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This thread has been linked to the game 'Need for Speed: Most Wanted'.
For a console that apparently comes close to the power of the PS3, the Vita has had a mixed success rate with versions of games more familiar with the surroundings of the PS3 console. Uncharted and Wipeout are two of the resounding successes, Call of Duty and Resistance have been big disappointments and Assassins Creed seems to sit somewhere inbetween. Need For Speed Most Wanted rockets past the disappointments and parks among the resounding successes.
Rather than outsource the development of Most Wanted to another studio, Criterion kept the development of this game in-house. This proved to be the only glimmer of hope in a version of the game that got pretty much no promotion at all. Whilst the 360 and PS3 versions had trailer after trailer released, the Vita version only got 3 screenshots and some details on the PS Blog. I’m no marketing guru but it seems detrimental and as a potential customer, I had alarm bells ringing. It is remarkable that EA chose not to promote this version as it is a fine example of what the Vita can do.
The Wii version of Need For Speed Hot Pursuit was given to a different developer and they produced an entirely different game and one which wasn’t anywhere near as good as the Criterion version. Thankfully, the Vita version of Most Wanted is the same game as the PS3 version. I covered the game content in my review of the PS3 version so I won’t repeat myself in this review and I’ll mainly just stick to comparisons.
Most Wanted will be instantly familiar to those that have played the home console version. Everything the city of Fairhaven has to offers is here; all the cars and jackspots, all the roads, all the billboard and security gates, all the races and more. Squeezing all of Fairhaven into the small Vita cartridges is an impressive feat. Criterion claimed to have created the same game but I found it hard not to play a Spot the Difference game, there must be something missing. Small details would be easy to omit, nobody would really notice the absence of reflections on the car windows or the spit-second blinding light when emerging from a tunnel but they are there.
That’s not to say the Vita version is identical but it is close, oh so close. As expected, the Vita version isn’t quite as strong graphically. Some of the cars, on close inspection, are a little rough round the edges but this only seems to affect some. Car damage on the Vita seems to be a little less, particularly around broken windows which look more like a poor DIY tint job. Draw distance isn’t quite as good either, on a rare occasion you can spot a building popping in but it is rare and you’re not really going to notice it as the game whizzes along at quite some pace when you hit full speed. It all moves impressively fast and smooth, unlike my some of my driving.
The first major difference is that the roads of Fairhaven are much quieter on the Vita, not that I found the traffic to be very dense on the PS3 in the first place. It is noticeable but not something I paid much attention to, the cars that are there can still pose an obstacle and a frustration when you collide with the finish line in sight. The lack of traffic density seems to have no impact on the races themselves, the racing is still great fun and the AI is still aggressive, if a little suicidal at times.
The smaller screen of the Vita adds a layer of challenge. As I
mentioned, the games moves at an incredible pace and spotting obstacle before it is too late takes concentration and focus. You will become more dependent on the lights of cars in order to spot them but it is all very clear, just smaller than on your home TV.
The car handling is a little more twitchy in the Vita due to the smaller distance the analogue sticks travel but it doesn’t take much time to get familiar and from that point onwards it feels just like the PS3 version did.
Autolog is alive and well in the Vita version too and plays out just like the PS3 version. You’ll see times from people on your friends list, speeds they were clocked at by speed cameras, their avatar on billboard posters. And unlike my experience with the PS3 version, I had some times to beat. As with the PS3 version, you will only see the speedpoints from friends on other formats.
Speedpoints earned from other versions are all incorporated into the game which meant I started out top of the Most Wanted list and could add a top up with the iOS version of the game (which is a different game). It’s not been entirely thought through though, trophy hunters who have completed the PS3 version will have to delete their Vita save file and play offline in order to obtain the trophy for climbing the Most Wanted list.
The second major change is that there are less players online. The multiplayer mode is still the same, a mix of races and challenges, team play or solo. I never had any issue finding a game and I did find the general mentality of the players to be better, people actually wanted to actually play the game. I found the online experience to run smoothly and free of any lag.
The Vita version does come with 10 exclusive events. These are smaller distance races but predominantly with more twists and turns which mean there is more chance of crashing but less time to make up the lost ground. A nice little extra but not quite as much fun as the main events.
Criterion seem to have divided fans of their work with this game but for those that enjoyed the home console version will be in for a treat with the Vita version.
