Need For Speed: Underground 2 - Deel 6

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SSX 3 had zijn berg, Need For Speed Underground 2 heeft zijn stad, een hele grote stad...

"Daar heel in de verte staat een radiotoren, kan iedereen hem zien?" We knikken, terwijl de EA medewerker met zijn vinger de desbetreffende aan de horizon gelegen toren aanwijst. David White (artist van NFSU2) drukt de X-knop in en rijdt ettelijke minuten de hele stad door op weg naar de eerder aangewezen toren, dit om te demonstreren hoe ontzettend groot de stad van Need For Speed Underground 2 daadwerkelijk is.

PRACHT EN PRAAL

Het meest indrukwekkende van de presentratie was misschien wel het moment dat je met je wagen vanaf de snelweg richting het commerciële centrum van de stad rijdt. Verwelkomd door fraai verlichte wolkenkrabbers duik je het drukbevolkte centrum in. De kleurenpracht die tentoon wordt gespreid is net even wat mooier uitgewerkt dan in de originele Need For Speed Underground (NFSU). Het komt allemaal wat minder clean en kunstmatig over, wagens glimmen nu niet meer zo overdreven en ook de neonverlichting van de omgeving is wat minder nadrukkelijk aanwezig.

VRIJHEID

Na deze korte doch indrukwekkende voorstelling werden wij naar de verschillende demopods gedirigeerd, alwaar onze gretige handjes aan den lijve komden ondervinden wat NFSU2 straks voor ons in petto heeft.
Het eerste dat opvalt, is dat er niet meer wordt geracet vanuit menu's maar dat je in die grote stad de wedstrijden afwerkt. Meer dan voorheen heb je nu het idee dat je daadwerkelijk jezelf opwekt in de underground scene van het illegale straatracen. Rivalen rijden door de stad en kunnen, door achter ze aan te rijden, met een druk op de knop uitgedaagd worden voor een wedstrijd. Het is de bedoeling dat je ze inhaalt en een voorsprong van 300 meter behaalt. Lukt dit dan zal je verslagen tegenstander je tips geven of locaties in de stad voor je vrijspelen. Op deze manier stuit je ook op de wedstrijden die we kennen uit NFSU, zoals drag, drift of circuitraces.
Langzaam maar zeker wordt de hele stad, die bestaat uit vijf buurten, toegankelijk. Al snel zie je waar die garage, tuneshop of autohandelaar nu eigenlijk zit. Rij er simpelweg naartoe en je komt in een menu terecht waar je jouw 'ride' een vers laklaagje kunt geven of even flink kunt opwaarderen met nieuwe elektronica of vette spoilers. En deze keer blijft het niet bij uiterlijk alleen maar heeft bijvoorbeeld een spoiler daadwerkelijk invloed op de prestaties van je wagen.
Niet alleen het verslaan van rivalen levert je extra opdrachten of geheime locaties op, ook kun je zelf de stad doorzoeken naar geheime onderdelen. Dit neemt meteen het gevoel weg dat de grootte van de stad slechts aanvoelt als gimmick; het voegt namelijk weldegelijk iets toe aan het spelplezier.

BETER?

Die grote stad zal ook online een prachtig strijdtoneel gaan vormen voor iedere PS2, Xbox of PC bezitter. Je kunt er naar hartelust met wat mensen vrijblijvend de stad verkennen alsmede de gebruikelijke wedstrijden afwerken.
Het enige puntje van kritiek dat ik kon bedenken, was dat er momenteel wel heel erg veel illegale straatrace spellen op de markt verschijnen. Het is dus zaak dat voor NFSU2 om de komende maanden nog wat écht nieuwe zaken toe te voegen, wil het de concurrentie de mond kunnen snoeren.

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By: Micheal Mullen, eagames.com editor

Last week EA GAMES had the rare opportunity to talk to one of the only reasons why men watch the E Network, Brooke Burke as she talked about her upcoming starring role in the anticipated release of Need for Speed Underground 2. While her often studied assets are usually front and center (usually on the cover of your favorite magazines), we're happy to report that Brooke's while she's not only beautiful, intelligent and has a great sense of humor, she also plays games.

EA GAMES: I've heard that you actually play games so it must be an honor to actually star in one.

Brooke Burke: It's huge. I actually had that the game [Need for Speed Underground] before EA approached me. I'm also a car enthusiast so there is a reason why I was passionate this game. I think it's going to be awesome. I'm really excited to see the finished product.


EAG: Were you any good at playing Need for Speed Underground?

BB: I was ok but I had a lot to learn. I'm much better now than I was before. I love to drive and I've done some things to my personal car that you can do in the game so it's been kind of fun to see that all happen.


EAG: Have you been able to get in a little time to play NFSU2 yet?

