Hi everyone! On April 26-28 at the Melbourne & Olympic Parks, I'll be attending 'DreamHack' as a CREATOR! I'll keep you posted on what I'm doing as the expo gets closer, but I hope to see you all soon! Otherwise, enjoy the review, I hope it was worth the wait! Happy Easter everyone! 👍 - Spencer dreamhack.com/melbourne/
ColourShed this isnt related to your comment but I've played need for speed the run online before and everyone would just keep ramming you and when you tried to ram them back you had no power
EA shutting down Black Box was one of the worst decisions they ever made. Black Box played a part in so many people's childhoods in the 2000s with so many great games: they made the iconic Need for Speed games of the 2000s like Hot Pursuit 2, Underground 1 & 2, Most Wanted, Carbon and Prostreet and they also made all of the Skate games and assisted DICE with Battlefield 3. They had all these studios capable of producing great games and they overworked them and then shut them all down when they didn't meet sales expectations.
@@PEPSIMaxMusic no, they didn't. EA and their high expectations have almost killed it. They expect the same studio to release a new game every year and sell like NFS UG or MW 2005. It's hard to do that and keep good quality with modern requirements.
Kinda disappointed you didn't mention each car has a difficulty attached to it. Don't exactly remember what they're called but easy basically means grippy and hard is drifty and hard cars tend to be faster too.
Easy - best handling, most grippy Normal - good handling Challenging - mediocre handling (usually the worst performing cars have that, lol) Very difficult - bad handling Expert - the most slippery handling of all
Greatest curated racing experience ever, nothing matches playing through the main campaign of The Run and it’s peak cinematic gameplay and audio. Favorite game I’ve ever played, hands down. Also made me fall in love with M3 GTS. Black Box’s finest effort ironically was their last, at least to me. It’s okay to be different. Not every racer has to be open-world, customization based.
@@kuriankeralaIndia Well, I mean it was fun but the cops and rubberbanding were annoying at some point. Like Heat 1-2 cops are basically like the 2015 one and after Heat 4 it becomes frustrating. Yeah, I get that's the point, but the piss filter and worse capabilities for modding were downgraded from NFS UG2 (especially sound modding). But I really dislike their stans who think only these should be number 1 and bash other people who like other NFS more than them. Same for the Forza fanboys.
This lmao, Colourshed must be having some audio blindness or something because it very much is distinct in engine noises I do agree that the audio quality isn't amazing tho, but that's hardly something to complain about considering the audio is miles ahead what we had in Most Wanted/Carbon/Undercover
I always felt that The Run was inspired by Uncharted 2 which featured "action set piece moments" like something out of a Hollywood action movie (EA even hired Michael Bay to direct a trailer for The Run). The avalanche section and the Las Vegas quick time events especially look like they were inspired by similar moments in Uncharted 2. The final race is probably my favourite race in the entire series by far with the subway section being my favourite moment. The handling model was probably meant to be a mix of the grippy handling of Black Box's previous games with the drift focused handling of the Burnout games (due to Criterion developing Hot Pursuit 2010). I think it's one of those handling models that you either love or hate: I liked it with certain cars but hated it with others. Also the game for the most part felt slower than previous games like Shift or Prostreet (or maybe it was just the close camera angle making it feel slower than those games). The car list (with all DLCs included) was surprisingly varied (even if they sort of padded it out with tuned variants) and felt closer to the kind of car list you'd find in a Forza Horizon game. The Run and Most Wanted 2012 definitely had the most variety with their car lists. Though I wished they used the actual NFS hero cars with their actual body kits and liveries instead of whatever the hell they did instead (looking at you "Underground 2 370z").
The visual customization in this game is the best part of the game for me despite how basic it is and whoever designed those style and aero kits for the cars surely has a good taste since almost all of them are so well designed. The street kit for example is true to its name, focusing on stances and elegant use of widebody meanwhile the aero kit is more aggressive and race car inspired yet still possesses the same elegance as the street kit. My personal favorite in this game is that one special edition mclaren 12C with livery and body kit inspired by the 12C GT3 but street racing-ized and it looks positively gorgeous, so gorgeous in fact that it became my go to car for the last chapter where it becomes available (despite its questionable handling)
Not to mention the NFS signature edition RX7 I think it was? Had green taillights and a red paintjob. Would be sick to have more games with custom taillights and shit.
Me too. It's my favourite NFS game to date. I love point to point races, they just seem a whole lot more considered. The avalanche level still terrifies me to this day.
@@HeroManNick132I mean I like those games too but they play so differently it’s kinda hard to compare them. I look at it from a racing game perspective, I like it for what it is not what it’s not.
@@HeroManNick132I’m not trying to hate on those games. I love the older Black Box EA games even Carbon but I feel like the hate it gets comes down to it being different. I know NFS: The Run has quite a bit of glitches and imperfections but so do a lot of games now but I still think The Run is very underrated and at deserves a play-through by people who never gave it a chance.
I've said it before i'll say it again. The run was one of the best nfs games we got. And this bitching community shot it down when it released. Nowadays people are actually starting to appreciate this game now that the most wanted circle jerkig stopped. Classic nfs fandom, hate a game and like it a decade later.
I didn't care for it when it first released cause I thought the name sounded lame but 6 years later I tried it out and it's probably one of my favorites lol.
Fun fact: some tracks in the soundtrack were composed by Mick Gordon and although I haven't played it *for obvious reasons* it seems he did the soundtrack for the Wii/DS version of The Run too which weirdly enough comprises of remixes of 90s NFS songs. Another thing worth mentioning, idk how they messed it up but the audio is bad on console and bad on pc too but not on certain versions? The intended audio is actually amazing but they messed something up with the mixing on certain versions iirc.
This game had a bit of a charm to it, interesting story but really short. The game was also brutal on the hardest difficulty as it had what I can only describe as “Slightshot AI”. Once you over took the final AI you needed to pass, they would rubberband pass you and just disappear into the distance. Also QTEs. I still remember a section of the game in playing it on the hardest difficulty on the 360 where the buttons required were hidden behind a digital camo like image. Though having seen absolutely zero mention of this anywhere tells me that this was either a broken texture that failed to load, or absolutely noone suffered through this mess on the max difficulty
The Run was of my favourite NFS games. Also must be one of the few who actually enjoyed NFS undercover. Completing all the events/missions and completing the game. Only disappointment was the ending. Didn't even realise I'd just completed the final mission until the game was over and there wern't any more events or missions to play.
i enjoyed undercover despite being a broken blurry mess because it was most wanted but easier with less rubberbanding and less annoying cop challenges and had tons of cars and customization, it was like a bigger carbon, i did not enjoy this game at all, it barely had any content, no open world no customization, black box deserved to shut down after this.
A fair review, but I disagree on a few points. My biggest gripe is your take on the handling. Yes it's a difficult and at time floaty handling model but to me it's incredibly satisfying once you master it. Honestly cars at the speeds you travel in that game (especially on normal non-track roads) are going to feel something like they do in game. Cars at high speeds, even high end cars, are going to be difficult and at times unpredictable. I love that the Run aimed for that. I also adored Hot Pursuit 2012 but because it was good arcade-like fun. The Run felt a bit more grounded in reality compared to the "tap brakes to drift" style handling of NFS Hot Pursuit. That is one of the downsides of the short story mode though. IMO you have to play through it at least twice to fully master the handling model and that's a problem for a racing game that's so linear. I loved it though so I've played through the story a few times. Once you master it though you really feel like you're fully immersed in a movie. I liked the way engines sounded in The Run, but I do agree that at least some of the lower end cars sound a bit samey. The Gallardo you showed though sounded pretty distinct from the others, at least for me. I feel like this game needed more time in the oven. The concept was so unique for the time and I feel like with more dev time to add tuning and a longer story mode (maybe one with some alternate routes) the game would have been perfect. The soundtrack especially goes so hard, both licensed and original. I also love the sound design overall. The way cars sound like they're just barely hanging onto the road as you go hard into a turn is just perfection and really helps get the adrenaline pumping. And don't get me started on the atmosphere and insane track variety. Also NFS Undercover is bad. I can't believe so many people like that dumpster fire. Easily one of the worst NFS titles, at least on the Xbox 360. People must have some really thick nostalgia glasses. Fortunately most reviewers give it low marks because they actually have to replay it.
