Need for Speed Heat Is the Best Installment of the NFS Franchise in Years

Titles like The Run or 2015’s Need for Speed are – let's be frank – pretty shameful, and I can’t really say I was a huge fan of the Most Wanted launched in 2012 either, though the vast majority of gamers appear to have enjoyed it. NFS Heat, however, is a different animal.

It borrows some of those sweet elements that made Need for Speed unique in the first place, such as intense cop chases or a delightful variety in terms of visual and performance customization, while significantly cutting back on less desirable aspects, including those cringy storyline dialogues and cutscenes we were taunted with throughout Payback.

“Need for Speed Heat is an adrenaline-fueled, vibrant racing game where the lines of the law fade as the sun starts to set.”

First things first; the game is divided into a couple of very distinct modes: Day and Night. During the daytime, you will partake in events that resemble organized racing competitions in exchange for in-game currency to be spent on new cars and juicy upgrades.

The Night mode features adrenaline-filled illegal street racing and challenging police chases that can get brutally difficult as you progress through the game’s five Heat levels (similar to those seen in the 2005 Most Wanted). It’s a ‘high risk, high reward’ playground rewarding you with reputation points to unlock new races. If you don’t get busted, that is.

As the developer would put it “hustle by day, risk it all at night.”

Heat takes place in Palm City - a fictional metropolis heavily inspired by Miami - and its surrounding rural areas. The city isn’t necessarily dull during the day, but it’s nothing too spectacular either. At night, however, it turns into one of the most visually stunning neon-lit open worlds of any arcade racing title out there!

Ghost Games have done a splendid job on the weather effects, making the gaming experience that much more immersive and satisfying. In fact, the sheer amount of fun to be had flying around Palm City’s wet streets at 150mph is quite addictive, I’ll have to admit. Oh, and don’t even get me started on those saturated reflections; so damn sexy...

Nonetheless, keep in mind that five-Os are relentless and out to crush your ride. Seriously, it's like they’ve all had a triple-portion of pre-workout and five cans of energy drink before going out on patrol.

We do appreciate the challenge of Most Wanted-type cop chases that require some strategy to complete successfully, but the boys in blue are just ridiculously overpowered and this does take away some of the enjoyment of racing at night.

The fact that your car now as a health bar isn’t very helpful, as you won’t be able to ram the hell out of police units to take them out like you would in previous installments of the franchise.

Overall, it can get extremely frustrating at times, but it’s impossible not to fall in love with the colorful night environment and that’s guaranteed to have you coming back for more.

Customization is (thankfully) no longer the random card game that we’ve seen in Payback. Parts can now be purchased with in-game currency earned as you compete in events, which actually makes sense!

I dare say Heat might just be the top Need for Speed title when it comes to customizing your ride, giving you the opportunity to let that imagination go wild. One thing’s for sure, you’ll be spending hours browsing this menu and building the supercars of your dreams.

Don’t get me wrong, NFS Heat is definitely not perfect, but does a huge deal to revive the franchise, giving us hope that developers are finally heading in the right direction again.