the car and finishes the drift without hitting any walls .Like the Street X mode in Underground 2, no nitrous oxide
Nitrous oxide
Nitrous oxide, commonly known as laughing gas or sweet air, is a chemical compound with the formula . It is an oxide of nitrogen. At room temperature, it is a colorless non-flammable gas, with a slightly sweet odor and taste. It is used in surgery and dentistry for its anesthetic and analgesic...
is allowed. There are also some special downhill drift races where the player starts at the top of a hill and has to slide down from top to bottom, a drifting equivalent of a sprint race (from point A to point B). In these races, there are no other racers, however there is normal city traffic. Players increase their points by sliding past city cars. Drag racing is a point-to-point race that forces players to use a manual transmission. Steering in this mode is simplified to simply allow for line changes, while the game handles the steering along the lines, and the player focuses more on maintaining an optimum speed for the car. The Nitrous Oxide meter is enlarged and displayed on the bottom right of the screen.
The Underground Racing League (URL) is a set of tournaments which takes place in a specific set of closed tracks outside city streets - either actual racing circuits or airport runways. URL tournaments typically consist of one to three races, with the player racing against five opponents. In tournaments with two or more races, a points system is used. At the end of each race, drivers receive a specific amount of points according to their standing in a race. The total score at the end of these races determines the winner of the tournament.
While cruising around the city, players can challenge other cruising opponents in a one-on-one race(these are called "Outrun Races"). The leader is given the freedom to pick his/her racing route, and must attempt to outrun the opponent and distance itself from him/her to as much as 300 metres (984.3 ft) to win. This racing formula is similar to that of Tokyo Xtreme Racer
Tokyo Xtreme Racer
Tokyo Xtreme Racer, known as Shutokō Battle in Japan and Tokyo Highway Challenge in Europe, is a racing video game for the Sega Dreamcast. Released in 1999 as one of the console's launch titles, the game was one of the first mission-based racing games...
and Wangan Midnight
Wangan Midnight
is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Michiharu Kusunoki and serialized in Shogakukan's Big Comic Spirits since 1990, later in Kodansha's Young Magazine. In 1999, it won the Kodansha Manga Award for general manga....
video games, which uses health bars instead of distance to determine the winner. Once a certain amount of victories have been won by player in certain levels, the player is awarded a unique part free of charge by another racer.
Cars
As in Need for Speed: Underground, Underground 2 continues to offer similar vehicles for purchase and modification, most of which consist of Japanese models, with a sizable number of European and American models. In addition, Underground 2 is the only game in the Need for Speed series to date to offer three SUVSport utility vehicle
A sport utility vehicle is a generic marketing term for a vehicle similar to a station wagon, but built on a light-truck chassis. It is usually equipped with four-wheel drive for on- or off-road ability, and with some pretension or ability to be used as an off-road vehicle. Not all four-wheel...
s as racing vehicles, which may be modified more extensively than their compact counterparts. A total of 29 vehicle models are available for both versions of the game plus 2 unique for each of them, the PAL
PAL
PAL, short for Phase Alternating Line, is an analogue television colour encoding system used in broadcast television systems in many countries. Other common analogue television systems are NTSC and SECAM. This page primarily discusses the PAL colour encoding system...
version of the game offers an additional two cars (Peugeot 106
Peugeot 106
The Peugeot 106 is a supermini produced by French automaker Peugeot from 1991 to 2004.-Phase I:The Peugeot 106 was introduced on 12 September 1991, as the French marque's entry level car slotting in beneath the 205 - although it is now largely considered the 'true' replacement to the 205. It was a...
and Vauxhall Corsa) while the NTSC
NTSC
NTSC, named for the National Television System Committee, is the analog television system that is used in most of North America, most of South America , Burma, South Korea, Taiwan, Japan, the Philippines, and some Pacific island nations and territories .Most countries using the NTSC standard, as...
version offers two different alternatives (Acura RSX
Acura RSX
The Honda Integra DC5 is a Japanese performance sports car, which was also known as the Acura RSX in North America . It is available in base and "Type-S" models in North America, and a "Integra iS / Integra Type S" and "Type R" version sold in Japan and Oceania...
and Honda Civic
Honda Civic
The Honda Civic is a line of subcompact and subsequently compact cars made and manufactured by Honda. The Civic, along with the Accord and Prelude, comprised Honda's vehicles sold in North America until the 1990s, when the model lineup was expanded...
).
Customization in Underground 2 was significantly expanded compared to previous iterations from the series. Visual customization has expanded with the ability to customize the car's front and rear bumpers, side skirts, spoiler, hood, exhaust tips, doors, roof scoop, wheels (including the ability to put on spinners
Spinner (wheel)
A spinner is a type of hubcap that spins independently inside of a wheel itself when the vehicle is in motion, and continues to spin once the vehicle has come to a stop. Being an attachment to the car's wheel, spinners operate by using one or more roller bearings to isolate the spinner from the...
), headlights and taillights, side mirrors and paint. Vinyls and decals can also be added, as well as car stereos (amps and speakers), hydraulics, nitrous bottles and under glow neon. Most visual modifications to the car have no actual effect on vehicle performance. The sound systems, for example, could be put in the trunk of cars, but served no purpose other than visual cues. The performance and handling of the car is affected by cosmetic modifications like spoilers and hoods, which affect the downforce of the car.