I really didn't like The Run when I played it and yet now I have a really strange nostalgia for it. The sound design was amazing. The sound track slapped. The environment design was amazing. And I actually liked the camera and how it hugged the vehicles.
Eh, car sounds are kinda meh, because they are rushed (I know every car what sound uses and it makes questionable sense why). But as I said they are rushed, especially how it lacks of AI versions of the sounds. Also if you play with 60 fps no VSync the added ''transmission'' sound glitches. However I agree about the rest, especially the sountrack. But in this game hood camera actually is better than 3rd person camera and of course with manual transmission. The environment, yes, even though it's limited and even if you use free roam mod or glitches to free roam you can see why this game is not made for free roaming.
I know its a bit controversial but this is one of my favorite NFS games of all time. I'm very easy to please. I wish they would revisit something like this again, i will always remember the Avalanche time attack mission and Jack causing a 16 car pileup in vegas, i love this game so much
@@HeroManNick132 This unironically. The run was one of the best nfs games we got. And this bitching community shot it down when it released. Nowadays people are actually starting to appreciate this game now that the most wanted circle jerkig stopped. Classic nfs fandom, hate a game and like it a decade later.
Mostly disagree on the car sounds. They aren't accurate, but they are punchy, and hit the low and high frequencies. I personally want more of this. But I also wouldn't say that bad car sounds drag a game down. Mostly disagree on the handling. The physics are great, and I can drive the cars and fully understand what they're doing at all times, and very quickly and easily bring back oversteer by countersteering. It's just the steering speed is so slow that you have to actively remember to turn the car ahead of time. HP2010 had this problem even worse before The Run, it was just a tad slower. Then MW2012 had it slightly better, since the steering returned to neutral a bit quicker. Then it remained stagnant until Payback, where the steering could finally be set a bit quicker. Still could be quicker, though. Plus, they should be taking advantage of control stick linearity curves instead of just relying on slowing the steering down. The good voice acting I think also makes the voice lines fine.
Nfs the run handling has gta 4 handling syndrome. People act like its bad because theyre too trash and lazy to actually learn the handling. I've played every nfs from underground 1 to heat, and I'll tell you with a straight face The run had some of the best physics in the series. Cars actually had weight to them and the handling was consistent and predictable. If you crash or spin out it was 100% on you.
The handling is floaty but I liked it a lot, it gave weight to the cars and you were really battling to hold them on the road. And despite the floaty handling you could still grip. Idk man The Run was the only NFS game that stressed me so much when playing it cause of how intense the races were but it's good.
True because the sounds of this game was rushed. Also it lacked of AI variants of the sounds. But the turbo sounds are great, even though really quiet and the poppings. However the overall sound mixing is bad since the transmission sound is mixed poorly with the engine and exhaust sounds. And if you play with 60 fps no VSync enabled from your NVidea pannel the sounds glitch. However Tristan Baulah was responsible for this poor mixing. But I really loved the ford_fiesta_kenblock's sound which fitted a lot the Impreza, Focus RS, Integrale HF as Tier 5 (even though it was used also by the Exige but with different engine sound).
Black box went out all guns blazing with this game. Major respect to them for trying and innovating. This game really felt like a good action movie. And the landscapes and different scenarios… NFS The Run is legendary.
I don't know why everybody keeps saying need for speed unbound is a bad game. I actually love the game and play it almost every day there's nothing wrong with it you just got to learn how to play it. Please stop hating on this game.
It's the same thing repeating again also known as ''history repeats itself.'' Basically when NFS 2015 came out it was said to be the worst NFS and then people love it after 9 years. Same with NFS Heat which is 5 years old. And just wait another 5 years and you'll see what I mean with ''history repeats itself.''
@@HeroManNick132 I don't remember anyone hating NFS 2015, just criticising for its lack of customization in some aspects and cars, not to mention the story. 2017 had some cool elements but was ruined by loot boxes. I personally thought Heat was fine, the story wasn't very good but it was pretty fun. I've yet to properly play unbound.
@@kirby1225 NFS 2015 was hated because it was always online, you couldn't pause the game, the handling was broken and the car list and customization was restricted. Plus some also disliked that it was always night and rainy, even though it was supposed to represent NFS UG1-2 and Carbon. Also at launch there was no manual transmission and we had to wait till 2016 for the PC release. But the PC release had problems with loading on some parts compared to the console versions. And people started liking it because of the Project United mod. If you go back even before that like before NFS Rivals everyone criticized these NFS after NFS MW 2005 when they came out, but when time passed out we feel like these games are so underrated because it is how it is. Heck even NFS MW 2012 was started to be liken even though back then was so bashed out because of the name and the same goes for NFS TR like being a ''downgrade'' from NFS HP 2010. But even the most ''perfect'' NFS has some flaws.
you should know, black box have developed games on renderware for majority of their lifetime, and for the run they were handed brand new frostbite from dice and were told to work on that because that's the engine studios under EA will be working with... no wonder the game had so many bugs, because it was their first time making a game on that engine
Only the Skate team within Black Box worked with RenderWare. The NFS team used their own engine up until The Run, and it was their choice to use Frostbite. Speed (their old engine) was already dated (just look at Undercover compared to other releases that year), and it would’ve taken significant effort to bring it up to speed with where everyone else already was, and were soon headed. It wasn’t just graphically where they had fallen behind either, it was their tools too. UE3 and, ironically, RenderWare were miles ahead in tooling in ways that only game engines with entire dedicated teams developing them could be. No matter what, starting over on a new engine was inevitable, so they went with the one that would cost less, was the most advanced out of their internal options, and used some tech they were already familiar with.
@@HeroManNick132 in what way? All the versions after Frostbite 2 mostly built upon what was already there, so there isn’t really anything it would do better other than just running faster because it’s older.
@@HeroManNick132 the same thing would happen in FB2 if you gave the game bigger textures to stream in. Other engines do the same thing in order to load assets in faster. Since newer games use larger textures, you’re bound to see that process more often.
To me, handling feels better than the one in Hot Pursuit. In Hot Pursuit it is more like there are 2 modes of handling normal and drift, like an on/off switch. The Run feels more seamless between those two.
There's a slider in the sound settings that let's you change how realistic or cinematic the sound design is, maybe it affects the car sounds and that's why they sound that way.
It's easy to see why this kind of racing game is so difficult to make and justify doing so. You have to develop an insane amount of unique scenery, stretch it out WAY longer, and then attach it to a concept that is almost inherently bad at replay value, unless you develop MULTIPLE insanely long sprints. Even then, once you do them once, you're not really going to be seeing anything new, unless you can do the entire journey in reverse. It's expensive, it's limited, it's difficult to do, and most people wouldn't be interested. That said, I think the idea of it is fantastic, and I hope we see something like it again, one day. Until then, though, I guess I'll just download civilian car mods for American Truck Sim and do it that way.
Rn my favorites are the OG Most Wanted and Rivals. The Run was fun because of the cross-country race. When the movie came out this game immediately came to mind
NFS TR uses low textures (especially for car's interior and Jack himself in the car). But the atmosphere and lighting is what makes the game look great.
Played this for the first time about 4 or 5 months ago. It's up there as one of the games that gives me the most complicated feelings. It has a lot of flaws, but in the flashes where they aren't getting in the way there's something about the vibes that are just magical.
10:09 EAGL is a library of proprietary EA software mostly to do with the graphical pipeline, not an engine (EA Graphic Library). The actual engine behind the 2000s Black Box games is only really known to the devs but its often referred to as the Speed Engine; this is the reason why many of the executables for NFS games of the era are Speed.exe.
Also every NFS after HP 2010 are referred as NFS for next year like: NFS HP 2010 - NFS11, NFS The Run - NFS12 and all the way till NFS 2015 which was NFS16. That changed since NFS Payback and then NFS Heat and Unbound. Unbound has NFSExcalibur exe file.
It also has very little to do with the graphics pipeline in any of the Speed engine games, mostly being used for skeletal animation. The actual renderer component of their engine is called Ecstacy (they spelled it wrong, but yeah they liked naming things after drugs).
