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I have now played three versions of Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit 2 and the findings surprised me. There are versions of this game for PC, Playstation 2, Gamecube and Xbox and while I haven't played the PC version yet (I still can't see the point of racing games on the PC, but that's just me) I have had quite a few goes on the other three formats.
It’s not so much the game itself that has surprised me though. Yes, I know all the arguments about whether this or Burnout 2 is the best cop chase game, but I personally enjoyed Need for Speed HP2 as a different experience to Burnout 2. What got me was that there was such a difference between the 3 versions I played.
Now, the history behind the creation of this game is important to note if you want to understand why each version is so different. In the beginning Electronic Arts came up with the basic gameplay and graphic format for this new Need For Speed game, but instead of writing the game on one format and porting the code, they decided to give the game to 3 different development teams to design the actual game code.
The first changes you notice are in the presentation. The title screen on the PS2, while relatively workable and pretty, is not a patch on the Cube and Xbox versions. While the PS2 screens guide you through the modes, the other versions give you far more options and in a much prettier way. It might be a small thing, but it makes all the difference to the player’s first impressions of a game.
The next changes are found when you’ve gained points and use the menu system to choose new cars and tracks. The Cube version seems to be the best here, with the option to swap points directly from the title screen for new cars and tracks. This is a great little option and allows you to open tracks for multiplay and single race events in the order you want to. The PS2 version is the least impressive, initially only allowing access to these when you’ve played through them on the full game mode.
There are obvious differences too in the graphics. The PS2 version is jagged and less polished compared to the Gamecube version, and the Xbox version beats them both hands down, due to great lighting effects. This is to be expected really, given hardware limitations, but while it really stands out when the games are shown side by side, it doesn’t really detract from the gameplay.
Ah, the most important aspect of any game, the gameplay. Well, this is really where the PS2 manages to grab all the medals. It’s all down to the handling really. Both the Gamecube and Xbox versions have problems with hairtrigger style controls. Press left and you watch your car slide right over to the other side, let your car get hit by the police and you spin like an ice-skater at the Olympics. The PS2 version is virtually perfect compared to the other versions in the handling and physics, it plays really well (albeit slowly compared to the speedy Burnout 2).
So, I know that this sounds like a review so far, but it got me thinking that the differences between these consoles really highlights what’s important in a game. While the Xbox and Gamecube versions are playable and good games in their own right, playing the Playstation 2 version puts them both to shame. It’s like playing a completely different game at times! While the programmers for the other two versions seem to have concentrated on the design, looks and options in the game, the PS2 coders have gone all out on the dynamics and gameplay to create something which is much more playable in the end.
It’s a constant argument on this site that graphics are as important as gameplay in today’s games, it’s also used to highlight the differences between consoles, particularly in console wars topics, but using this one game as an example, you can see that no matter how good a game looks, the version which will always come out on top is that which plays better, smoother and with more control. While the other two versions aren’t bad, it should be the PS2 one which is commended for focussing on the right aspects.
At the end of the day it’s a pity that the best bits of all three couldn’t be available as one game, a nice front end, good options for continued play and the precise in-game control, not to mention the graphics, but for me it really is no choice as to which version I’ve ended up with.
It’s not so much the game itself that has surprised me though. Yes, I know all the arguments about whether this or Burnout 2 is the best cop chase game, but I personally enjoyed Need for Speed HP2 as a different experience to Burnout 2. What got me was that there was such a difference between the 3 versions I played.
Now, the history behind the creation of this game is important to note if you want to understand why each version is so different. In the beginning Electronic Arts came up with the basic gameplay and graphic format for this new Need For Speed game, but instead of writing the game on one format and porting the code, they decided to give the game to 3 different development teams to design the actual game code.
The first changes you notice are in the presentation. The title screen on the PS2, while relatively workable and pretty, is not a patch on the Cube and Xbox versions. While the PS2 screens guide you through the modes, the other versions give you far more options and in a much prettier way. It might be a small thing, but it makes all the difference to the player’s first impressions of a game.
