Shift 2 Unleashed: Need for Speed for Xbox 360 Reviews by Gamers

Before i played shift 2 i played the first shift, i was incredibly disappointed with how difficult and how non-fun it was to play. Most things in the game weren't explained and there just seemed to be something in the game that wanted you to get mad and fail.

So naturally i would be "iffy" about renting the second game. but wow, never have i played a game that was in a series that emphasized so much on making it better. First of all most things are explained in the game, like Drifting, you get to practice on a cone course with the narrator telling you what to do. After a few hours of frustrating practice (it's normal) i finally got it and now can drift easily(every now and then).
unlike the first one where your thrown into an event and fail.

I am very satisfied with this game, they made so many improvements and new features that "it almost makes you forget about the first shift".

Added content is like helmet and cockpit cam, Night racing, Newer cars.

Improvements is the tutorial style, AI (less agressive but still stingy), Racing maps have gravel, asphalt, etc., The car is less bumpy when you drive.

Honestly give this game a try and i can promise you that if you put some time into it you'll be very satisfied.

Also this is one of the few racing games to have the Bugatti Veyron =D but its 1.7 million lol....

First of all im a long lived fan of the NFS series, ever since Need for speed SE..and i was a big fan of Shift. My gripes and complains on the first one i was hoping to have improved in the second one. Lets start with the negatives. Comparing the all around sound of the first one to this i was dissapointed engine sounds seem more muffled with FX sounds amped up..EA raved about how good the graphics were gonna be in the 2nd installment yet even with my 28" 1080p monitor playing in 1080p i cannot really tell a difference between the first. on a lighter note. Car selection is improved. The Helmet Cam is okay. glad to see more tuning options but hampered with the new Performance Index copied almost exactly from Forza 3. Glad to see the exclusion of the Star System which IMO made shift 1 redundant after about 20% into the game since all cars/tracks and tiers are unlocked because u acquire stars at a super fast rate right from the get go. Nice Autolog integration even though im not a fan of online play ( and yes i pay for Xbox Live) im still a old school gamer and get more into the single player aspect of a game which is dying out since most games are now tailored to multiplayer and tend to water down and chop up the single player aspect of the game..Halo Reach Anyone? All-in all i cannot really say if this is an Improvement over the first. To me its just an updated version nothing really new to me. Shift 2 feels more like a large DLC Content add on to Shift 1 then a completely different game

This game has a ton of potential, but it falls just slightly short of the mark. The physics and graphics are amazing, the customization is alright, it could definitely be a lot more in depth. Changing the color of your car seems to be a lot more complicated than it needs to be. And there aren't enough races. But other than that, it is definitely worth the rent. The helmet cam feature takes some getting used to, but once you do, it makes the racing feel so much better and realistic. As you go into a turn, the helmet cam will turn to look toward the apex of the turn, as you would in real racing.
The drifting is a lot harder. Still fun, but definitely a challenge.

In the end, I am glad that I rented Shift 2, but I am saving my money for Dirt 3 when it comes out to buy.

Shift 2 is like no racing game you have ever played. Straddling the line between sim and arcade racer, this game is one that you must play. The innovative helmet-cam, while it takes a little time to get used to is one of the best and most realistic you have ever seen. Car interiors are top notch, and car physics are majorly improved since its predecessor. The sense of speed and drama while driving keeps you on your toes throughout each race. If you like Forza and Grand Turismo you will like this game on the elite difficulty but the AI isn't as polite, so you really have to fight to win each race. It also has tons of customization for you car from tuning to vinyls. Although its not a true sim, It's gritty art style and attention to every detail make this game feel so real, just like they advertise. This is real racing!

The bad: inconsistent collision physics, and an odd assortment of cars to choose from.

The good: gorgeous graphics, incredible attention to detail, and the involvement of actual racers to give a feeling of authenticity.

Shift 2 is a technically incredible game; the attention to detail at every level is amazing. From the different tracks, to the cars, to the air vents and dashboards you can see from the interior camera views, you can see the effort put into this game.

When you first start, the game gives you a few practice laps to gauge your driving skill, and adjusts your settings (like difficulty and brake assist, which you can always change later.) Novices and experts alike can pick up the game and get right to playing.

The car customization is where the casual and gearhead gamers get separated; you can change simple aesthetics like car color or body kits, or go all out and play with engine settings and gear ratios.

The car selection is odd; while a large number of manufacturers are represented, many only have one car available to purchase.

The game's major frustrations (for me, anyway) come from what feels like inconsistent collision physics. Many times, slamming into another car (accidentally or intentionally) leaves your vehicle swerving out of control, with little to no effect on the other vehicle. Good driving is also sometimes punished, as I've seen cars pass me driving on terrain that would normally cripple my car's performance. Sometimes, a single mistake can be all it takes to guarantee failure.

It's a shame, because if it wasn't so frustrating, it would be a blast to play. You have standard races, time attack, drifting events - there's something for everyone in here, as long as you have the patience to play through it.