@@Brawltendoomg I forgot about that. You're completely right. Maybe if Criterion just started naming internal tools after drugs again we'd finally have another good NFS. Can't wait for the Acid engine, powered by Heroin physics.
I remember that I bought this game after a travel to Las Vegas and I could not wait to reach at Las Vegas in game to see what I saw in person. The same when The Crew 1 (RIP) got released
Played actually actually for "free" from reasons I won't mention 🏴☠️, but playing it on the xbox 360 knowing it didn't cost any penny compared to its time (while also having other nfs titles too), was a joyful experience for one time. Like they said it was like a spark. If it wasn't neither an EA nor NFS title + was completely cheaper, would be an amazing game from its time. Would have love though to have been longer its main story content, since its feels weird to try to play it again knowing all (and it isn't an incentive to masterize a race track unless you try to 100% the game in that time)
This game wasn't made for free roam like NFS UG1. But unlike NFS UG1 you can fall out of the map in many places so that's why this game is not made even though with glitches you can achieve it.
$0 is exactly the right amount to pay for this. Well, maybe 5-10 bucks max. But asking full price was a scam, took less than 5hrs to finish with nothing else to do.
I actually enjoyed The Run a lot more than the other Black Box era NFS games. The much arcadey, weighty, but drifty handling of the vehicles were awesome and something I appreciate a lot more than the more grip focused games like Most Wanted 05 and Carbon. The gameplay alone was an enjoyable ride through the game. It's my favorite in that era.
Black Box, an incredibly talented studio now known for being basically worked to death by EA. While this game has it's cult fan base, I can't help feel that they deserved a better send off especially comparing it to their best work.
I'd argue NFS The Run and Most Wanted were the only two racing games that had a decent story in the NFS franchise, which is rare for a racing game to have a good story to begin with.
I remember when I wanted to have NFS The Run for PS3, and I said to my parents back then (when I was 10) that I’d love to have it. The year before I got NFS Hot Pursuit, I was allowed to have that one. But not The Run due to it being rated 16+ in EU. So, instead of that they bought me the Gran Turismo 5 DLC for my birthday. Seeing this video now, I started to have a feeling I missed out on something, so since I’m 22 now I’ll actually buy it somewhere these days. 😂
Bro really compared arcade nfs games to THE RUN!! Handling in TR was supposed to make a difference between vehicles and between random NFS games and this one. It is basically a challenge in itself, which is what this review missed.
This game is one of my guilty pleasures. I love the slight more focus on clean driving and I had a blast online too. And yes, I liked this more than hot pursuit, sue me
"When I played this game in 2011, I downloaded the game wallpaper set and used it as my desktop and Facebook cover picture. However, I was disappointed because at that time, everyone was talking negatively about this beautiful game and it received the worst ratings. But deep down, I knew that one day people would realize how amazing this game truly was."
People in 2011: *WTF is this crap? Where is my NFS MW2/UG3? I still didn't ask for this crap! Even NFS HP 2010 was better than this 💩!* People in 2024: *So underrated... Why it's so underrated? I wish I never hated this NFS. Most intense NFS ever!*
Awesome vid bro, I like all these retrospectives you're making. I've played every NFS across all platforms except for Unbound so it's awesome to see you walk that same path. Just a quick note, in The Run's menu you'll find one single slider for game audio. Set that slider to full "Racing Experience" and you can hear the engine revs and tire screeches better, instead of wind and Gear whine.
I really enjoyed The Run and felt it was a good way to go out for the Black Box era, doesn’t exactly reach the same highs as U2 or MW but it’s a wholly unique racing experience that no other game has really attempted.
The engine noises in this game had the potential to be the best yet, and then they applied some dumbass filter over it. If you listen to the recordings, they're top-notch... Except the Audi Quattro. Giving a 5-cyl the sound of a Mitsubishi Evo rally car should be punishable by the death penalty.
Ford Focus RS was also I5 but it used for_foc_c (which is still from the first gen with had I4) with toy_mr2_b_eng. However the for_fie_kenblock_a + vw_gti_d_eng somehow fitted really well, especially for the Alpinestars version. But still a shame that Black Box never got I5 sound correctly in their developming cycle. Even in NFS PS.
Honestly like a lot of games from EA's early 10's catalogue but you could definitely see the cracks of what they'd become start forming. Still a pretty good time to go out on, RIP Blackbox
This is a game that I was excited for and pre-ordered before it came out, also on the same day as Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary released which I also pre-ordered. Overall this was a 7/10 game, plenty of things I liked but plenty of mishaps with it.
The long race formula is something a Fast and Furious game should have copied like ten years ago already. Instead they brought along crossroads, which, luckily, will become lost media in a few years.
The worst part of this game is the shallow replay value, even after the server shutdown. You only have The Run, and Challenge Series, thats it, no Custom Race mode, single race mode, nothing, you're stuck with these, there's no way you can set up your own races with any car and track you like by yourself against AI opponents and just race for fun. Once you seen everything that the game has to offer, you'll get bored with it quite quickly, like The Challenge Series events are all fixed and samey(opponents, too) no matter what car you chose. They could have done a lot more with this game to be honest. Don't get me wrong, the gameplay and handling is solid and the races are action-packed, so I had a good amount of fun with it, but not enough to keep me coming back for longer sessions because of how bare bones it is, fingers crossed for modding!
Same. Well i made it to prostreet the one after Carbon but dude u didn't miss a thing. If im being honest, if EA didn't own Battlefield id of avoided EA games like the plague
Same here the 7th generation was the last good era of nfs I grew up with the franchise since high stakes but ever since the first forza horizon came out I've completely avoided nfs
I remember getting this game for Christmas after enjoying the demo a lot. Only thing I really remember is the difficulty spike after Chicago was pretty severe to me so I traded it in for something else
For me The Run is like Ace Combat of racing games, short (even bit too short) but very action-packed experience with great and adrenaline-pumping soundtrack. I really wish the game had more exposition with cutscenes and embrace the cheesiness more rather than just text on loading screen and also a little bit longer campaign especially when you look at the map between 5 and 6 Stage looks like there was supposed to be some another stage in-between. I respectfully disagree on car sound department, sure there's some car that do not sound particularly great but on the other side there are examples like Zonda Cinque have a sound from HP2010 console version.
Some sounds are ported from NFS HP 2010 and Criterion in general like the F1 sound (used for the Maserati MC12) while the F1 uses the hated Ferrari 360 sound from NFS UG2. The 350Z sound for the 370Z also from NFS HP 2010 as well the Porsche Carrera GT sound and others. Also this game has glitch like NFS UG2 when you play it at 60 fps no Vsync the shifts bug there but instead of the shifts the sound bug. Why? Because they mixed them poorly (the new ''transmission'' sound which technically was since from NFS MW 2005 that was supposed to give ''more realism.'') If you watch Making of NFS TR series and listen to Tristan Baulah saying how they mix the sounds you can see the issue which is presented in the final. Also many of the sounds are rushed use innacurate sounds and the limitation of the AI sounds. But however the turbos and poppings are better than their previous NFS so I will give credit for that.
Man, I used to remember seeing The Run on store shelves. But teenage me had to decide between this or Skyrim or Uncharted 3, all of which were released just days apart.
I enjoy this than most racing games tbh, the stiff steering, sound and fear of crashing anytime pushes the adrenalin. it was a great concept fromt he series, needs a sequel imo.
I agree, this is a game worth playing once, I also played the 3DS, and it's charming, but also the fact that besides the excellent Mario Kart 7, that console barely has racing games, most of them suck and a half decent one really seemed like a good proposition at that time.
I like this game, let's admit that black box made this game as well as they could, but when it comes to EA and the money they make, they simply close the studios that make the games under pressure and bla bla bla we all know EA its greddy that's why i hate them the most but Black Box try they're best and they make the game have better atmosphere stories and music characters and its not a easy job to make a racing video game i think if you have a studio with 100 or 1000 employess take about 1 or 2 years to make that game i just say my oppinion and yes its sad and now EA want's to remake a racing game since black box its not anymore in bussiness
Another awesome video Spence! This game is one I preordered and loved at launch! Unfortunately I never played it after beating it and wish I could play it on PC nowadays! It’s very linear, but still awesome!
