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The call of the sequel is a strong one, luring hungry gamers back in, money in hand, for a fresh look at a title that revved their engines the first time around. And sometimes, said sequel is actually more than just a pretty rehash of a previously successful product. Such is the case with the latest in Electronic Arts' Need for Speed series, Need for Speed III: Hot Pursuit, surely the most compelling NFS since the 1995 original. With Hot Pursuit, EA has finally included the one element missing from previous NFS incarnations--believability. Granted, although there's not a hope in Hades that you'll mistake this for a simulation (especially in comparison with its predecessors), NFS III does offer up a heavy dose of realism. Weighty, physically complex vehicles charge through circuits that, for the most part, could well exist in the real world. Audio is dynamic and downright gritty, the visual presentation is leagues ahead of any other NFS to date, and a host of gameplay variables ensures long-term interest. With such dramatic improvements to an already highly regarded game, the Need for Speed franchise must once again be considered at or near the top of the arcade racing genre. What hasn't changed, however, is the Need for Speed formula. Essentially, the game gives common folk--those of us who can barely scrape together enough cashola for the down payment on a Ford Escort--a chance to aggressively race prohibitively expensive or prototypical thoroughbreds through a variety of fanciful public thoroughfares. Repair bills? Personal safety? Ha! This is the virtual world, baby, the only place most of us will ever blast into a blind corner in the midst of a 150-mph door-to-door Lamborghini/Ferrari/Jaguar dice. When else can you take a $100,000 Mercedes on a 130-mph flyer through a dirt road in one of Utah's national parks? At midnight, no less. In a driving rainstorm. With a cop hot on your tail. In all, NFS III offers more than a dozen exotic vehicles (grouped into classes based on performance and expense) and nine tracks, ranging from winding country road to desolate desert trail to precipitous mountainside ribbon to inner-city street. It should be noted that the second half of the courses are modifications of the first half, but the alterations are extensive and include enormous additions, so it certainly doesn't feel like you're driving on the same course. Depth is further enhanced by a multitude of user-defined options, such as weather, time of day, track direction, and choice of competition. In addition, you can customize onscreen HUD data, allowing you to choose what information to display and how you'd like your speedometer, tach, split time readings, and overhead map to look. Four cameras are available while driving (eight more during the absolutely killer replays), and bonus tracks and cars are reserved for those who perform exceptionally well. � -Cnet |