I was actually pretty excited about NFS Shift 2 when I saw the previews. Unfortunately it didnt even come close to living up to even the most conservative expectations I had. The menu's dont flow at all. The car customization was fun at first untill an accidental button tap later lost all the paint and graphics i had set. Not only that, the graphics are extremely sub-par of the hype from the videos. The music was repeditive and annoying. The load times between the menus and each race event is way too long. The last straw was the terrible commentary from the racer that they plastered between every single race.

All in all, I was quite disappointed with how Shift 2 turned out. I guess we cant expect much from a company that spits one of these games out every year and refuses to take the time to make a quality game.

So at first I really loved this game, the driving is superb, the physics were amazing, the graphics are up there, but its lacky in so many other aspects its just not enough to buy this game. The fact that there is only like maybe 50 cars is a pretty big issue when you play a driving game because the more cars you have mean the more playing time. The tuning and the customization is there definitely but they're not enough cars to really care for it. The A.I. on medium is ridiculous, you can upgrade a charger to the max with a high acceleration tuning job and still get smoked even with a 70 and above perfect launch so i'm pretty sure thats something they can fix. The story has maybe 20 different races with multiple tracks but they're all very strict like so if you like supra's and you want to max it out upgrade wise, there are like 2 races you can do, as to forza there were alot more than 2 races. This game to me is way less boring than forza, but its rather short and there not much you can do. The drifting is hard at first its gets alittle easier but like Shift 1 its way harder than any other game. I think you should just wait till Dirt 3 if your looking for a Sim/Arcade style driver.

- Steivan Johnson

I have to agree with all the other reviews on here criticizing the controls/handling/driving in this game. I've played and enjoyed many a quality racing title, from full sims to the arcadeiest of the bunch and have NEVER played a racing game with as laggy, sluggish and unresponsive controls as this. Throw in some clinically static AI and its like this game was designed specifically to frustrate you.

To add insult to injury, the graphics are merely passable, the load times are painfully long and the menus are too clever for their own good ("floating" choices around a three-dimensional car at the main menu even make changing game modes a pain).

I don't understand how this happens in a studio where we can assume there are paid creative professionals who are "experts" in their field. Did no one play-test this thing? It's unforgivably bad.

I can almost guarantee its a bunch of 10 year olds rating this game anything lower then a 8.5..If you like a challenge when it comes to tuning your car specifically for different tracks its a great game.. I personally have no complaints.. Also for the people saying the graphics arent good your out of your mind get your eyes checked

The title says it all... Terrible. The graphics are great, the cars are awesome, the customization is kind of cool, but the racing is just the worst.

There is no feel whats so ever. 1 corner you might understeer into a wall. The next lap you do the same thing in the same corner and you spin. its almost impossible to correct yourself if you go off your line and you just end up crashing. Don't get me wrong, iv'e been playing forza for years and i'm a pretty good driver in that game.

But the steering isn't even the biggest problem of the game, that would be the AI. The cpu drivers drive like you aren't even there. If they bump you, you fly off the track, often rolling several times and hitting the barrier, but nothing happens to them. If you hit them, its again you who crashes and burns while they go on racing like nothing happened. Also, they will occasionally crash out of nowhere, right in front of you causing you to have to restart the whole race since there isn't a rewind button.

And don't think that you can recover and catch up because they are faster than you. even in the exact same cars going in a straight line, they will pull away from you. The only reason you play is out of spite. Its more a question of pride than of enjoying yourself. The game is way too frustration...

All in all good visual presentation but not worth the plastic its burned on. RENT FORZA AND FORGET YOU EVEN THOUGHT OF THIS GAME!!!!!!!!

This game has to be the absolute worst racing game I have ever played that is trying to be a simulation.

The good: Nothing.

The Bad: Graphics are not even close to Forza. The gameplay is so bad that I crashed most of the time. I am a huge fan of the Forza and GT series. The steering is unresponsive. By the time you want to turn to the left you already are pressing the joystick to the right. I just don't get how Shift 2 could be this bad. The first Shift was a pretty good game. It delivered on their promise. I think NFS Shift is trying to be a lot of things at the same that and it fails at just about everything. Please do youself a favor a don't even rent this game. I played for 3 races and it got worse everytime. Very unresponsive. The in-dash view is pretty cool until it forces you to look somewhere you don't want to.

I have been a gamefly member for over 3 years now and this is my first review. I usually don't bother to review games and this I just had too. Please do yourself and favor and steer away from this game.

Its so bad that it cannot pass a an arcade style racer and it fails as a simulation. It just does not do anything. WOW EA you managed to suck again. Please stop rushing games.

Every game EA has made in 2010-2011 just shows how they have too much money and fame so they don't try anymore. This game is just bad... but because it says "Shift 2" on the package we presume it's at least as good as Shift 1, but it's not.

well first off i love it the drift is so more real then any other drift part of a game that ive ever played me i love racing not just games but with my CRX si b18 kick some going down the road but the game is so real the turns the brake everything feels like your driving not just playing a game but really in the car online play thee many modes for this game no more starting a race with the slow car sometimes everyone has the same car reminds me of FORZA with the car level a level b level c level and d level a being top u also have the g1 cars high performance cars theres a guy in the game telling u how to pull every turn are every drift with gas brake and turn not much more i can say but i will be buying this game been on it for about 3 hours now and love it with buy this game

This need for speed could be the worst one ever made. I am a fan of the franchise and this game was awful. The steering was sloppy and slow to respond, and completely fake. Graphics were good, as usual for the franchise. I would not buy this game or recommend it to anyone. Friend or Foe...

this a great game if u love cars

The gameplay is intense, and other than an automatic countersteer feature when drifting/sliding, which often plants your car directly in the outside wall, this game is a blast.