The run Is pretty fun honestly. But it's a pop game. You play it, finish it in 5-6 hours and afterwards there's not much to do aside from do it again but harder. Which yeah, can be fun but it's a game that doesn't have much to it.
"pop game" "game that doesn't have much to it." , 1 very stupid prespective of a short games. 2 literally is the most epic nfs game, the best ost and one of the best nfs
Though i felt like the main story itself was rather short, i thoroughly enjoyed (and still do) the run. Dare i say it, its games like the run, most wanted (ps2), carbon, etc. that make racing games a little funner. Having a plot beyond just being #1 and free roam ability feels more engaging to me. Just my 0.02. :)
dynamic music makes it for me. i wish a new need for speed came out with an original score of soundtracks (especially dynamic) instead of just licensing a bunch of popular pop culture songs. Even if there were many licensed songs in The Run, it was completely overshadowed by the over the top soundtrack.
I literally have an Xbox 360 JUST for this game. It should get ported to backwards compatability. And I think it actually would make a great movie despite the NFS movie we got was very similar
Need for speed carbon was the last game I played in the series growing up. I ended up picking up need for speed 2015 and payback but honestly they weren’t to same. Never bothered to pick up Heat or unbound.
NFS The Run was definitely different than any NFS game prior to that in a big way. Not being open world (as similiar to Pro Street and Shift) but also not being track-focused NFS game either. And the extreme difficulty for me truly felt extreme, not just in the races and police chases themselves but the time trial events as well. Haven't played any other NFS game that was this hard on time trial events, ever. Long story short I think NFS The Run wasn't the most memoriable game ever, but was decent enough to be remembered at all.
One of my favorite Need For Speed. I've played Run once and it was all worth it. It felt fun , and right . I've played lots of NFS games and run is the only game that felt short and sweet. It was a mix of things not too much but lots of them. I even wanted to return the game.. because it wasn't open world and I didn't like the game first impression, then it became my fav nfs. I haven't replayed RUN but best things in life last short ( maybe someday I might replay but it wont feel same )
The Run was a bite sized masterpiece though for Blackbox , Pros : decent physics , handling models for cars , crash physics are also awe Cons : cars are locked through multiplayer, console exclusivity through with the PS3 since is no longer possible , Xbox 360 , AI too aggressive ,
It has been confirmed that actual car customization has been cut during development. My theory is, that all of these "pre-tuned" versions are made with parts which were initially made for that actual car customization, to not let that work completely go to waste. The engine sounds you show are actually really different, if you don't focus on the "straight cut gear-whine", most cars have (although most don't have straight cut gears in real life) The multiplayer was very solid too.
Many cars do share the same sounds though. I know every car what engine sound it uses like I know all Black Box's engine sounds from NFS UG2 - The Run. Also the customization was comprehended with these Tiers and in fact all stock cars have body kits, except for the Audi RS4.
You could technically do that with glitches and mods but you'll see why this game is not made for free roam. It's like NFS UG1, but at least you can't fall out of the map on many places like in NFS TR you can.
The Run being a 'one off' game as i could describe it is its biggest downfall. In MOST NFS games prior to this one you had this 1 simple option, quick race. Select a track, a car, drive. I cannot understand why Blackbox decided not to include it. Yes there is Stage select, but that only selects the whole stage not a specific race. Challenge series is there but then you are only given a set of cars per stage. I don't know why a feature that exists in the first NFS game could not be included. Since once you are finished with this very short game [even shorter than Carbon] then that is it. Multiplayer is also dead now so you can forget about racing there as well. EDIT: This is also a flaw with both Criterion NFS games, admiteddly you can select every race individually in Hot Pursuit although car restrictions are not sometimes lifted, but MW2012 having only 10 races per car which some repeat is so annoying, yet in MP there you can use any car for, most events if it provides it. Post Rivals games also do not have this option but at least you can select ANY car for any race after you do them once, just gotta drive to them or select them trough the map, some restrictions but i can understand Off Road events or such not being avaliable to all cars.
The true downfall of NFS is after the start of NFS UG1. The original NFS were about driving sports and exotic cars and learn about them. NFS changed drastically its direction when Black Box took over NFS after their NFS HP 2 on PS2 release with 2F2F style races and this is the first NFS where NOS was introduced and every NFS since then added it. But tbh the real downfall is actually the PS2 fanboys of NFS UG1/2/MW 2005 who ruined the fanbase and forgot what are the true roots of NFS. And now thanks to that Black Box dissolved in 2013 and now Ghost in 2020, so what did we achieved after those years? Nothing.
I love this game. I never understood the hate. It was new and different with a much better story than undercover. Sense of speed was awesome and the difficulty progression made you push. I love it
The hate came from of die hard Black Box fans who stan NFS UG1/UG2/MW 2005 to death and talk crap about NFS Carbon, Pro Street and every NFS after NFS MW 2005 pretty much. I remember back then people were unhappy because they wanted so bad NFS UG3 or MW2 and say how NFS HP 2010 was ''better'' even though it had brake to drift handling which everyone hate. The others are just ''it's just too short.'' Hopefully it explains everything.
Hi everyone! On April 26-28 at the Melbourne & Olympic Parks, I'll be attending 'DreamHack' as a CREATOR! I'll keep you posted on what I'm doing as the expo gets closer, but I hope to see you all soon! Otherwise, enjoy the review, I hope it was worth the wait! Happy Easter everyone! 👍
- Spencer
dreamhack.com/melbourne/
13:36 the 3ds had extra quick-time events in the cutscenes while the wii version only had gameplay quick-time events
ColourShed this isnt related to your comment but I've played need for speed the run online before and everyone would just keep ramming you and when you tried to ram them back you had no power
EA shutting down Black Box was one of the worst decisions they ever made. Black Box played a part in so many people's childhoods in the 2000s with so many great games: they made the iconic Need for Speed games of the 2000s like Hot Pursuit 2, Underground 1 & 2, Most Wanted, Carbon and Prostreet and they also made all of the Skate games and assisted DICE with Battlefield 3.
They had all these studios capable of producing great games and they overworked them and then shut them all down when they didn't meet sales expectations.
They were the ones that brought NFS to huge popularity.
@MirelRC they also almost killed it with ProStreet and Undercover being huge flops
@@PEPSIMaxMusic One bad game doesn't kill a franchise, everyone knows it by now.
@@PEPSIMaxMusicPro street and Undercoves are my fevs parts. I hope for remakes both
@@PEPSIMaxMusic no, they didn't. EA and their high expectations have almost killed it. They expect the same studio to release a new game every year and sell like NFS UG or MW 2005. It's hard to do that and keep good quality with modern requirements.
Kinda disappointed you didn't mention each car has a difficulty attached to it. Don't exactly remember what they're called but easy basically means grippy and hard is drifty and hard cars tend to be faster too.
Easy - best handling, most grippy
Normal - good handling
Challenging - mediocre handling (usually the worst performing cars have that, lol)
Very difficult - bad handling
Expert - the most slippery handling of all
It really is like that. And you need to drive the more difficult cars to get the Platinum medals at the challange series.
@@MSRJ13 The hardest race to get platinum is the Autobahn Attack which was on PS3/Xbox 360 exclusive.
Greatest curated racing experience ever, nothing matches playing through the main campaign of The Run and it’s peak cinematic gameplay and audio. Favorite game I’ve ever played, hands down. Also made me fall in love with M3 GTS. Black Box’s finest effort ironically was their last, at least to me. It’s okay to be different. Not every racer has to be open-world, customization based.
Well you sold me
@@SECONDQUEST - Then I have done my job. Go play it, just be sure you’re disconnected from the internet, otherwise you cannot sign in, lol.
I agree. This is probably one of the most underrated racing games ever.
@@MaximusOverdrive NFS TR still had customization unlike NFS HP 2010, even though it was mostly cut during half development.
@@MrPrajitura Only if the people meant it back when it came out...
Rip Black Box
they went out with a banger of a game
"Out with a Bang"
nah, the run is mid.
@@ianism3 Like NFS MW 2005, fight me.
