![]() When you find a new car it’s equipped with stock components: basic tyres, a basic chassis and transmission, and no nitrous exhaust. Some are hidden on rooftops or down back alleys some are hiding in plain sight. To drive them you don’t have to win races or accumulate points or buy tokens you just have to find them. And in keeping with its sandbox aspirations, you're able to drive nearly every one of its 41 vehicles right from the start, from the mundane Lancia Delta to the most desirable Aston Martin V12 Vantage. But this is a driving game of course, so inevitably it comes down to the cars. You’ll only be pulled out of it when you change cars, enter a race or switch to multiplayer and it never takes more than a few seconds. Different sections aren’t crudely welded together with lengthy loading times. This is open-world gaming at it’s most seamless. Things in the distance don’t bear up to the same scrutiny but it’s a more than acceptable tradeoff, since every side of Fairhaven – every sewer and flood drain, bridge and road – is accessible to you right from the beginning, without a single intrusive loading time. Some are surreal vignettes in which police cars fall from the sky or perch on the ceiling of car parks like flies others are snapshots of the city itself, showcasing its urban beauty. Each race is prefaced by an introductory video, which showcases the city it has built from the ground up. Play You get the impression that Criterion is rather proud of its achievement. And you’ll still be able to appreciate it all tearing down the highway at 150 miles per hour. They’re all little touches – testament to time and energy – but when they all combine, as they frequently do, the result approaches something quite sublime. You’ll emerge from winding tunnels into blinding light flecks of dirt and blades of grass will cling to the screen should you choose to go off-road the music quality will dip and static will accumulate on your Sat Nav when you venture underground the warm sunlight skims off rainwater that has pooled on the uneven, cracked tarmac. ![]() It’s been constructed with a fastidious attention to detail. It’s evident in most aspects of the game. The first thing that impresses you about Most Wanted - and there are many highlights to choose from - is the sheer quality and craftsmanship of the game. This time it’s Most Wanted receiving the makeover and the results occasionally approach the sublime. Thankfully, following on from the disappointment of last year’s entry The Run, Criterion is back in the driving seat, turning its perfectionist’s gaze towards another title from the franchise’s past. ![]()
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