Need for Speed Nitro has been split into the now obligatory game types, Arcade allows you to go straight into any game mode or track you have previously unlocked. The Career mode is simple but engaging with it taking you around five cities, starting with very little cash and making your earnings through winning. To get new cars you can either purchase them with cash earned through racing or by winning them in a special events, the cars come in three tiers, supercars, balanced and basic cars.

 

 

Each car in Need for Speed Nitro handles differently and you are able to customize them a little with some modding, colour changes and even add your own graffiti tag to the car panels. As you progress through the many races you will be invited to participate in the Grand Prix. This takes place against the cream of the crop so don’t expect an easy win. The aim is to race through one of each of the five cities top tracks, earning points for each race.

 

Races come in a variety of styles with simple first place wins, team races where each cars position earns their team points, the nerve racking eliminator race where the car in last place gets removed every 30 seconds, a speed camera run where you try and break the top speed on a section of tracks and the fun drift challenges where power sliding is the name of the game. Drag racing also makes a welcome return with each car having its own unique shift to master to beat those times whilst dodging oncoming traffic. Cops also make an appearance in the game with each racer having some heat but first place gets the most attention from the cops, making staying in front very difficult.

 

This game is classic Need for Speed with nitro’s, drifting, slip-streaming and modding, but what are the other differences to make Wii owners want this version over the more desirable Xbox 360/PS3 versions?

 

Well the game has been built from the ground up so the graphics make the most of the Wii's power allowing for some really fast paced racing. The cars also look a lot arcadeier which suits the gameplay well. A unique touch is as you race around the tracks, the car in first place will own the course, attaching their unique graffiti tag to the environment, you can even create your own which is very easy with the pen-like accuracy of the Wii-mote. Of course you also have the controllers and with Nitro using every possible combination from steering wheel to Gamecube controllers there is a comfortable configuration for everyone.

 

 

There are a few bad points about the game, whilst very fast you are stuck with one camera view, making it very hard to corner at times and when using nitro it is more to luck than skill not to crash. The other big omission is the lack of online play, with all of the modding and tracks I'm surprised this has been missed out, you are however able to play with up to four players which is a small bonus.

 

Need for Speed Nitro looks and plays great and there are enough cool features on this version to make not only Wii owners want this game but even owners of the recent Need for Speed: Shift series.