@@HeroManNick132 Not gonna lie MW 2005 was also mid. The only good thing about that game is vehicle sound and Open World. Rest sucks
@@kuriankeralaIndia Well, I mean it was fun but the cops and rubberbanding were annoying at some point. Like Heat 1-2 cops are basically like the 2015 one and after Heat 4 it becomes frustrating. Yeah, I get that's the point, but the piss filter and worse capabilities for modding were downgraded from NFS UG2 (especially sound modding).
But I really dislike their stans who think only these should be number 1 and bash other people who like other NFS more than them.
Same for the Forza fanboys.
"it's always the same" proceeds to show 3 different cars with 3 different engine noises.
Yeah, I strongly disagree with his opinion on the sounds. The cars sound amazing in this game. They sound so metallic and mechanical
This lmao, Colourshed must be having some audio blindness or something because it very much is distinct in engine noises
I do agree that the audio quality isn't amazing tho, but that's hardly something to complain about considering the audio is miles ahead what we had in Most Wanted/Carbon/Undercover
The Gallardo clearly sounded like a V10
The engine sounds were terrible. I’ve played the game. Calm down.
Nah they’re pretty bad, especially when compared to HP2010
I always felt that The Run was inspired by Uncharted 2 which featured "action set piece moments" like something out of a Hollywood action movie (EA even hired Michael Bay to direct a trailer for The Run). The avalanche section and the Las Vegas quick time events especially look like they were inspired by similar moments in Uncharted 2. The final race is probably my favourite race in the entire series by far with the subway section being my favourite moment.
The handling model was probably meant to be a mix of the grippy handling of Black Box's previous games with the drift focused handling of the Burnout games (due to Criterion developing Hot Pursuit 2010). I think it's one of those handling models that you either love or hate: I liked it with certain cars but hated it with others. Also the game for the most part felt slower than previous games like Shift or Prostreet (or maybe it was just the close camera angle making it feel slower than those games).
The car list (with all DLCs included) was surprisingly varied (even if they sort of padded it out with tuned variants) and felt closer to the kind of car list you'd find in a Forza Horizon game. The Run and Most Wanted 2012 definitely had the most variety with their car lists. Though I wished they used the actual NFS hero cars with their actual body kits and liveries instead of whatever the hell they did instead (looking at you "Underground 2 370z").
I think it's a really good game and I finished it 3 or 4 times so I don't get the replayability problem
The visual customization in this game is the best part of the game for me despite how basic it is and whoever designed those style and aero kits for the cars surely has a good taste since almost all of them are so well designed. The street kit for example is true to its name, focusing on stances and elegant use of widebody meanwhile the aero kit is more aggressive and race car inspired yet still possesses the same elegance as the street kit. My personal favorite in this game is that one special edition mclaren 12C with livery and body kit inspired by the 12C GT3 but street racing-ized and it looks positively gorgeous, so gorgeous in fact that it became my go to car for the last chapter where it becomes available (despite its questionable handling)
Not to mention the NFS signature edition RX7 I think it was? Had green taillights and a red paintjob. Would be sick to have more games with custom taillights and shit.
I genuinely love NFS: The Run and I think it deserves more love
Me too. It's my favourite NFS game to date. I love point to point races, they just seem a whole lot more considered. The avalanche level still terrifies me to this day.
Tell to the NFS UG1/2/MW 2005 and of course Forza stans who talk crap about it 24/7.
@@HeroManNick132I mean I like those games too but they play so differently it’s kinda hard to compare them. I look at it from a racing game perspective, I like it for what it is not what it’s not.
@@Phantastic_Otaku I didn't say to hate on these games but the people who are die hard stans to them acting toxic, that's what I mean.
@@HeroManNick132I’m not trying to hate on those games. I love the older Black Box EA games even Carbon but I feel like the hate it gets comes down to it being different. I know NFS: The Run has quite a bit of glitches and imperfections but so do a lot of games now but I still think The Run is very underrated and at deserves a play-through by people who never gave it a chance.
I've said it before i'll say it again. The run was one of the best nfs games we got. And this bitching community shot it down when it released. Nowadays people are actually starting to appreciate this game now that the most wanted circle jerkig stopped. Classic nfs fandom, hate a game and like it a decade later.
I didn't care for it when it first released cause I thought the name sounded lame but 6 years later I tried it out and it's probably one of my favorites lol.
This video is not a review. This video is a smear campaign against Need for Speed The Run ...
The moment when you realise the original Crew was just the "spiritual successor" to this game in terms of its premise.
Fun fact: some tracks in the soundtrack were composed by Mick Gordon and although I haven't played it *for obvious reasons* it seems he did the soundtrack for the Wii/DS version of The Run too which weirdly enough comprises of remixes of 90s NFS songs.
Another thing worth mentioning, idk how they messed it up but the audio is bad on console and bad on pc too but not on certain versions? The intended audio is actually amazing but they messed something up with the mixing on certain versions iirc.
This game had a bit of a charm to it, interesting story but really short. The game was also brutal on the hardest difficulty as it had what I can only describe as “Slightshot AI”. Once you over took the final AI you needed to pass, they would rubberband pass you and just disappear into the distance.
Also QTEs. I still remember a section of the game in playing it on the hardest difficulty on the 360 where the buttons required were hidden behind a digital camo like image. Though having seen absolutely zero mention of this anywhere tells me that this was either a broken texture that failed to load, or absolutely noone suffered through this mess on the max difficulty
The Run was of my favourite NFS games. Also must be one of the few who actually enjoyed NFS undercover. Completing all the events/missions and completing the game. Only disappointment was the ending. Didn't even realise I'd just completed the final mission until the game was over and there wern't any more events or missions to play.
i enjoyed undercover despite being a broken blurry mess because it was most wanted but easier with less rubberbanding and less annoying cop challenges and had tons of cars and customization, it was like a bigger carbon, i did not enjoy this game at all, it barely had any content, no open world no customization, black box deserved to shut down after this.
A fair review, but I disagree on a few points. My biggest gripe is your take on the handling. Yes it's a difficult and at time floaty handling model but to me it's incredibly satisfying once you master it. Honestly cars at the speeds you travel in that game (especially on normal non-track roads) are going to feel something like they do in game. Cars at high speeds, even high end cars, are going to be difficult and at times unpredictable. I love that the Run aimed for that. I also adored Hot Pursuit 2012 but because it was good arcade-like fun. The Run felt a bit more grounded in reality compared to the "tap brakes to drift" style handling of NFS Hot Pursuit. That is one of the downsides of the short story mode though. IMO you have to play through it at least twice to fully master the handling model and that's a problem for a racing game that's so linear. I loved it though so I've played through the story a few times. Once you master it though you really feel like you're fully immersed in a movie.
I liked the way engines sounded in The Run, but I do agree that at least some of the lower end cars sound a bit samey. The Gallardo you showed though sounded pretty distinct from the others, at least for me.
I feel like this game needed more time in the oven. The concept was so unique for the time and I feel like with more dev time to add tuning and a longer story mode (maybe one with some alternate routes) the game would have been perfect. The soundtrack especially goes so hard, both licensed and original. I also love the sound design overall. The way cars sound like they're just barely hanging onto the road as you go hard into a turn is just perfection and really helps get the adrenaline pumping. And don't get me started on the atmosphere and insane track variety.
Also NFS Undercover is bad. I can't believe so many people like that dumpster fire. Easily one of the worst NFS titles, at least on the Xbox 360. People must have some really thick nostalgia glasses. Fortunately most reviewers give it low marks because they actually have to replay it.
This game would be amazing if there was like arcade mode instead only challenge mode, and for the story is better than actual NFS Movie
There was actually a arcade cabinet of NFS The Run in amusement park.
Well there are mods online for that: perfected mod and debug menu.
...absolutely not. How can people consider this entry a "hidden gem" or "underrated" yet not treat the movie the same way?
I forgot need for speed had a movie.
I really didn't like The Run when I played it and yet now I have a really strange nostalgia for it.
The sound design was amazing.
The sound track slapped.
The environment design was amazing.
And I actually liked the camera and how it hugged the vehicles.
Eh, car sounds are kinda meh, because they are rushed (I know every car what sound uses and it makes questionable sense why). But as I said they are rushed, especially how it lacks of AI versions of the sounds. Also if you play with 60 fps no VSync the added ''transmission'' sound glitches. However I agree about the rest, especially the sountrack. But in this game hood camera actually is better than 3rd person camera and of course with manual transmission.
