Porsche 914 to 935, We Play the Golden Era Part of the Classic Need for Speed Game

Finishing the Classic Era prompted gamers with the possibility of winning a Porsche 550 A race car, which was quite fast compared to the cars you had driven up until that point. The golden era starts in 1970, with what may be the most boring Porsche of all time: the 914. This is the first tournament of a series of 6 you need to finish to move on to the Modern Era. The only choice you have is the 914/4, which was powered by a 1.7-liter, VW flat-four. With an output of 80 horsepower, you can't expect this car to deliver any kind of excitement.

Precision is more important than speed

After two rather boring races, it's time to up the ante. Enter the recently released Porsche Carrera RS 2.7 Coupe. If you've finished the Factory Driver mode first, you already have one of these in your garage, but owning a second one can only be a good thing. Looking at today's market, we all know how expensive these cars have become, so it won't hurt to have two in your garage if you're going to make some profits further down the road.

Switching to the Carrera 2.7 RS is a huge leap forward. Hitting 149 mph (240 kph) is a lot of fun until you realize that there's a truck blocking the shortcut you decided to take and you find yourself crashing the car badly. Repairing this car isn't going to be cheap and winning a race doesn't feel as easy as it did before. For the first time since the start of the Evolution mode, I found myself in a position in which I needed to restart the tournament to win it.

Even though you can proceed to the next stage without winning, it just doesn't feel as rewarding. On my second attempt, I finished the tournament in second place. Word of advice: controlling the car feels easier to do when you're using the onboard camera. And the old 911 does slide around quite a bit. If you do manage to finish a race without crashing at least once, you're either an amazing driver or you're going too slow! Moving on to 1978, you're looking at a Carrera RS 2.7 exclusive event, with 4 races in total.

To follow, without halt, one aim: There's the secret of success

Completing this tournament was more exhausting than I had hoped initially. In retrospect, the in-game briefing does warn you about this: "a tough series of races featuring the very fast and agile 911 Carrera RS 2.7". Fast forward to 1982, you're now going to have to buy a Porsche 944. The 944 was built on the 924-platform, which was meant to replace the old, boring 914. At this point, '50s-built Porsches can go for over 100,000 credits on the used car market. At least this way you won't run out of money for upgrades and repairs.

For the first time since starting the Evolution mode, you can now supercharge your vehicle! According to the game, the stage 4 supercharger should provide an additional 100 to 120 horsepower. With 5 races ahead, it's time to go all out for the 50,000 credits prize money! While it may seem that the 944 is easier to drive, due to its FR layout, losing control of the car can be quite costly. I ended up spending more on repairs than I did on the whole car, after just a few races.

And I also found myself finishing 4th in the tournament after a series of mishaps. Need for Speed: Porsche can feel quite challenging at times, but that's the beauty of it. Practice makes perfect. So if you want to go through every tournament without having to restart it, just go out for a practice run before entering the race. That way you'll get accustomed to the car, you'll learn every part of the track, and you'll increase your chances of winning. Anyway, moving on to the next and last tournament for this era, things are about to get dead-serious.

To achieve anything in this game you must be prepare to dabble in the boundary of disaster

This is a 911 Turbo-only tournament, and the entry fee alone is 20,000 credits. The 1978 Porsche 911 Turbo 3.3 Coupe is going to set you back an additional 78,500 credits at this stage. And you'd better have some cash left for upgrades as well. So you know what to do. Just go to the Used Cars section and do your thing! If you're lucky enough to find a crashed 550 A Spyder, you're bound to make some quick cash. That way you can focus on the task at hand and move on with the game.

The Porsche 930 Turbo can get up to 136 mph (220 kph) quite easily, but you're going to have to be careful with your steering inputs to avoid spinning out. You're once again reminded how expensive this car is right after your first race. With only some minor damage - the car's condition is at 84% - repairs will set you back a little over 17,000 credits.

All in all, a minor price to pay for a '70s car that can go as fast as 161 mph (260 kph). Once you manage to finish this tournament, you're in for another racing treat: the 935 Trophy! As if that's not good enough, six more club races will be unlocked for you to hone your skills at a later moment.