System link or split-screen play would have been a great improvement, and more descriptive tuning options would be helpful.

this game is great if you love to tune your car to perfection every little detail can be worked, if your car savey this is a plus, but its also set up for you guys that just want to get in there and race. outlined this game is realiste to the max with it still being fun

This game drives as though there is an invisible man, constantly pulling on the wheel in a see-saw fashion. You can try to focus through it, but eventually you think...well I can be a offline, as long as I'm on the track...NOT! Even maintaining control on the straights is a challenge without fishtailing...on the low powered cars! This is with the XBOX racing wheel. I had even worse luck with the controller, although it doe snot exhibit the lag which the wheel seems to. Turn and nothing, then turn more and your drifting...YAY!

Such potential...I loved the helmet cam view!.

Graphics are good for your car and the track, but opponent cars are somewhat cartooney.

If you press "A" to bypass the intros, you car bumps up and down uncontrollably until the start...what's up with that?

Not to mention 2 freezes and one near freeze in the same session.

For a good racer, try F1 2010...the closest I've seen to real racing in some time.

I was able to play through the controls up to level 11, but I'm sending this back way early. It's not that you have to try to improve your driving, but driving on a constantly broken steering knuckle is just no fun.

I really had high hopes for this game after watching the trailers, but it just fell short. The controls are horrible; there is a noticeable delay between when I move the stick and when the car onscreen turns in, resulting in many a missed apex. The whole game just seemed frustrating, from the ridiculous load times to over-the-top physics. There is also the lack of a rewind feature, which may seem like a cheap trick, but once you have to restart multiple races because some idiotic AI brakes too late and sends you sliding into a barrier on the last lap, you'll miss the rewind function found in so many other racing games. I can see how some would enjoy this game, with the innovative helmet cam (even though it takes a while to get used to) and its attempt to recreate the driving experience, but this reviewer found it to a frustrating experience.

This game feels like a sad attempt at a driving sim. the controls feel clunky, and the graphics arnt even that great. the customization isnt that great compared to other racing games. i gave this game about 20 minutes and am sending it back since it doesnt even compare to forza. your better off skipping this and renting forza 3 motorsport since that game is WAY better than this.

Let me start by saying this review is one sided, and entirely biased, but for good reason. I am a hardcore racer. Forza fan for life... And it truly has spoiled me. Playing the Forza series for the past 10 years has instilled a sense of truly simulated physics. It matches up with real world feelings of weight and handling.
EA has claimed they have accomplished a similar achievement, creating a true to life simulation.
This approach was simply a deceitful marketing tactic to steal a few dollars from simulation fans.
I'm definitely glad I rented this one because the gameplay is horrible.
If you like simulations, beware, this is more arcadey than a Project Gotham Racing, which I feel drew the best balance between sim and arcade.
This is the first Need for speed I have played in years, and it will most certainly be the last.
Keep lying EA, it just makes you that much easier to expose.

All i can say is horrible. I was hoping to get a game like NFS - Hot Pursuit but instead i got a buggy, choppy track racer with literally NO steering ability. The graphics are blocky and backgrounds boring. I returned the game after playing the first track and wanting to toss my controller through the TV.

The graphics are good. The courses are cool. But the AI ia rediculiously hard. I admit that I am bad at racing games, but I like to play teh single player anyway. Typically on medium/normal difficulty in games like Forza 3 and shift 1 I was able to win but the AI would be right behind me by no more than 2 secs. On easy difficulty on those older games I could win fairly easy and have a good lead on most tracks. easy on this game for me was more comparable to medium difficutly on other racers.

However in Shift 2 on medium I get smoked bad. On easy I can win but the AI is right on my rear. if you wreck or spin out even once it's over. The ai will over take me and I will never catch up no matter how good I drive.

The Magnetic cars annoy me. When I'm side by side with another car and we are about even if I bump into the car (say it's on the right) my car immediatdely goes hard right even though I'm not hitting the gas and steering hard to the left. it's like the cards are locked together and I'm unable to turn for a few seconds.

The steering is horrible. on defualt setting sit's really bad. you go from no response to extreme over steer. Found posts on forums of what other suers suggest to correct this and for the most part it helps. but it's still bad. I was never able to really starighten out the car and drive in a straight line becuase it always over steers in either direction no matter how little I move the stick (when it does move).

I did give the game a fair shake. I played up to driver level 15. which go me into the B class races. I tried multple cars and tricked them out and while some performed better than others I just couldn't compete with the AI even on easy difficulty.

OK FOR A NEED FOR SPEED THIS GAME SUCKS.. ITS NOT A REAL NEED FOR SPEED GAME IS LIKE A NASCAR GAME AND WE ALL HATE THEM