The environment, yes, even though it's limited and even if you use free roam mod or glitches to free roam you can see why this game is not made for free roaming.
@@HeroManNick132 The car sounds we're pretty meh and I forgot the AI cars lacked sound but that tire screeching. 👌🏻
@@Generik97 Agree, but the turbos were great, even though a bit quiet.
I know its a bit controversial but this is one of my favorite NFS games of all time. I'm very easy to please. I wish they would revisit something like this again, i will always remember the Avalanche time attack mission and Jack causing a 16 car pileup in vegas, i love this game so much
It's controversial for the NFS MW 2005/UG1-2 ricers. Don't listen to them and you are good to go, gigachad. :)
@@HeroManNick132 This unironically. The run was one of the best nfs games we got. And this bitching community shot it down when it released. Nowadays people are actually starting to appreciate this game now that the most wanted circle jerkig stopped. Classic nfs fandom, hate a game and like it a decade later.
@@LeaveMeAloneFBI Very well said.
Mostly disagree on the car sounds. They aren't accurate, but they are punchy, and hit the low and high frequencies. I personally want more of this. But I also wouldn't say that bad car sounds drag a game down.
Mostly disagree on the handling. The physics are great, and I can drive the cars and fully understand what they're doing at all times, and very quickly and easily bring back oversteer by countersteering. It's just the steering speed is so slow that you have to actively remember to turn the car ahead of time. HP2010 had this problem even worse before The Run, it was just a tad slower. Then MW2012 had it slightly better, since the steering returned to neutral a bit quicker. Then it remained stagnant until Payback, where the steering could finally be set a bit quicker. Still could be quicker, though. Plus, they should be taking advantage of control stick linearity curves instead of just relying on slowing the steering down.
The good voice acting I think also makes the voice lines fine.
Nfs the run handling has gta 4 handling syndrome. People act like its bad because theyre too trash and lazy to actually learn the handling. I've played every nfs from underground 1 to heat, and I'll tell you with a straight face The run had some of the best physics in the series. Cars actually had weight to them and the handling was consistent and predictable. If you crash or spin out it was 100% on you.
The handling is floaty but I liked it a lot, it gave weight to the cars and you were really battling to hold them on the road. And despite the floaty handling you could still grip.
Idk man The Run was the only NFS game that stressed me so much when playing it cause of how intense the races were but it's good.
True because the sounds of this game was rushed. Also it lacked of AI variants of the sounds. But the turbo sounds are great, even though really quiet and the poppings.
However the overall sound mixing is bad since the transmission sound is mixed poorly with the engine and exhaust sounds. And if you play with 60 fps no VSync enabled from your NVidea pannel the sounds glitch. However Tristan Baulah was responsible for this poor mixing.
But I really loved the ford_fiesta_kenblock's sound which fitted a lot the Impreza, Focus RS, Integrale HF as Tier 5 (even though it was used also by the Exige but with different engine sound).
Black box went out all guns blazing with this game. Major respect to them for trying and innovating. This game really felt like a good action movie. And the landscapes and different scenarios… NFS The Run is legendary.
The Run is so slept on! Race from coast to coast and all the action in between makes this one of my top fav NFS games!
This is easily one of the best Need for Speed games ever made! It's in my top 3 for sure.
I actually enjoy this game quite a bit. Only downsides are the ai being insanely fast and how short the story is
I don't know why everybody keeps saying need for speed unbound is a bad game. I actually love the game and play it almost every day there's nothing wrong with it you just got to learn how to play it. Please stop hating on this game.
It's the same thing repeating again also known as ''history repeats itself.'' Basically when NFS 2015 came out it was said to be the worst NFS and then people love it after 9 years. Same with NFS Heat which is 5 years old. And just wait another 5 years and you'll see what I mean with ''history repeats itself.''
@@HeroManNick132 I don't remember anyone hating NFS 2015, just criticising for its lack of customization in some aspects and cars, not to mention the story.
2017 had some cool elements but was ruined by loot boxes. I personally thought Heat was fine, the story wasn't very good but it was pretty fun.
I've yet to properly play unbound.
@@kirby1225 NFS 2015 was hated because it was always online, you couldn't pause the game, the handling was broken and the car list and customization was restricted. Plus some also disliked that it was always night and rainy, even though it was supposed to represent NFS UG1-2 and Carbon. Also at launch there was no manual transmission and we had to wait till 2016 for the PC release. But the PC release had problems with loading on some parts compared to the console versions.
And people started liking it because of the Project United mod.
If you go back even before that like before NFS Rivals everyone criticized these NFS after NFS MW 2005 when they came out, but when time passed out we feel like these games are so underrated because it is how it is. Heck even NFS MW 2012 was started to be liken even though back then was so bashed out because of the name and the same goes for NFS TR like being a ''downgrade'' from NFS HP 2010.
But even the most ''perfect'' NFS has some flaws.
you should know, black box have developed games on renderware for majority of their lifetime, and for the run they were handed brand new frostbite from dice and were told to work on that because that's the engine studios under EA will be working with... no wonder the game had so many bugs, because it was their first time making a game on that engine
Only the Skate team within Black Box worked with RenderWare. The NFS team used their own engine up until The Run, and it was their choice to use Frostbite. Speed (their old engine) was already dated (just look at Undercover compared to other releases that year), and it would’ve taken significant effort to bring it up to speed with where everyone else already was, and were soon headed. It wasn’t just graphically where they had fallen behind either, it was their tools too. UE3 and, ironically, RenderWare were miles ahead in tooling in ways that only game engines with entire dedicated teams developing them could be. No matter what, starting over on a new engine was inevitable, so they went with the one that would cost less, was the most advanced out of their internal options, and used some tech they were already familiar with.
@@Brawltendo Still Frostbite 2 works better than Frostbite 3.
@@HeroManNick132 in what way? All the versions after Frostbite 2 mostly built upon what was already there, so there isn’t really anything it would do better other than just running faster because it’s older.
@@Brawltendo And imo looks better. Frostbite 3 also loads the textures slower and they still keep trying lol.
@@HeroManNick132 the same thing would happen in FB2 if you gave the game bigger textures to stream in. Other engines do the same thing in order to load assets in faster. Since newer games use larger textures, you’re bound to see that process more often.
To me, handling feels better than the one in Hot Pursuit. In Hot Pursuit it is more like there are 2 modes of handling normal and drift, like an on/off switch. The Run feels more seamless between those two.
I loved this game, the whole idea of canonball run through whole states is so great
There's a slider in the sound settings that let's you change how realistic or cinematic the sound design is, maybe it affects the car sounds and that's why they sound that way.
It's easy to see why this kind of racing game is so difficult to make and justify doing so.
You have to develop an insane amount of unique scenery, stretch it out WAY longer, and then attach it to a concept that is almost inherently bad at replay value, unless you develop MULTIPLE insanely long sprints. Even then, once you do them once, you're not really going to be seeing anything new, unless you can do the entire journey in reverse.
It's expensive, it's limited, it's difficult to do, and most people wouldn't be interested. That said, I think the idea of it is fantastic, and I hope we see something like it again, one day. Until then, though, I guess I'll just download civilian car mods for American Truck Sim and do it that way.
Rn my favorites are the OG Most Wanted and Rivals. The Run was fun because of the cross-country race. When the movie came out this game immediately came to mind
I just got this game and played it and you upload this video at the right time! That is crazy, but satisfying.
Showing Most Wanted makes me realize how much it looked like Black (and had that classic "this movie is in the Southwest" color grading)
2005 or 2012?
@@HeroManNick132Most likely 2005. 2012 looks pretty shiny and good.
If you ignore texture details & resolution, very few games look as good as NFS The Run & DriveClub. Developers really need to look back.
NFS TR uses low textures (especially for car's interior and Jack himself in the car). But the atmosphere and lighting is what makes the game look great.
I get the engine sounds aren't the best, but the engine sounds do sound very different from each other
Not always.
it does not even matter, stupid point
Played this for the first time about 4 or 5 months ago. It's up there as one of the games that gives me the most complicated feelings. It has a lot of flaws, but in the flashes where they aren't getting in the way there's something about the vibes that are just magical.