The next changes are found when you’ve gained points and use the menu system to choose new cars and tracks. The Cube version seems to be the best here, with the option to swap points directly from the title screen for new cars and tracks. This is a great little option and allows you to open tracks for multiplay and single race events in the order you want to. The PS2 version is the least impressive, initially only allowing access to these when you’ve played through them on the full game mode.
There are obvious differences too in the graphics. The PS2 version is jagged and less polished compared to the Gamecube version, and the Xbox version beats them both hands down, due to great lighting effects. This is to be expected really, given hardware limitations, but while it really stands out when the games are shown side by side, it doesn’t really detract from the gameplay.
Ah, the most important aspect of any game, the gameplay. Well, this is really where the PS2 manages to grab all the medals. It’s all down to the handling really. Both the Gamecube and Xbox versions have problems with hairtrigger style controls. Press left and you watch your car slide right over to the other side, let your car get hit by the police and you spin like an ice-skater at the Olympics. The PS2 version is virtually perfect compared to the other versions in the handling and physics, it plays really well (albeit slowly compared to the speedy Burnout 2).
So, I know that this sounds like a review so far, but it got me thinking that the differences between these consoles really highlights what’s important in a game. While the Xbox and Gamecube versions are playable and good games in their own right, playing the Playstation 2 version puts them both to shame. It’s like playing a completely different game at times! While the programmers for the other two versions seem to have concentrated on the design, looks and options in the game, the PS2 coders have gone all out on the dynamics and gameplay to create something which is much more playable in the end.
It’s a constant argument on this site that graphics are as important as gameplay in today’s games, it’s also used to highlight the differences between consoles, particularly in console wars topics, but using this one game as an example, you can see that no matter how good a game looks, the version which will always come out on top is that which plays better, smoother and with more control. While the other two versions aren’t bad, it should be the PS2 one which is commended for focussing on the right aspects.
At the end of the day it’s a pity that the best bits of all three couldn’t be available as one game, a nice front end, good options for continued play and the precise in-game control, not to mention the graphics, but for me it really is no choice as to which version I’ve ended up with.
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I have now played three versions of Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit 2 and the findings surprised me. There are versions of this game for PC, Playstation 2, Gamecube and Xbox and while I haven't played the PC version yet (I still can't see the point of racing games on the PC, but that's just me) I have had quite a few goes on the other three formats.
It’s not so much the game itself that has surprised me though. Yes, I know all the arguments about whether this or Burnout 2 is the best cop chase game, but I personally enjoyed Need for Speed HP2 as a different experience to Burnout 2. What got me was that there was such a difference between the 3 versions I played.
Now, the history behind the creation of this game is important to note if you want to understand why each version is so different. In the beginning Electronic Arts came up with the basic gameplay and graphic format for this new Need For Speed game, but instead of writing the game on one format and porting the code, they decided to give the game to 3 different development teams to design the actual game code.
The first changes you notice are in the presentation. The title screen on the PS2, while relatively workable and pretty, is not a patch on the Cube and Xbox versions. While the PS2 screens guide you through the modes, the other versions give you far more options and in a much prettier way. It might be a small thing, but it makes all the difference to the player’s first impressions of a game.
The next changes are found when you’ve gained points and use the menu system to choose new cars and tracks. The Cube version seems to be the best here, with the option to swap points directly from the title screen for new cars and tracks. This is a great little option and allows you to open tracks for multiplay and single race events in the order you want to. The PS2 version is the least impressive, initially only allowing access to these when you’ve played through them on the full game mode.
There are obvious differences too in the graphics. The PS2 version is jagged and less polished compared to the Gamecube version, and the Xbox version beats them both hands down, due to great lighting effects. This is to be expected really, given hardware limitations, but while it really stands out when the games are shown side by side, it doesn’t really detract from the gameplay.
Ah, the most important aspect of any game, the gameplay. Well, this is really where the PS2 manages to grab all the medals. It’s all down to the handling really. Both the Gamecube and Xbox versions have problems with hairtrigger style controls. Press left and you watch your car slide right over to the other side, let your car get hit by the police and you spin like an ice-skater at the Olympics. The PS2 version is virtually perfect compared to the other versions in the handling and physics, it plays really well (albeit slowly compared to the speedy Burnout 2).