BB: Yeah. We've been messing around a little bit and I think it's going to be so much more fun having the open world option. The size of the world now is just incredible. Things that I really like about the game are that you can make it up as you go along. You can make it up as you go along, you don't have to play the races like the last game that you don't want to play where it just dropped you right in. I also think that it's cool as opposed to some other racing games where these are really attainable cars, these aren't $100,000+ cars. These are cars that people have or can have or that there are attainable goals and they can really have fun and style them out and make them their own. I think that people are really to relate to this game.


EAG: Do you have any favorite games that you're anxious to play in the game?

BB: The Hummer because I have a Hummer in real life. It's pretty amazing to see the performance packages and all the little options to put on that to really make it styled. That's something that's going to be a lot of fun because that's something I'm in the process of doing right now. Not performance-wise, but mainly exterior. I'm dying to see to open up the Hummer in a fantasy world and see how it rides.


EAG: Or you can just ride around and intimidate the other drivers...

BB: Totally and just through all the barriers and whatever!


EAG: So I've heard you own a Ferrari and I was wondering if you've ever raced or drifted?

BB: No, I don't drift in it. I try not to do that. Y'know an occasional race but I'm pretty responsible with that car. I try to avoid all that. But I have a Hummer that I've styled out. It's got a lot of bling on it and chrome so I've had a lot of fun with that inside and outside. And I own a Mercedes with an after kit package on it, lights front and back, rims and exhaust [2:00]. So there are definitely a lot of things in the game I can relate to.


EAG: Being a TV personality and in film... being in a video game is a completely different experience. How to you prepare for a role in a video game?

BB: I had no idea what to expect. And I have to say that the still photo shoot was the toughest acting job I've ever had. Having to be so animated, having to hold the animations, having to let a still photographer capture those moments was pretty challenging. I also had a lot of fun in the voiceover booth really developing the personality of the character and learning the tuner culture lingo. And it's totally different than anything I've ever done before. I have love doing things that I have not done before and I think that this whole process is fascinating, from the still shoot, to the voice over to the development of the character. Today I saw the animated drawings for the first time, it's amazing to see this graphic-like novel play out with me in and be so realistic.


EAG: In Need for Speed Underground 2, you portray Rachel. Now that you've completed your work on the game, can you tell us anything about her?

BB: I think that Rachel has a really cool demeanor about her. Very confident and strong and knowledgeable. She's not a bimbo and she's not too playful. She's a really tough chick. She runs the entire underground street racing circuit and I think she has the ability to mess around with the gamer when she needs to but also to encourage them and give them the tools they need to become better racers. I like that about her, she's really straight up and tough. I think that we have some similar characteristics.


EAG: So I know you're married (sorry, guys) to a plastic surgeon, is he going to torture the animation team if they don't recreate your likeness correctly?

BB: Ha, ha, ha! No, no, no. I think they did a wonderful job.


EAG: So you actually play games at home?

BB: We had a PlayStation 2 and we just got an Xbox. We have a home theater so we have a lot of time playing in there. I used to play video games when I remember Pac Man and Asteroids were just coming up. I love the compilation discs with a lot of the old school games on them, and those are a lot of fun. I play a lot with my kids too, we play Nemo. My husband plays a lot of sports and racing games that he loves. And we play a lot of the old school stuff.


EAG: Have you played any games online?

BB: No. I haven't yet. I would definitely like to check that out. Since my character in the game, Rachel, can't race in the game I'd definitely get online and race against other people. We should set that up.


EAG: Do you have anyone in your family that's most eager to see you in NFSU2?

BB: Yeah, my nephew Ritchie, he's 10. He's a Need for Speed Underground freak, he knows the game inside and out and I'm his hero.


EAG: So has he already asked for Need for Speed T-shirts and other swag?

BB: He hit up EA PR for everything. And he came to the shoot. He lives in Arizona so I flew him out to LA to go to the photo shoot with me. He's a little enthusiast now, I tell ya.


EAG: What's up next after the game?

BB: I don't know. Everybody's asked me that. I think that I've been really fortunate that I'm always working on something. My workout video is finished and is rolling out all over the country. There's an infomercial about that. With my swimsuit line, we're sort of changing direction. I'm looking at some licensing deals. My 2005 calendar hits stores in October, that's going to print this week. We've just signed a deal to do two new posters both internationally and here in the states. And TV and movies, I'm doing some news anchoring this summer.


EAG: It sounds like you don't actually have time to sit down.

BB: [Laughs] Believe it or not I have a lot of free time lately. I have a lot of little projects that are fun. More selective projects if you will.


EAG: So my last question is one to even a bet that we have here in the office. You don't actually live in a bikini everyday, correct?

BB: I'm in a bikini right now [laughs]


EAG: There goes $5.

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Op maandag 29 november 2004 20:30 schreef taart het volgende:
anyway, dit is mijn bakkie naar 1 dag spelen:
[afbeelding]

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Op maandag 29 november 2004 21:19 schreef Stunt het volgende:
geweldig spel beter dan 1
toffe dingen zitten er weer bij
maar wel weer weinig auto's