10:09 EAGL is a library of proprietary EA software mostly to do with the graphical pipeline, not an engine (EA Graphic Library). The actual engine behind the 2000s Black Box games is only really known to the devs but its often referred to as the Speed Engine; this is the reason why many of the executables for NFS games of the era are Speed.exe.
Also every NFS after HP 2010 are referred as NFS for next year like: NFS HP 2010 - NFS11, NFS The Run - NFS12 and all the way till NFS 2015 which was NFS16. That changed since NFS Payback and then NFS Heat and Unbound. Unbound has NFSExcalibur exe file.
It also has very little to do with the graphics pipeline in any of the Speed engine games, mostly being used for skeletal animation. The actual renderer component of their engine is called Ecstacy (they spelled it wrong, but yeah they liked naming things after drugs).
@@Brawltendoomg I forgot about that. You're completely right.
Maybe if Criterion just started naming internal tools after drugs again we'd finally have another good NFS. Can't wait for the Acid engine, powered by Heroin physics.
The multiplayer on this game was so much fun its sad that the servers got shut down
I remember that I bought this game after a travel to Las Vegas and I could not wait to reach at Las Vegas in game to see what I saw in person. The same when The Crew 1 (RIP) got released
Played actually actually for "free" from reasons I won't mention 🏴☠️, but playing it on the xbox 360 knowing it didn't cost any penny compared to its time (while also having other nfs titles too), was a joyful experience for one time. Like they said it was like a spark. If it wasn't neither an EA nor NFS title + was completely cheaper, would be an amazing game from its time.
Would have love though to have been longer its main story content, since its feels weird to try to play it again knowing all (and it isn't an incentive to masterize a race track unless you try to 100% the game in that time)
This game wasn't made for free roam like NFS UG1. But unlike NFS UG1 you can fall out of the map in many places so that's why this game is not made even though with glitches you can achieve it.
$0 is exactly the right amount to pay for this. Well, maybe 5-10 bucks max. But asking full price was a scam, took less than 5hrs to finish with nothing else to do.
how did you got it free? pls tell me
I actually enjoyed The Run a lot more than the other Black Box era NFS games. The much arcadey, weighty, but drifty handling of the vehicles were awesome and something I appreciate a lot more than the more grip focused games like Most Wanted 05 and Carbon. The gameplay alone was an enjoyable ride through the game. It's my favorite in that era.
Finally a gigachad.
just stopping in to drop a like since this NFS is still on my bucket list to get around to playing
Black Box, an incredibly talented studio now known for being basically worked to death by EA. While this game has it's cult fan base, I can't help feel that they deserved a better send off especially comparing it to their best work.
This game was really nice, too bad most of the cars and content are locked behind online challenges.
Also circuit races would have been great.
I'd argue NFS The Run and Most Wanted were the only two racing games that had a decent story in the NFS franchise, which is rare for a racing game to have a good story to begin with.
I remember when I wanted to have NFS The Run for PS3, and I said to my parents back then (when I was 10) that I’d love to have it.
The year before I got NFS Hot Pursuit, I was allowed to have that one. But not The Run due to it being rated 16+ in EU.
So, instead of that they bought me the Gran Turismo 5 DLC for my birthday.
Seeing this video now, I started to have a feeling I missed out on something, so since I’m 22 now I’ll actually buy it somewhere these days. 😂
Bro really compared arcade nfs games to THE RUN!! Handling in TR was supposed to make a difference between vehicles and between random NFS games and this one. It is basically a challenge in itself, which is what this review missed.
This game is one of my guilty pleasures. I love the slight more focus on clean driving and I had a blast online too. And yes, I liked this more than hot pursuit, sue me
this is a good game, no way a guilty pleasure
"When I played this game in 2011, I downloaded the game wallpaper set and used it as my desktop and Facebook cover picture. However, I was disappointed because at that time, everyone was talking negatively about this beautiful game and it received the worst ratings. But deep down, I knew that one day people would realize how amazing this game truly was."
Who are you quoting?
Now you should go back and review the classic NFS games like Porsche Unleashed and High Stakes
THE MAN THE MYTH THE LEGEND RETURNS!!!!!!
Edit: apparently he uploaded a month ago and TH-cam never told me he wasn't as gone as long As I thought smh
I played this on pc and I remember the cars sounding much better, especially the monster Porsche suvs. Very clear and beefy.
This game has limited AI sounds and sounds in general. They feel rushed.
I wish this game was longer
Ah yes one of my favorite NFS games I’m glad people are appreciating it more these days such a underrated title in the franchise
People in 2011: *WTF is this crap? Where is my NFS MW2/UG3? I still didn't ask for this crap! Even NFS HP 2010 was better than this 💩!*
People in 2024: *So underrated... Why it's so underrated? I wish I never hated this NFS. Most intense NFS ever!*
@@HeroManNick132 the accuracy
Yep, I have it and really like it. It's like modern version of CannonBall Race.
Awesome vid bro, I like all these retrospectives you're making. I've played every NFS across all platforms except for Unbound so it's awesome to see you walk that same path.
Just a quick note, in The Run's menu you'll find one single slider for game audio. Set that slider to full "Racing Experience" and you can hear the engine revs and tire screeches better, instead of wind and Gear whine.
Actually you hear more the transmission one and the engine sound is quiet but the skids are made louder, depending on what are you driving on.
This is the best San Francisco Stages I've ever played and I actually really love this game
Could you make a burnout dominazor review? I was just watching your burnout review "series" and i noticed, that theres no dominator
I will forever believe this is one of the all time best NFS games. Fight me.
I really enjoyed The Run and felt it was a good way to go out for the Black Box era, doesn’t exactly reach the same highs as U2 or MW but it’s a wholly unique racing experience that no other game has really attempted.
Obviously you will say that, I'm not surprised honestly.
0:28 until I fell out of the series, it was one of the few NFS's i didn't finish, and it was because the quality was just that bad.
The engine noises in this game had the potential to be the best yet, and then they applied some dumbass filter over it. If you listen to the recordings, they're top-notch...
Except the Audi Quattro. Giving a 5-cyl the sound of a Mitsubishi Evo rally car should be punishable by the death penalty.
Ford Focus RS was also I5 but it used for_foc_c (which is still from the first gen with had I4) with toy_mr2_b_eng. However the for_fie_kenblock_a + vw_gti_d_eng somehow fitted really well, especially for the Alpinestars version. But still a shame that Black Box never got I5 sound correctly in their developming cycle. Even in NFS PS.
Honestly like a lot of games from EA's early 10's catalogue but you could definitely see the cracks of what they'd become start forming.
Still a pretty good time to go out on, RIP Blackbox
This is a game that I was excited for and pre-ordered before it came out, also on the same day as Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary released which I also pre-ordered. Overall this was a 7/10 game, plenty of things I liked but plenty of mishaps with it.
Played the challenge series with my friends in school almost every day, we genuinely loved this game (:
The long race formula is something a Fast and Furious game should have copied like ten years ago already. Instead they brought along crossroads, which, luckily, will become lost media in a few years.
The soundtrack was an absolute banger; first OST I sought out to listen to outside of the game. Still crank the album today.
The worst part of this game is the shallow replay value, even after the server shutdown. You only have The Run, and Challenge Series, thats it, no Custom Race mode, single race mode, nothing, you're stuck with these, there's no way you can set up your own races with any car and track you like by yourself against AI opponents and just race for fun. Once you seen everything that the game has to offer, you'll get bored with it quite quickly, like The Challenge Series events are all fixed and samey(opponents, too) no matter what car you chose. They could have done a lot more with this game to be honest.
Don't get me wrong, the gameplay and handling is solid and the races are action-packed, so I had a good amount of fun with it, but not enough to keep me coming back for longer sessions because of how bare bones it is, fingers crossed for modding!
Avoided NFS like the plage after carbon on ps2 but I did liked hot pursuit on ps3 but that's about it. NFS is a relic of past gens.
Same. Well i made it to prostreet the one after Carbon but dude u didn't miss a thing. If im being honest, if EA didn't own Battlefield id of avoided EA games like the plague
Same here the 7th generation was the last good era of nfs I grew up with the franchise since high stakes but ever since the first forza horizon came out I've completely avoided nfs
@@rickyrosay33977 7th was the last great gen for many games.Forza Horizon is indeed something else.
