NFS: Most Wanted (Xbox 360 Update)

Hot pursuit police action.

The Need for Speed: Underground franchise, which spawned two games, received much criticism from the more hardcore gamers and racing fans. It's easy to see why. With its poor cheating AI, night time only racing and the lack of exotic cars - it was something of a break with tradition for the Need for Speed series.

The game was clearly aimed at the kind of idiot who would spend £20,000 adding after-market parts, neon and chrome to a £500 Vauxhall Nova, rather than spending the 20k on a good quality sports car. Yet the games sold, and sold in massive numbers, the second in the series topped the all-formats chart last Christmas. Though few would admit it, there was enough arcade entertainment in the gameplay that the game also gained a quiet following from some of the hardcore too, even though they lamented the death of the traditional NFS games.

So here we are with the latest game to wear the Need for Speed tag and it's an interesting blend of old and new. Gone is the pure night time racing and in once again come exotic cars from such manufacturers as Lamborghini. Most Wanted clearly signals a return to some traditional elements but has kept some of the better ideas from the Underground games.

Whether playing on PlayStation, Xbox or PC the actual gameplay is pretty similar. The idea is to rise the ranks of the racers within a city, beating 15 different drivers on the blacklist and try to reach the top. You can't race a blacklist member until you've built up enough of a reputation by completing other events and milestones.

The system of races will be similar to anyone who's played Underground. The events are scattered throughout the city and offer such challenges as sprint and circuit races, time trials and the like. There are some new features too, such as trying to get the highest speed possible past a speed camera.

The milestones offer something new. Unlike Underground, the city isn't just a playground for the player and AI racers. Now the streets are populated by police cars. Their frighteningly realistic radio calls can be heard as they close in on you and you'll have to keep changing the look of your car to stay one step ahead. The cops are increasingly aggressive and by the time you reach the eighth member of the blacklist they'll even be sending choppers after you.

But evading the cops and causing mayhem completes milestone events, so you'll often be actively seeking being spotted by a cop then trying to evade. You're aided in this by a radar scanner on your HUD and a map that shows obstacles you can crash through to slow the chasers down and places to go and hide while the heat cools off.

Some milestone events are simple, such as keep a chase going for two minutes then evade. Others offer more of a challenge, requiring you to cause a certain amount of damage. Either way, to continue in the game and challenge the blacklist members you'll have to mix up your play between race events and pursuits.