Need for Speed: Most Wanted (2005) for Nintendo DS Reviews & Ratings by IGN

It seemed like only yesterday Electronic Arts dropped a decent-but-bland conversion of Need for Speed Underground 2 on the Nintendo DS. Actually, it was only a few months ago, which is why it seems a little awkward to see another game in the Need for Speed series hit the system so soon after the first one. Even more awkward is that the DS version of Need for Speed Most Wanted is an enormous step backwards in quality from the portable version of Underground 2. This game has its occasional moments but they're way few and hugely far between - just go with the previous Need for Speed game because you won't be missing much with Most Wanted DS.

For this version of Need for Speed, Electronic Arts dumped the UK Pocketeers team in favor of Sensory Sweep, the studio the company went with for its DS versions of Tiger Woods and, more recently, Marvel Nemesis. And though Most Wanted is a huge step up from what the team did with the absolutely awful Marvel Nemesis, it isn't much of a redemption because this game just doesn't play all that well, either.

What we have is a basic set of races using a line-up of licensed cars. Just like in previous Need for Speed games, winning races in the career mode unlocks more vehicles and enhancements to existing cars. Racing objectives are the standard fare: come in first. There are other challenges outside of the main race, including a "Barricade" mode where you'll have to zoom through car-wide gaps between cop cars, which ends up being more challenging than it should be because of one specific element: the car steering and handling in this game is incredibly sluggish and unresponsive. D-pad limitations aside - other driving games on the DS pull off better control than Most Wanted does.

Computer AI drones truly end up looking artificial in this game. The pathing routines created for the opposition are handled sloppily and make them drive in angular and robotic routes…almost as if they, too, are struggling with the lousy control this game has. The whole "cop chase" aspect of Most Wanted is completely lost on the Nintendo DS because of lazy AI routines; rarely will you even have to contend with the authorities outside of the "Barricade" game option.

Need for Speed Most Wanted is also lifeless in the area it should excel in: presentation. Menus are clunky, mission objectives are downright confusing, and when you win or lose there's very little fanfare at the end for the victory or loss. Most of the time you won't even know you're about to cross the finish line because, more often than not these lines aren't even marked on the course…you have to look at the supplementary map on the lower screen to see these goals. And it doesn't help that these maps are hard to read due to an over stylized, 3D appearance.

Note to developers: when you make a sequel, you really want to follow in the footsteps of the precursor and try to match what was done, at least on a technical level. Need for Speed Underground 2 on the Nintendo DS ran at a blazing 60 frames per second, offered some really slick 3D car models, and gave a decent sense of speed. Most Wanted drops the visuals down to 30 FPS and features some of the worst car models seen in a current generation racer - vehicles have absolutely no surface texture or shadowing, which makes them look like they've been ripped out of the lightcycle sequence of Tron.

The game engine suffers from very sloppy programming, too. Texture seaming is abundant in many of the game's areas, and the action actually glitches and "pops" every time the lower screen changes to show the swap in position between all the competitors in the race. And for whatever reason, the sky seems to want to flicker uncontrollably in places…we haven't figured out what this is about, but it sure is annoying.

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