I bought this one because they were out of SRIII and I just hated leaving empty-handed.
Predictably, the game is shit. Right from the getgo, you're getting pissed off because the devs feel compelled to give you unskippable story intro. You know, because it is so fucking cool and interesting and engaging and really essential to the gameplay. I mean if you were not forced to watch that crap, how else would you know that you really, truly, positively don't give a rat's ass about it. Well, now you know.
The gameplay itself is about 40% driving 50% LOADING and 10% utterly idiotic (and I really mean it, as this cannot possibly be cool with anyone) action sequences where you're prompted to press various buttons to do some pre-set action sequence. Somewhat similar to GTA IV dance-floor moves, only here it's just fucking pointless and retarded.
But all that aside, NFS is about driving, so what of it. Well the car mechanics are pretty std NFS stuff, which I actually found refreshing. It's not a driving sim, not a racing game and I simply expect to have fun driving fast, evading police, pass some chums sliding around, that kind of thing. But you won't be doing much driving either or at least nothing that would have you satisfied in the end (or in the middle).
The object of the game is to get from A to B, via what turns out a bazillion sub-stages, and you need to stay away from the elimination position to continue. That's all well and good but the game is so scripted that you really have no choice nor say in the matter other than maybe swapping cars which seems to matter little as well. On the way to LV one must be within 150 positions (out of 200-odd) but you either complete each chunk successfully (passing set, no more, no less) number of other competitors or you don't progress thru the sub-stage. If you fail to do so you can either Retry or GTFO. Matter not helped when you're asked whether you're sure you want to retry. "No shit Sherlock. Can I just continue and make up places elsewhere? No? Then shut the fuck up and get on with it! So provided you got thru each stage fine (and you obviously have to), you'll arrive in LV 149th. Not 151st, not 148th. So that's where I am right now, and I'm not sure I really want to continue. I probably will for a bit cause I've not much else to do right now, but then fuck it, maybe I'll just go read a book or masturbate; or both.
The (sub)stages are actually pretty boring, vast majority of it (so far and not likely to change) being rather typical US highway with not much to do but keep the accelerator floored, occasionally watching the cops fly by you at 450mph. The few urban pieces are not much, if at all better. Each sub-stage is also really short so you'll be mostly staring at flashing, whooshing and beeping achievements you've just collected (wooptie-fucking-do) and the LOADING screen; mostly the LOADING screen. Every now and again the monotony is broken but a melodramatic cut scene or other pointless fluff which nobody but EA and NFS dev's really give a shit about.
Graphics could well be mistaken for something that came out a decade ago, which would have been fine had the game had actually something else to offer. But it hasn't, and that combined with it being devoid of any intricate action makes you wonder, what the hell is it LOADING.... that takes goddamned ages? Positives? The soundtrack is actually pretty....big I guess, that really is about it. IOW, pretty much a waste of 60 bucks.