Shift 2: Unleashed

[Manicm]

I know normally someone buys a game and posts how great/awful it is. But i haven't got this yet, but want to know is it any good, i know IGN gave it 8.4 ish but in the real life whats it like??

Ive got some games to trade and a day off tomorrow to waste on games, so is it worth it?? i picked up shift 1 as i remember quite liking this before i traded it so got it for my Ps3 only a fiver as well!!

[Hendo]

I think Cyberpunk and Ed have it?

[spatular]

i'm keen to know what it's like too, been reading really varying opinions so far, hopefully get it on rental soon

[retroed]

I picked this up on launch, taking advantage of the Tesco £4.96 when trading in Hot Pursuit deal. I enjoyed the original, it felt different to other racers and played really well.

Shift 2: Unleashed still has that unique driving style, it feels raw and you're kept on edge at all times. It's completely different to Gran Turismo and Forza, and not in a bad way. It does take a while to become accustomed to the way it handles, though, and I have spent a little bit of time tweaking the controls - deadzone etc - to suit my style.

One of Shift 2's new features is the helmet-cam mode. You see the outline of the helmet when playing like this, and when you approach a corner the camera shifts and focuses on the bend. I couldn't get one with it unfortunately, I found it hard to adjust to the way the camera moved, so have switched back to the normal cockpit view. Shift 2 has the best cockpit view of any racing game I've played. The camera seems perfectly placed in each car I've driven so far. When you get up to speed, the speedo and dials blur as you're supposed to be looking at the road ahead. It's a sweet touch.

If you've played Shift, Hot Pursuit or Most Wanted, there's bonuses for you when you fire the game up and go to the Extras menu. Shift and Most Wanted give you extra cash and bonus XP, and Hot Pursuit gives you the same along with some cars. There's an Online Pass code included in typical EA fashion, but I'm not sure if it grants you any extras other than the ability to play online. Graphically it's nothing special. It hasn't improved from Need for Speed: Shift, but it does the job just fine. The sound is superb, though, and there's a good soundtrack that plays in the menus.

From what I've played I'd definitely recommend it, but if you haven't played the first I'd advise you try before you buy as it does have its own style that some may not like. The racer I'd most liken it to is PGR4, it just has something that made me think of it at some points when playing on Friday. I feel a lot more involved in the races compared to Forza 3 and especially Gran Turismo. I'm having a lot of fun so far, it has to be said.

If there's anything in particular that you'd like to know about Shift 2 that I haven't mentioned , just ask. I know I've left out a lot of other details about it. Once I'm done with Homefront I'll be putting a lot more time into this, so will post an update in a few days.

[spatular]

thanks for the impressions Ed what changes did you make to the control settings? a friend got this and said he was having difficulty staying in a straight line, which sounds like it's on zero/low deadzone by default but apparently it isn't. i think he increased the deadzone and decreased the sensitivity and said it was better. so i'm interested in what other people have done with the settings.

[retroed]

thanks for the impressions Ed what changes did you make to the control settings? a friend got this and said he was having difficulty staying in a straight line, which sounds like it's on zero/low deadzone by default but apparently it isn't. i think he increased the deadzone and decreased the sensitivity and said it was better. so i'm interested in what other people have done with the settings.

I can't remember exactly what I changed the settings to, will have to look. I spotted some in the rllmuk thread, so tried them and tweaked them ever so slightly.

[spatular]

oh cool, i've seen some on rllmuk, these the ones?:

"ZeroG on GTPlanet has these for controller settings:

Quote

"Counter-intuitive vs. Shift 1, but try the below and see if it makes a difference. I have tested extensively in both race and drift modes and can absolutely say the game just works for me now!

Feedback appreciated.

ZeroG Optimized XBOX 360 Controller Settings

--------------------------------------------

Steering Dead Zone: 3 <-- Key Change

Accelerator Dead Zone: 5

Brake Dead Zone: 5

Steering Sensitivity: 50 <-- MOST CRITICAL CHANGE

Acceleration Sensitivity: 50

Braking Sensitivity: 50

Speed Steering Sensitivity: 100

I play with all assists off and the elite driving mode""

[retroed]

I believe that's the ones! I've switched to Pro driving mode instead of Elite now though, and have traction control (low) and ABS.

[Cyberpunk]

It looks amazing, in a slightly oil-and-rubber-marbles-spattered manner, unlike the squeaky-clean visuals that other racing simulators adopt. In terms of immersiveness and gritty realism, there's no doubt it sets new standards. But in some aspects, it frustrates.

First off, it puts you in a car, and tells you to do two laps of a track. This is fresh out of the box, with no other info at all. This is the games way of setting itself up to your driving style and skill level, but if you're a Sunday driver, and new to racing games, expect to spend a lot of time in the gravel traps, or up against the side walls. Although you can turn on a host of driver-aids, it can be hard, which is just the way I like it, but novices to the racing genre need not apply.