9
I should be consistent with my PS3 review and score it as an 8 but I am more impressed with the Vita version and it also has the benefit of not having a version of Criterion’s better games, namely Need For Speed Hot Pursuit and Burnout Paradise.
Rather than outsource the development of Most Wanted to another studio, Criterion kept the development of this game in-house. This proved to be the only glimmer of hope in a version of the game that got pretty much no promotion at all. Whilst the 360 and PS3 versions had trailer after trailer released, the Vita version only got 3 screenshots and some details on the PS Blog. I’m no marketing guru but it seems detrimental and as a potential customer, I had alarm bells ringing. It is remarkable that EA chose not to promote this version as it is a fine example of what the Vita can do.
The Wii version of Need For Speed Hot Pursuit was given to a different developer and they produced an entirely different game and one which wasn’t anywhere near as good as the Criterion version. Thankfully, the Vita version of Most Wanted is the same game as the PS3 version. I covered the game content in my review of the PS3 version so I won’t repeat myself in this review and I’ll mainly just stick to comparisons.
Most Wanted will be instantly familiar to those that have played the home console version. Everything the city of Fairhaven has to offers is here; all the cars and jackspots, all the roads, all the billboard and security gates, all the races and more. Squeezing all of Fairhaven into the small Vita cartridges is an impressive feat. Criterion claimed to have created the same game but I found it hard not to play a Spot the Difference game, there must be something missing. Small details would be easy to omit, nobody would really notice the absence of reflections on the car windows or the spit-second blinding light when emerging from a tunnel but they are there.
That’s not to say the Vita version is identical but it is close, oh so close. As expected, the Vita version isn’t quite as strong graphically. Some of the cars, on close inspection, are a little rough round the edges but this only seems to affect some. Car damage on the Vita seems to be a little less, particularly around broken windows which look more like a poor DIY tint job. Draw distance isn’t quite as good either, on a rare occasion you can spot a building popping in but it is rare and you’re not really going to notice it as the game whizzes along at quite some pace when you hit full speed. It all moves impressively fast and smooth, unlike my some of my driving.
The first major difference is that the roads of Fairhaven are much quieter on the Vita, not that I found the traffic to be very dense on the PS3 in the first place. It is noticeable but not something I paid much attention to, the cars that are there can still pose an obstacle and a frustration when you collide with the finish line in sight. The lack of traffic density seems to have no impact on the races themselves, the racing is still great fun and the AI is still aggressive, if a little suicidal at times.
The smaller screen of the Vita adds a layer of challenge. As I
mentioned, the games moves at an incredible pace and spotting obstacle before it is too late takes concentration and focus. You will become more dependent on the lights of cars in order to spot them but it is all very clear, just smaller than on your home TV.
The car handling is a little more twitchy in the Vita due to the smaller distance the analogue sticks travel but it doesn’t take much time to get familiar and from that point onwards it feels just like the PS3 version did.
Autolog is alive and well in the Vita version too and plays out just like the PS3 version. You’ll see times from people on your friends list, speeds they were clocked at by speed cameras, their avatar on billboard posters. And unlike my experience with the PS3 version, I had some times to beat. As with the PS3 version, you will only see the speedpoints from friends on other formats.
Speedpoints earned from other versions are all incorporated into the game which meant I started out top of the Most Wanted list and could add a top up with the iOS version of the game (which is a different game). It’s not been entirely thought through though, trophy hunters who have completed the PS3 version will have to delete their Vita save file and play offline in order to obtain the trophy for climbing the Most Wanted list.
The second major change is that there are less players online. The multiplayer mode is still the same, a mix of races and challenges, team play or solo. I never had any issue finding a game and I did find the general mentality of the players to be better, people actually wanted to actually play the game. I found the online experience to run smoothly and free of any lag.
The Vita version does come with 10 exclusive events. These are smaller distance races but predominantly with more twists and turns which mean there is more chance of crashing but less time to make up the lost ground. A nice little extra but not quite as much fun as the main events.
Criterion seem to have divided fans of their work with this game but for those that enjoyed the home console version will be in for a treat with the Vita version.
9
I should be consistent with my PS3 review and score it as an 8 but I am more impressed with the Vita version and it also has the benefit of not having a version of Criterion’s better games, namely Need For Speed Hot Pursuit and Burnout Paradise.