So, I know that this sounds like a review so far, but it got me thinking that the differences between these consoles really highlights what’s important in a game. While the Xbox and Gamecube versions are playable and good games in their own right, playing the Playstation 2 version puts them both to shame. It’s like playing a completely different game at times! While the programmers for the other two versions seem to have concentrated on the design, looks and options in the game, the PS2 coders have gone all out on the dynamics and gameplay to create something which is much more playable in the end.
It’s a constant argument on this site that graphics are as important as gameplay in today’s games, it’s also used to highlight the differences between consoles, particularly in console wars topics, but using this one game as an example, you can see that no matter how good a game looks, the version which will always come out on top is that which plays better, smoother and with more control. While the other two versions aren’t bad, it should be the PS2 one which is commended for focussing on the right aspects.
At the end of the day it’s a pity that the best bits of all three couldn’t be available as one game, a nice front end, good options for continued play and the precise in-game control, not to mention the graphics, but for me it really is no choice as to which version I’ve ended up with.
It’s not so much the game itself that has surprised me though. Yes, I know all the arguments about whether this or Burnout 2 is the best cop chase game, but I personally enjoyed Need for Speed HP2 as a different experience to Burnout 2. What got me was that there was such a difference between the 3 versions I played.
Now, the history behind the creation of this game is important to note if you want to understand why each version is so different. In the beginning Electronic Arts came up with the basic gameplay and graphic format for this new Need For Speed game, but instead of writing the game on one format and porting the code, they decided to give the game to 3 different development teams to design the actual game code.
The first changes you notice are in the presentation. The title screen on the PS2, while relatively workable and pretty, is not a patch on the Cube and Xbox versions. While the PS2 screens guide you through the modes, the other versions give you far more options and in a much prettier way. It might be a small thing, but it makes all the difference to the player’s first impressions of a game.
The next changes are found when you’ve gained points and use the menu system to choose new cars and tracks. The Cube version seems to be the best here, with the option to swap points directly from the title screen for new cars and tracks. This is a great little option and allows you to open tracks for multiplay and single race events in the order you want to. The PS2 version is the least impressive, initially only allowing access to these when you’ve played through them on the full game mode.
There are obvious differences too in the graphics. The PS2 version is jagged and less polished compared to the Gamecube version, and the Xbox version beats them both hands down, due to great lighting effects. This is to be expected really, given hardware limitations, but while it really stands out when the games are shown side by side, it doesn’t really detract from the gameplay.
Ah, the most important aspect of any game, the gameplay. Well, this is really where the PS2 manages to grab all the medals. It’s all down to the handling really. Both the Gamecube and Xbox versions have problems with hairtrigger style controls. Press left and you watch your car slide right over to the other side, let your car get hit by the police and you spin like an ice-skater at the Olympics. The PS2 version is virtually perfect compared to the other versions in the handling and physics, it plays really well (albeit slowly compared to the speedy Burnout 2).
So, I know that this sounds like a review so far, but it got me thinking that the differences between these consoles really highlights what’s important in a game. While the Xbox and Gamecube versions are playable and good games in their own right, playing the Playstation 2 version puts them both to shame. It’s like playing a completely different game at times! While the programmers for the other two versions seem to have concentrated on the design, looks and options in the game, the PS2 coders have gone all out on the dynamics and gameplay to create something which is much more playable in the end.
It’s a constant argument on this site that graphics are as important as gameplay in today’s games, it’s also used to highlight the differences between consoles, particularly in console wars topics, but using this one game as an example, you can see that no matter how good a game looks, the version which will always come out on top is that which plays better, smoother and with more control. While the other two versions aren’t bad, it should be the PS2 one which is commended for focussing on the right aspects.
At the end of the day it’s a pity that the best bits of all three couldn’t be available as one game, a nice front end, good options for continued play and the precise in-game control, not to mention the graphics, but for me it really is no choice as to which version I’ve ended up with.