Two aspects of the game contribute to this: AI opponents who delight in battering you off the track and will happily perform offences that would bring about black flags in real life on every corner; and occasionally questionable car-handling, which is surprising given Shift 2 Unleashed's pedigree as some of the lead developers have come from SinBin, the home of high end racing sims for the Pc.

The moment the learning curve goes ballistic occurs when you're invited to take part in an Invitational race over five laps at Suzuka, in a Lotus Exige. Barrel into the first high-speed left-hander and you'll find more understeer than the cheapest and nastiest supermini. If you actually manage to get the thing turned in, oversteer is available mid-corner when you pile on the power, but all the rear-wheel drive road-cars in the game seem to be similarly afflicted. An excellent, incredibly detailed tuning system lets you dial the understeer out, but where's the fun in that?

Another aspect of the game rankles: presumably to ensure that it sells well in Japan and the US, is Drifting. Why the fuck do they have to put drifting in? I don't like drifting. I never watch drifting on the tv. It gives you a tutorial which is not only impossible but unspeakably boring – although I did discover that you can cheat by engaging reverse gear and slamming on full throttle and lock. It was impossible to detect even a milligram of fun in the drifting element of the game.

That said, if you're a serious driver who is prepared to tinker with car-tuning and ignore the drifting events, you'll love Shift 2 Unleashed. It has a great mix of races, hot-lap challenges and eliminators (where the last car is excluded at the end of each lap), and an even better version of the glorious Autolog, as seen in Hot Pursuit, lets you set and respond to vast amounts of challenges involving your online friends, providing endless opportunities to secure bragging rights.

My final bug-bear is the painting system. I love to paint cars, and apply vinyls in racing games. Shift 2 has all this, but it's colour select system for the paint is weird. Instead of a box with loads of colours to try, like in any other car game, this one lets you adjust your colour with 'Hue' and 'Saturation' sliders. Great if you love Photoshop. But I spent ten minutes just trying to find metallic black.

Circuits like Brands Hatch, Monza, the Nordschleife, Suzuka and Donington have never looked better in a game, the car upgrading and especially tuning systems are great, and there is a proper damage model (although you can set it so that it is cosmetic and doesn't affect handling). All told, it's a great racing game, which I love to bits. It does have flaws, but you can forgive them.

[retroed]

It looks amazing, in a slightly oil-and-rubber-marbles-spattered manner, unlike the squeaky-clean visuals that other racing simulators adopt. In terms of immersiveness and gritty realism, there's no doubt it sets new standards. But in some aspects, it frustrates.

First off, it puts you in a car, and tells you to do two laps of a track. This is fresh out of the box, with no other info at all. This is the games way of setting itself up to your driving style and skill level, but if you're a Sunday driver, and new to racing games, expect to spend a lot of time in the gravel traps, or up against the side walls. Although you can turn on a host of driver-aids, it can be hard, which is just the way I like it, but novices to the racing genre need not apply.

Two aspects of the game contribute to this: AI opponents who delight in battering you off the track and will happily perform offences that would bring about black flags in real life on every corner; and occasionally questionable car-handling, which is surprising given Shift 2 Unleashed's pedigree.

The moment the learning curve goes ballistic occurs when you're invited to take part in an Invitational race over five laps at Suzuka, in a Lotus Exige. Barrel into the first high-speed left-hander and you'll find more understeer than the cheapest and nastiest supermini.

If you actually manage to get the thing turned in, oversteer is available mid-corner when you pile on the power, but all the rear-wheel drive road-cars in the game seem to be similarly afflicted. An excellent, incredibly detailed tuning system lets you dial the understeer out, but where's the fun in that?

Another aspect of the game rankles: presumably to ensure that it sells well in Japan and the US, is Drifting. Why the fuck do they have to put drifting in? I don't like drifting. I never watch drifting on the tv. It gives you a tutorial which is not only impossible but unspeakably boring – although I did discover that you can cheat by engaging reverse gear and slamming on full throttle and lock. It was impossible to detect even a milligram of fun in the drifting element of the game.

That said, if you're a serious driver who is prepared to tinker with car-tuning and ignore the drifting events, you'll love Shift 2 Unleashed. It has a great mix of races, hot-lap challenges and eliminators (where the last car is excluded at the end of each lap), and an even better version of the glorious Autolog, as seen in Hot Pursuit, lets you set and respond to vast amounts of challenges involving your online friends, providing endless opportunities to secure bragging rights.

My final bug-bear is the painting system. I love to paint cars, and apply vinyls in racing games. Shift 2 has all this, but it's colour select system for the paint is weird. Instead of a box with loads of colours to try, like in any other car game, this one lets you adjust your colour with 'Hue' and 'Saturation' sliders. Great if you love Photoshop. But I spent ten minutes just trying to find metallic black.