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For a console that apparently comes close to the power of the PS3, the Vita has had a mixed success rate with versions of games more familiar with the surroundings of the PS3 console. Uncharted and Wipeout are two of the resounding successes, Call of Duty and Resistance have been big disappointments and Assassins Creed seems to sit somewhere inbetween. Need For Speed Most Wanted rockets past the disappointments and parks among the resounding successes.
Rather than outsource the development of Most Wanted to another studio, Criterion kept the development of this game in-house. This proved to be the only glimmer of hope in a version of the game that got pretty much no promotion at all. Whilst the 360 and PS3 versions had trailer after trailer released, the Vita version only got 3 screenshots and some details on the PS Blog. I’m no marketing guru but it seems detrimental and as a potential customer, I had alarm bells ringing. It is remarkable that EA chose not to promote this version as it is a fine example of what the Vita can do.
The Wii version of Need For Speed Hot Pursuit was given to a different developer and they produced an entirely different game and one which wasn’t anywhere near as good as the Criterion version. Thankfully, the Vita version of Most Wanted is the same game as the PS3 version. I covered the game content in my review of the PS3 version so I won’t repeat myself in this review and I’ll mainly just stick to comparisons.
Most Wanted will be instantly familiar to those that have played the home console version. Everything the city of Fairhaven has to offers is here; all the cars and jackspots, all the roads, all the billboard and security gates, all the races and more. Squeezing all of Fairhaven into the small Vita cartridges is an impressive feat. Criterion claimed to have created the same game but I found it hard not to play a Spot the Difference game, there must be something missing. Small details would be easy to omit, nobody would really notice the absence of reflections on the car windows or the spit-second blinding light when emerging from a tunnel but they are there.
That’s not to say the Vita version is identical but it is close, oh so close. As expected, the Vita version isn’t quite as strong graphically. Some of the cars, on close inspection, are a little rough round the edges but this only seems to affect some. Car damage on the Vita seems to be a little less, particularly around broken windows which look more like a poor DIY tint job. Draw distance isn’t quite as good either, on a rare occasion you can spot a building popping in but it is rare and you’re not really going to notice it as the game whizzes along at quite some pace when you hit full speed. It all moves impressively fast and smooth, unlike my some of my driving.
The first major difference is that the roads of Fairhaven are much quieter on the Vita, not that I found the traffic to be very dense on the PS3 in the first place. It is noticeable but not something I paid much attention to, the cars that are there can still pose an obstacle and a frustration when you collide with the finish line in sight. The lack of traffic density seems to have no impact on the races themselves, the racing is still great fun and the AI is still aggressive, if a little suicidal at times.
The smaller screen of the Vita adds a layer of challenge. As I
mentioned, the games moves at an incredible pace and spotting obstacle before it is too late takes concentration and focus. You will become more dependent on the lights of cars in order to spot them but it is all very clear, just smaller than on your home TV.
The car handling is a little more twitchy in the Vita due to the smaller distance the analogue sticks travel but it doesn’t take much time to get familiar and from that point onwards it feels just like the PS3 version did.
Autolog is alive and well in the Vita version too and plays out just like the PS3 version. You’ll see times from people on your friends list, speeds they were clocked at by speed cameras, their avatar on billboard posters. And unlike my experience with the PS3 version, I had some times to beat. As with the PS3 version, you will only see the speedpoints from friends on other formats.
Speedpoints earned from other versions are all incorporated into the game which meant I started out top of the Most Wanted list and could add a top up with the iOS version of the game (which is a different game). It’s not been entirely thought through though, trophy hunters who have completed the PS3 version will have to delete their Vita save file and play offline in order to obtain the trophy for climbing the Most Wanted list.
The second major change is that there are less players online. The multiplayer mode is still the same, a mix of races and challenges, team play or solo. I never had any issue finding a game and I did find the general mentality of the players to be better, people actually wanted to actually play the game. I found the online experience to run smoothly and free of any lag.
The Vita version does come with 10 exclusive events. These are smaller distance races but predominantly with more twists and turns which mean there is more chance of crashing but less time to make up the lost ground. A nice little extra but not quite as much fun as the main events.
Criterion seem to have divided fans of their work with this game but for those that enjoyed the home console version will be in for a treat with the Vita version.