The car's performance can also be enhanced by upgrading the car's engine, engine control unit (ECU), transmission, suspension, adding nitrous oxide, tires, brakes, reducing the car's weight, and adding turbos. The player has the ability to either upgrade the performance through upgrade packages or by purchasing individual parts of each performance category. NFS: Underground 2 also introduces a dyno-tuning system which allows players to specifically tune certain aspect of the car such as suspension springs, front / rear shocks gear ratios, aerodynamics, brake bias, individual tire grip, etc. The player could then test the setting via a dyno test at which point they would be given specific information such as 0 – 60 time, max torque, etc.
SUVs, also known as Sport utility vehicle
Sport utility vehicle
A sport utility vehicle is a generic marketing term for a vehicle similar to a station wagon, but built on a light-truck chassis. It is usually equipped with four-wheel drive for on- or off-road ability, and with some pretension or ability to be used as an off-road vehicle. Not all four-wheel...
s, was a new element added to Need For Speed: Underground 2. In this mode, players could modify, tune, and drive SUVs in the same manner as they could with normal cars. Players could choose to race in an event with SUVs only or in a mix of Cars and SUVs. Like cars, users are able to add on parts to SUVs to increase their performance and handling, however, the added weight of SUVs makes them much harder to maneuver, especially at higher speeds. SUVs were not featured in any later editions of the Need For Speed series (except as non-playable police vehicles), thus making them exclusive to Need For Speed: Underground 2.
Multiplayer
Need For Speed Underground 2 has online multiplayer capability on PlayStation 2's with broadband connections, PC, and Xbox using Xbox LiveXbox Live
Xbox Live is an online multiplayer gaming and digital media delivery service created and operated by Microsoft Corporation. It is currently the only online gaming service on consoles that charges users a fee to play multiplayer gaming. It was first made available to the Xbox system in 2002...
. EA shut down the online servers for PlayStation 2, PC, and Xbox making the multiplayer function of the game inoperable.
Reception
The game sold 9 million copies, and entering the "best-sellers" of each console (PS2's Greatest Hits, Xbox's Platinum HitsPlatinum Hits
Platinum Hits is a term used to refer to a line of select Xbox games that were considered by Microsoft to have sold considerable units on the platform in the nine months after release, and have dropped in price from their original MSRP to a newer, lower price, generally that of US$19.99, although...
and GameCube's Player's Choice
Player's Choice
Nintendo Selects is a marketing label used by Nintendo to promote video games on Nintendo game consoles which have sold well; Nintendo Selects titles are sold at a lower price point than other games...
).
Reviews were positive,and the addition of "Free Roam" was widely praised, but many elements were criticized, such as having to drive excessive amounts to get to specific races, bland voice acting and strong product placement
Product placement
Product placement, or embedded marketing, is a form of advertisement, where branded goods or services are placed in a context usually devoid of ads, such as movies, music videos, the story line of television shows, or news programs. The product placement is often not disclosed at the time that the...
for companies with no connection to auto racing, such as integrating the logo for Cingular, an American wireless communications company, into the game's messaging system and displaying it on-screen for much of the gameplay. The GameCube version was also criticized for its unstable frame rate
Frame rate
Frame rate is the frequency at which an imaging device produces unique consecutive images called frames. The term applies equally well to computer graphics, video cameras, film cameras, and motion capture systems...
and inferior graphics. The hip-hop slang used by the characters (such as calling the money "bank"), the comic book
Comic book
A comic book or comicbook is a magazine made up of comics, narrative artwork in the form of separate panels that represent individual scenes, often accompanied by dialog as well as including...
cut scenes, and a lack of police
Police
The police is a personification of the state designated to put in practice the enforced law, protect property and reduce civil disorder in civilian matters. Their powers include the legitimized use of force...
also garnered criticism.
Soundtrack
Capone - "I Need Speed"Chingy - "I Do"
Christopher Lawrence - "Rush Hour"
Cirrus - "Back on a Mission"
Felix Da Housecat - "Rocket Ride (Soulwax Remix)"
Fluke - "Switch/Twitch"
Freeland - "Mind Killer (Jagz Kooner Remix)"
Helmet - "Crashing Foreign Cars"
Killradio - "Scavenger"
Killing Joke - "The Death & Resurrection Show"
Ministry - "No W"
Mudvayne - "Determined"
Paul Van Dyk - "Nothing But You (Cirrus Remix)"
Queens of the Stone Age - "In My Head"
Rise Against - "Give it All"
Septembre - "I am Weightless"
Skindred - "Nobody"
Sly Boogy - "That'z My Name"
Sin - "Hard EBM"
Snapcase - "Skeptic"
Snoop Dogg feat. the Doors - "Riders On The Storm (Fredwreck Remix)"
Sonic Animation - "E-Ville"
Spiderbait - "Black Betty"
Terror Squad - "Lean Back"
The Bronx - "Notice of Eviction"
Unwritten Law - "The Celebration Song"
Xzibit - "LAX"