Driving again

No, not for real. As you may know, I choose not to drive. Not fond of the direct impact I can have on pollution from fossil fuel use. I bike most places locally now, instead, and get rides from friends and family when necessary. Public transportation is fine, too. Otherwise, I'll probably wait until I can affordably have a hydrogen fuel cell under me and perhaps some other cool, new, future innovations.

Anyway, I recently bought Need for Speed: Most Wanted and started playing this week on my PS2. Having played NFS: Underground and Underground 2, previously, I've found the style of play significantly different. It's cool with much better graphics and animations, and a more solid plot line as if it were a movie.

The premise of the game is that my nice BMW was taken by the #1 most wanted reckless driver and I have to work my way up the ranks by racing the other 14 before I can race him and get it back. Along the way, I have opportunities to take other drivers cars, get special upgrades from a back room in the shops, and, perhaps best of all, get chased by the cops. In doing so, I create a bounty on myself and on each car I drive.

Game play is set with races and driving in both day and night and, instead of drifts (which I miss), there are tollbooths and speed traps . . . and half the game is about getting chased by and outrunning the cops. And I can break things along the road more so than before, like street lamp posts and smaller trees, which used to be all solid objects. Missing, however, are gaining points for drafting other drivers, e.g., and the need to do special things to recharge nitrous oxide volume; it recharges gradually on its own when used.

A worthy purchase, though; got a good deal with a holiday coupon from EA Games, the publisher. Notable, too: Most Wanted recognized my existing profile of Underground 2 on my memory card and rewarded me with extra cash. I've so far completed about 20% of my first career, especially after many hours of gaming Friday night. I think I'm taking a break for a bit, though, while I get my stuff unpacked and reorganized in my room this week.