Yesterday, EA mobile released their newest race title, ported for the iPhone. Need for Speed Undercover follows the plot and mechanics of most other NFS titles: infiltrate a underground smuggling/racing ring, race through a few cityscapes, destroy some cop cars on the way. The most interesting part of the game is probably the controls.
Unlike most racers, NFSU has no gas pedal. Your virtual driver just puts the thing to the floor and trusts you to handle the rest. Pressing the screen activates your brake while you steer by simply tilting your phone. As you can imagine, steering can feel a little mushy, a setback EA countered with fairly simple course design. Swipe your finger up on the screen for a nitrous boost, down to enter the Speed Breaker, which is essentially bullet time for cars. I’m glad to see they were thinking of controls when they designed the game. The iPhone as a gaming device can be fairly limited, but obviously there are creative ways to get around the drawbacks.
The only problem I see is the $10 price tag. Sure it’s a complete game, stuffed with 19 cars and a load of customization. Ten bucks still seems stiff for something that I would basically use as a time-killer on long trips in the car or while I’m waiting for a movie to start.
Source: CNet