9
I should be consistent with my PS3 review and score it as an 8 but I am more impressed with the Vita version and it also has the benefit of not having a version of Criterion’s better games, namely Need For Speed Hot Pursuit and Burnout Paradise.
Rather than outsource the development of Most Wanted to another studio, Criterion kept the development of this game in-house. This proved to be the only glimmer of hope in a version of the game that got pretty much no promotion at all. Whilst the 360 and PS3 versions had trailer after trailer released, the Vita version only got 3 screenshots and some details on the PS Blog. I’m no marketing guru but it seems detrimental and as a potential customer, I had alarm bells ringing. It is remarkable that EA chose not to promote this version as it is a fine example of what the Vita can do.
The Wii version of Need For Speed Hot Pursuit was given to a different developer and they produced an entirely different game and one which wasn’t anywhere near as good as the Criterion version. Thankfully, the Vita version of Most Wanted is the same game as the PS3 version. I covered the game content in my review of the PS3 version so I won’t repeat myself in this review and I’ll mainly just stick to comparisons.
Most Wanted will be instantly familiar to those that have played the home console version. Everything the city of Fairhaven has to offers is here; all the cars and jackspots, all the roads, all the billboard and security gates, all the races and more. Squeezing all of Fairhaven into the small Vita cartridges is an impressive feat. Criterion claimed to have created the same game but I found it hard not to play a Spot the Difference game, there must be something missing. Small details would be easy to omit, nobody would really notice the absence of reflections on the car windows or the spit-second blinding light when emerging from a tunnel but they are there.
That’s not to say the Vita version is identical but it is close, oh so close. As expected, the Vita version isn’t quite as strong graphically. Some of the cars, on close inspection, are a little rough round the edges but this only seems to affect some. Car damage on the Vita seems to be a little less, particularly around broken windows which look more like a poor DIY tint job. Draw distance isn’t quite as good either, on a rare occasion you can spot a building popping in but it is rare and you’re not really going to notice it as the game whizzes along at quite some pace when you hit full speed. It all moves impressively fast and smooth, unlike my some of my driving.
The first major difference is that the roads of Fairhaven are much quieter on the Vita, not that I found the traffic to be very dense on the PS3 in the first place. It is noticeable but not something I paid much attention to, the cars that are there can still pose an obstacle and a frustration when you collide with the finish line in sight. The lack of traffic density seems to have no impact on the races themselves, the racing is still great fun and the AI is still aggressive, if a little suicidal at times.
The smaller screen of the Vita adds a layer of challenge. As I
mentioned, the games moves at an incredible pace and spotting obstacle before it is too late takes concentration and focus. You will become more dependent on the lights of cars in order to spot them but it is all very clear, just smaller than on your home TV.
The car handling is a little more twitchy in the Vita due to the smaller distance the analogue sticks travel but it doesn’t take much time to get familiar and from that point onwards it feels just like the PS3 version did.
Autolog is alive and well in the Vita version too and plays out just like the PS3 version. You’ll see times from people on your friends list, speeds they were clocked at by speed cameras, their avatar on billboard posters. And unlike my experience with the PS3 version, I had some times to beat. As with the PS3 version, you will only see the speedpoints from friends on other formats.
Speedpoints earned from other versions are all incorporated into the game which meant I started out top of the Most Wanted list and could add a top up with the iOS version of the game (which is a different game). It’s not been entirely thought through though, trophy hunters who have completed the PS3 version will have to delete their Vita save file and play offline in order to obtain the trophy for climbing the Most Wanted list.
The second major change is that there are less players online. The multiplayer mode is still the same, a mix of races and challenges, team play or solo. I never had any issue finding a game and I did find the general mentality of the players to be better, people actually wanted to actually play the game. I found the online experience to run smoothly and free of any lag.
The Vita version does come with 10 exclusive events. These are smaller distance races but predominantly with more twists and turns which mean there is more chance of crashing but less time to make up the lost ground. A nice little extra but not quite as much fun as the main events.
Criterion seem to have divided fans of their work with this game but for those that enjoyed the home console version will be in for a treat with the Vita version.
9
I should be consistent with my PS3 review and score it as an 8 but I am more impressed with the Vita version and it also has the benefit of not having a version of Criterion’s better games, namely Need For Speed Hot Pursuit and Burnout Paradise.