Review for Need for Speed Payback. Game for PC, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, the video game was released on 10/11/2017
Again, Ghost Games e Electronic Arts they want to satisfy your thirst for speed and love for the tamarro tuning. But Need for Speed Payback wants to apply a different approach to the world of clandestine racing. Could this change be able to satisfy the most demanding pilots?
Set in Fortune Valley, Need for Speed Payback follows the story of Tyler Morgan, experienced underground racing driver and his gang composed of Mac, Jess and Rav (respectively off-road and drifting expert, escape expert and their mechanic). In the land of casinos and betting, the name of the team will become more and more present until they organize as the final blow the theft of a unique and incredibly expensive car.
Due to the left-handed shot created by Lina Navarro (part of the band called La Loggia and creator of the plan), the team will be forced to flee. From that moment the real climb will begin, to the sound of robberies and extreme competitions, until he gets revenge against the Lodge.
With such an introduction, one thing is clear right away: if the previous chapter brought to mind the historical titles like Need for Speed Underground 2 and Most Wanted, this new iteration seems more to want to remember the world of the last Fast and Furious. The plot takes place with CGI scenes (compared to the real ones of the previous title) and combines moments of gameplay with cutscene, creating a feeling of enjoyable continuity.
The protagonists' presentations and some key moments of the narrative take advantage of this story mode, during which the player can enjoy a healthy ride listening to the development of the plot. The unfolding of the story is full of noteworthy moments, similar to those one might expect from a cinematographic film, managing to almost hiding the simplicity of the plot itself, if you don't stop to listen to the characters.
Our protagonist in particular is as generic as it is of little thickness, making the old faceless and voiceless characters of the series regret. The other main characters live on phrases with an epic sound but with a questionable effect, in an ongoing attempt to emulate Vin Diesel and Dwayne Johnson.
The sensation we have perceived is that of a plot that would like to do a lot, but remaining tied to the franchise's gameplay-centric focus it fails to make room for more cinematic and less arcade-like events. However, we cannot overlook our appreciation for the dubbing of the various characters that manages to give a tone so over the top that it makes the speeches heard almost passable.
Fortunately, the game's playability remains a good strength. Keeping the good things Need for Speed introduced, Need for Speed Payback continues the tradition of highly customizable tuning and arcade style of play without too many technicalities and thoughts. The styles in which the gameplay is divided (off road, drift, escape, drag racing and classic races) they are well made and despite their variety they do not have any noteworthy defects. It is in fact very easy to find yourself wandering around the game world for the simple pleasure of going from the desert to the articulated streets of the city.
Each type of race will be easily approached and each technique easily learned, requiring the user to press the accelerator and not let go until the race is over.
Provided, of course, that you are ready to pass a "tutorial" worthy of the old school Final Fantasy: the introduction is one of the longest in the franchise's history with its presentation of the types of races, the plot, the characters and so on and so forth.
To accompany this long picture, there is a grinding system that has left us somewhat perplexed. Each race will have a certain level required for our car and to improve this level it will be necessary to buy more powerful cars or innovative upgrade cards.
Leaving aside the purchase of vehicles, what makes the nose turn up noticeably is the performance improvement part: the aforementioned cards will be none other than the old performance enhancement parts such as engine block, NOS and so on. They can be purchased by mechanics or can be won at the end of the race.
In the case of buying from a mechanic, they will be randomized and will change over time. You can use the game money or you can sell old cards by exchanging three of them for a new one. However, considering the need to also buy new cars, it will take the player much longer than normal to get to what is necessary to continue in the races. In other words, you will have to prepare to run events that have already been held repeatedly to be able to collect what is necessary. All of course is face to the new fun micro-transaction system based on the much loved loot-boxes: let's be clear Need for Speed Payback is certainly not one of the worst examples in this respect, but certainly spending hours repeating races already made to earn money is really nerve-wracking in the long run.
Turning to the audio sector, the soundtrack is as always pleasant and well articulated, swinging from rock tunes to more thrilling electronics. From Gorillaz to Salmo, it's nice to hear how Need for Speed Payback hasn't lost the musical variety the franchise has accustomed us to.
Likewise the sounds of the world, traffic and the cars themselves are well crafted and bring much more life to the game world. We loved how the police radio can be heard from the joystick speaker, making it even more realistic.
Finally, with regard to the technical sector, we can only appreciate what Ghost Games has achieved: the excellent graphics that the Frostbite Engine made it possible to find a great companion in the stable and solid framerate even on standard consoles of this generation such as Playstation 4 and Xbox One.
During our tests we did not encounter any bugs, while the slowness of the initial loading (the only flaw we found), is counterbalanced by the absence of loads during the game.
The tracks are organized with care, always guaranteeing a certain level of challenge, easily manageable thanks to the excellent approach of simplicity in the gameplay. In all of our tests we never had the feeling that we had ridden the same track twice (obviously excluding the repetition of the race events to raise funds).
Even the aesthetic tuning part for over 80 cars it is carefully developed, using the Need for Speed customization engine as a basis. You can unleash the tamarro side in you with extreme bumpers, side skirts and spoilers.
Need for Speed Payback is certainly not one of the worst videogame experiences in which you can impact. The well-made technical sector, the spirit of the series and the style of play are present and available to those who have always appreciated the franchise. It's perfect for turning off your brain and spending a few hours running without ever thinking about the brake. However, it is his failure in what he desperately tries to be that distances him from the success he deserved: wanting to be almost a film without having an elaborate plot and a solid characterization, presenting the user with a simple and immediate gameplay but which at the same time requires hours of repetitive and frustrating grinding (if you don't want to give in to micro-transactions) degrade Need for Speed Payback to a pleasant but almost soulless game.
The game is available for Playstation 4, Xbox One and PC (Origin)
► Need for Speed Payback is a Simulation-Sport game developed by Ghost Games and published by Electronic Arts for PC, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, the video game was released on 10/11/2017
