Test carried out from the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 versions
Need For Speed: ProStreet does not burn the eyes as one might think. It's simple: the game is just a little more beautiful than Juiced 2 : Hot Import Nights, just a little bit. The observation can be severe, but the title of Electronic Arts imposes itself so much on technical blunders. Starting with this damn butcher clipping that puts the console to death, as soon as the graphic details multiply on the screen. The billboards, the trees, the few buildings, most of the elements appear suddenly, as if we were in a Lego setting. If we won't make a big deal about the absence of pyrotechnic effects - Need For Speed: ProStreet Wanting to be more discreet than its predecessors - we will criticize the dull colors which do not highlight a car design yet convincing. Careful work has been done on the modeling of the vehicles, which makes it possible to obtain mounts with features faithful to the original copies. Standard meter par excellence within the editorial staff, the curves of the Golf GTi are aggressive, and reveal headlights and a grille ready to eat asphalt. BMW's E92 M3 isn't bad either, although our preference will ultimately go to the Audi S3. The realisation of Prostreet fixated on the cleanliness of the rims, as well as the shine of the discs and calipers; a visual pleasure that does not leave you indifferent. On the other hand, the interiors are almost non-existent, whether on the track - no cockpit view - or in the garage, large tinted windows preventing you from touching the leather or alcantara at times. Damage management allows you to benefit from a believable deformation of the bodywork, and a multitude of collateral damage - mirrors and bumpers that dangle, cracked windshield, broken headlights... - which add a certain realism to the title, even if it ultimately has no bearing on driving.
Streets of Rage
Renowned for its pronounced taste for the arcade, the dynasty Need for Speed offers in this version Prostreet piloting a bit more simulated. While we could approach any curve with the carelessness of a newbie in the previous sections, here we must use the brake pedal to avoid crashing against the safety rail. Colored arrows - changing from green to red when the speed is too high - indicate the braking zones to correctly negotiate the turns. You can even have assistance that automatically selects the preferred trajectory, or even slows the car if entering the bend is too fast; all these aids can of course be deleted in the options. The grip is heavy, very heavy, with cars that give the impression of weighing a ton. As a result, each maneuver becomes difficult to execute, which makes the races less spectacular than usual. Line changes are rare, both to overtake an opponent and to prevent him from dislocating. Ditto for the more docile, less eccentric skids, which will be reserved for very specific events. If acclimatization seems so laborious, it is also due to the fact that Need For Speed: ProStreet obliges the pilot to customize his car by designing tailor-made models for the various competitions in which he participates. Three areas are used to determine the performance of vehicles, depending on the category to which they belong. Power, control and aero for drifting; power, handling and aero for grip; power, traction and aero for the sprint. To improve each of these compartments, it will therefore be necessary to buy parts - tires, suspensions, engine, brakes, nitrous oxide, transmission... - to then install them on the vehicle. Several levels can be crossed to give a significant value to the various upgrades carried out. That said, when you look twice, Need For Speed: ProStreet is not a fan of plug & play, and requires an increased knowledge of mechanics and its derivatives. Indeed, it is not enough to regularly inflate the equipment of your car to systematically make a good figure on the track. You have to try, shape, design several different combinations via slightly more advanced settings. Compression of the shock absorbers, start of engine propulsion, gear ratio, braking pressure, here are some notions that you will have to master in order to make the most of the car's capacities. An aspect of the game that may put off more than one.
On the road again
True lung of the game, the Career mode is obviously the place where the steering wheel strokes, even the pressure strokes are the most numerous. Chases against the backdrop of megalopolises give way to official competitions on closed circuits. Electronic Arts is now legal, and the presence of the Career Card is there to remind us. This time, it is no longer a question of taunting the cops with well-felt pedal strokes, but of challenging bitumen darons, or Kings to do in the conventional. The map is thus divided into four large regions, each housing an ace of drift, grip, maxi challenge and sprint. To hope for a hypothetical face to face, it is essential to show your credentials by aligning the records in different disciplines which take up the same specialties. We start with the grip in which the primary goal is to finish the race in the lead. This category also includes other events such as the Time Trial where you have to achieve the best lap possible over three tries. Classic. We have a weakness for the segment race, which consists of accumulating as many points as possible, by achieving the best time on each part of the circuit. A gauge at the top of the screen provides an overview of the different owners. In sprint - or drag for connoisseurs - you will have to cover 400 or 800 meters in a minimum of time. Spread over three rounds, this event takes place in two stages. In the first part, the player must bring his tires up to temperature to benefit from better grip at the start. It is then necessary to play with R2 to stay in the green zone of the gauge, synonymous with burn amazing as they say. Then, you have to have a sense of timing that is acute enough to shift gears at the right time. Changing gears too late risks putting the engine in the red and causing it to explode, while changing gears too early does not allow you to take advantage of optimal acceleration. Undoubtedly the most difficult discipline to tame in the game, especially since the AI seems to eat away quite a bit here. One shot she will achieve lousy times, another she will smash inaccessible records. Like Juiced 2 : Hot Import Nights, the drift of Prostreet begins with a simple turn of the wheels. On the other hand, you really have to adjust the acceleration to achieve the perfect drift, and not be content to play only with the stick. Not fundamentally bad, the Career mode turns out to be a tad off-putting once you have cleared almost all the types of events. We would have some good surprises along the way.
The events follow one another at breakneck speed in the first hours of play, before experiencing a few hiccups when you reach the upper classes. Still, it's the best way to fill your pockets, an essential condition for obtaining vehicles and upgrading them with standard or custom kits. Note also the presence of passes that allow you to repair your vehicles without spending a penny. Even better, during Challenge Days, the repair costs are covered by the competition organizer. The class. In multiplayer, Need For Speed: ProStreet offers online gaming with Race Days that you can compose yourself, then share them on the network. Eight players can take part in these competitions home made. In addition, we can participate in a Quick Game with or without ranking, and of course exchange our models. Finally, let's talk about the soundscape of the title, which is neither bad nor excellent. If the speakers of the different regions traumatize the ears quite quickly, the roar of the engines makes it possible to catch up a little. Good soundtrack rocky has some nice melodies, but not unforgettable.