Circuits like Brands Hatch, Monza, the Nordschleife, Suzuka and Donington have never looked better in a game, the car upgrading and especially tuning systems are great, and there is a proper damage model (although you can set it so that it is cosmetic and doesn't affect handling). All told, it's a great racing game, which I love to bits. It does have flaws, but you can forgive them.

It's worth noting that this is a modified The Guardian review, by Steve Boxer. I was reading it earlier, and thought some of it (in bold, above) sounded familiar.

I actually think Shift 2 would be OK for a newcomer, as there's a whole host of assists that can be turned on ala Forza 3. It does start in a very high-performance GTR, but it's to set your difficulty. If you do crap you'll be put on easy mode, so you shouldn't stuggle.

The Lotus event mentioned in the review I really enjoyed. It was the first event in the game where I really fell in love with the driving.

The review reminded me, there are drift events in Shift 2. They can, however, be completely ignored and you can still finish the career, if you aren't keen on them. They're a nice side meal if you fancy a change for a bit, but I definitely prefer the racing aspect.

[Cyberpunk]

Because of limited time this morning, but wanting to encourage the purchase of a game I'm really enjoying, I did the above. I'm currently waiting in a school lounge, writing this, and I'm sorry. I did not intend to mislead, and it does represent what I feel about the game, and I would ask anyone who loves racing games to buy it.

Ed pwned me, and I deserved it. Ed, you're a git. Lol.

[retroed]

ZeroG Optimized XBOX 360 Controller Settings

--------------------------------------------

Steering Dead Zone: 3 <-- Key Change

Accelerator Dead Zone: 5

Brake Dead Zone: 5

Steering Sensitivity: 50 <-- MOST CRITICAL CHANGE

Acceleration Sensitivity: 50

Braking Sensitivity: 50

Speed Steering Sensitivity: 100

Yep, I had a look and I am using these settings.

I had a good session on this last night, enjoying it more and more the further I get into the career. I tuned my S2000 and Exige to maximum class C, and they are both amazing to drive. I have a few friends playing now, so the Autolog is coming into play nicely!

[spatular]

Yep, I had a look and I am using these settings.

cool, thanks Ed. i've got this now, still on the default control settings, will try thoes soon though. i sort of really like it but also wish the handling was a bit "better", it's pretty good but also feels a bit odd. great graphics/sound/cars/tracks though.

[spatular]

after having fun with this most of the day i did a time attack event late on and there was other cars (read mobile chicanes) on the track. and unlike when GT does this they weren't easy to overtake at all. brilliant

[spatular]

tried it with the wheel for a bit today and it's definitely better, still didn't quite feel right, a bit disconnected from the car, but straights and high speed corners were much easier, and it felt a bit less wobbly. i've got it on the settings above too now.

[retroed]

Legends Pack arriving on the 26th. 800MSP (£7.99/PSN)

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Cars

Alfa Romeo Giulia Sprint GTA (1965)

Austin Mini Cooper S (1965)

BMW 3.0 CSL Gr. 5 (1975)

Ford Capri RS3100 Gr.4 (1974)

Ford Escort Mk1 RS1600 (1971)

Ford GT40 Mk.I (1965)

Ford Lotus Cortina (1963)

Jaguar E-Type Lightweight (1963)

Nissan Fairlady 240ZG (S30) (1971)

Nissan Skyline 2000GT-R (C10) (1972)

Porsche 911 Carrera RSR 3.0 (1974)

Porsche 914/6 GT (1970)

SHELBY COBRA "DAYTONA" COUPE® (1965)

Team Need For Speed Porsche 911 Carrera RSR 3.0

Classic Tracks

Dijon-Prenois (1972)

Hockenheim (1982)

Monza (1958)

Rouen-Les-Essarts GP (1966)

Rouen-Les-Essarts Short (1952)

Silverstone (1975)

http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2011-04-20-shift-2-dlc-adds-classic-cars-tracks

Some of those cars are just

[retroed]

Legends pack DLC is now available on the Marketplace. 800MSP. 167MB.

I think I may have to indulge once I get back into it.

[retroed]

I am in love with this game. It's right up there with PGR4 as one of my favourite racers of this generation. It's a crime that it doesn't seem to be as popular as it deserves to be.

I've just started using the Pagani Zonda Cinque Roadster HP Edition that I was given for playing Hot Pursuit and, oh my, it has possibly the best engine tones I have ever heard in a videogame. This in combination with the excellent cockpit view and my Turtle Beach headset, I feel completely immersed in the experience.

I've not even tried the Legends DLC yet. I'm really looking forward to trying it, though.

[Manicm]

Well ive ordered this yesterday from game only £24.99 i think it was, i know its definitley cheaper than the store price, was hoping to have it through the letter box this morning but nope :-( should get it monday and have a blast!

[retroed]

Really good review from Inside Sim Racing.

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Jessica Lopez