I remember getting this game for Christmas after enjoying the demo a lot. Only thing I really remember is the difficulty spike after Chicago was pretty severe to me so I traded it in for something else
For me The Run is like Ace Combat of racing games, short (even bit too short) but very action-packed experience with great and adrenaline-pumping soundtrack. I really wish the game had more exposition with cutscenes and embrace the cheesiness more rather than just text on loading screen and also a little bit longer campaign especially when you look at the map between 5 and 6 Stage looks like there was supposed to be some another stage in-between.
I respectfully disagree on car sound department, sure there's some car that do not sound particularly great but on the other side there are examples like Zonda Cinque have a sound from HP2010 console version.
Some sounds are ported from NFS HP 2010 and Criterion in general like the F1 sound (used for the Maserati MC12) while the F1 uses the hated Ferrari 360 sound from NFS UG2. The 350Z sound for the 370Z also from NFS HP 2010 as well the Porsche Carrera GT sound and others.
Also this game has glitch like NFS UG2 when you play it at 60 fps no Vsync the shifts bug there but instead of the shifts the sound bug. Why? Because they mixed them poorly (the new ''transmission'' sound which technically was since from NFS MW 2005 that was supposed to give ''more realism.'') If you watch Making of NFS TR series and listen to Tristan Baulah saying how they mix the sounds you can see the issue which is presented in the final.
Also many of the sounds are rushed use innacurate sounds and the limitation of the AI sounds. But however the turbos and poppings are better than their previous NFS so I will give credit for that.
Great review! This is one that I have on PC but never played.
for some reason i just realised that on the wii channel preview (where it says start), it uses the same sound as NFS Nitro
FINALLY IVE BEEN WAITING FOR THIS
Man, I used to remember seeing The Run on store shelves. But teenage me had to decide between this or Skyrim or Uncharted 3, all of which were released just days apart.
I enjoy this than most racing games tbh, the stiff steering, sound and fear of crashing anytime pushes the adrenalin. it was a great concept fromt he series, needs a sequel imo.
I agree, this is a game worth playing once, I also played the 3DS, and it's charming, but also the fact that besides the excellent Mario Kart 7, that console barely has racing games, most of them suck and a half decent one really seemed like a good proposition at that time.
I like this game, let's admit that black box made this game as well as they could, but when it comes to EA and the money they make, they simply close the studios that make the games under pressure and bla bla bla we all know EA its greddy that's why i hate them the most but Black Box try they're best and they make the game have better atmosphere stories and music characters and its not a easy job to make a racing video game i think if you have a studio with 100 or 1000 employess take about 1 or 2 years to make that game i just say my oppinion and yes its sad and now EA want's to remake a racing game since black box its not anymore in bussiness
Another awesome video Spence!
This game is one I preordered and loved at launch!
Unfortunately I never played it after beating it and wish I could play it on PC nowadays!
It’s very linear, but still awesome!
The run Is pretty fun honestly. But it's a pop game. You play it, finish it in 5-6 hours and afterwards there's not much to do aside from do it again but harder. Which yeah, can be fun but it's a game that doesn't have much to it.
Unless if you do some glitches which allows you to free roam and have more fun.
"pop game" "game that doesn't have much to it." , 1 very stupid prespective of a short games. 2 literally is the most epic nfs game, the best ost and one of the best nfs
FrostBite game engine was never made for racing games so they had to go with it because ea and reasons.
I never pirated any of those games after Carbon and of course I did purchase Most Wanted Black Edition and all the previous...
that's a weird flex
Though i felt like the main story itself was rather short, i thoroughly enjoyed (and still do) the run. Dare i say it, its games like the run, most wanted (ps2), carbon, etc. that make racing games a little funner. Having a plot beyond just being #1 and free roam ability feels more engaging to me. Just my 0.02. :)
dynamic music makes it for me. i wish a new need for speed came out with an original score of soundtracks (especially dynamic) instead of just licensing a bunch of popular pop culture songs. Even if there were many licensed songs in The Run, it was completely overshadowed by the over the top soundtrack.
Most wanted 2005 > The Run > Underground 1.
Yes i am weird.
Obviously you will be obssessed from NFS MW 2005.
I literally have an Xbox 360 JUST for this game. It should get ported to backwards compatability. And I think it actually would make a great movie despite the NFS movie we got was very similar
Need for speed carbon was the last game I played in the series growing up. I ended up picking up need for speed 2015 and payback but honestly they weren’t to same. Never bothered to pick up Heat or unbound.
I weirdly want Respawn Entertainment to develop a story driven NFS
cant wait for the Payback review
NFS The Run was definitely different than any NFS game prior to that in a big way. Not being open world (as similiar to Pro Street and Shift) but also not being track-focused NFS game either. And the extreme difficulty for me truly felt extreme, not just in the races and police chases themselves but the time trial events as well. Haven't played any other NFS game that was this hard on time trial events, ever. Long story short I think NFS The Run wasn't the most memoriable game ever, but was decent enough to be remembered at all.
I love it so much and i hope if they remastered and recontinued it
I love your reviews bro, so nostalgic ❤.
One of my favorite Need For Speed. I've played Run once and it was all worth it. It felt fun , and right .
I've played lots of NFS games and run is the only game that felt short and sweet. It was a mix of things not too much but lots of them.
I even wanted to return the game.. because it wasn't open world and I didn't like the game first impression, then it became my fav nfs. I haven't replayed RUN but best things in life last short ( maybe someday I might replay but it wont feel same )
The Run was a bite sized masterpiece though for Blackbox ,
Pros : decent physics , handling models for cars , crash physics are also awe
Cons : cars are locked through multiplayer, console exclusivity through with the PS3 since is no longer possible , Xbox 360 , AI too aggressive ,
It has been confirmed that actual car customization has been cut during development. My theory is, that all of these "pre-tuned" versions are made with parts which were initially made for that actual car customization, to not let that work completely go to waste. The engine sounds you show are actually really different, if you don't focus on the "straight cut gear-whine", most cars have (although most don't have straight cut gears in real life)
The multiplayer was very solid too.
Many cars do share the same sounds though. I know every car what engine sound it uses like I know all Black Box's engine sounds from NFS UG2 - The Run. Also the customization was comprehended with these Tiers and in fact all stock cars have body kits, except for the Audi RS4.
1:11 seriously thought my GPU was dying.
Finally I loved this game as a kid
The whole game is one hell of an adrenaline pumped action movie. The lack of free roam made it a franchise of its own, and they missed on it.
You could technically do that with glitches and mods but you'll see why this game is not made for free roam. It's like NFS UG1, but at least you can't fall out of the map on many places like in NFS TR you can.
The Run being a 'one off' game as i could describe it is its biggest downfall.
In MOST NFS games prior to this one you had this 1 simple option, quick race. Select a track, a car, drive. I cannot understand why Blackbox decided not to include it. Yes there is Stage select, but that only selects the whole stage not a specific race. Challenge series is there but then you are only given a set of cars per stage. I don't know why a feature that exists in the first NFS game could not be included. Since once you are finished with this very short game [even shorter than Carbon] then that is it. Multiplayer is also dead now so you can forget about racing there as well.
EDIT: This is also a flaw with both Criterion NFS games, admiteddly you can select every race individually in Hot Pursuit although car restrictions are not sometimes lifted, but MW2012 having only 10 races per car which some repeat is so annoying, yet in MP there you can use any car for, most events if it provides it.
Post Rivals games also do not have this option but at least you can select ANY car for any race after you do them once, just gotta drive to them or select them trough the map, some restrictions but i can understand Off Road events or such not being avaliable to all cars.
The true downfall of NFS is after the start of NFS UG1. The original NFS were about driving sports and exotic cars and learn about them. NFS changed drastically its direction when Black Box took over NFS after their NFS HP 2 on PS2 release with 2F2F style races and this is the first NFS where NOS was introduced and every NFS since then added it.
But tbh the real downfall is actually the PS2 fanboys of NFS UG1/2/MW 2005 who ruined the fanbase and forgot what are the true roots of NFS. And now thanks to that Black Box dissolved in 2013 and now Ghost in 2020, so what did we achieved after those years? Nothing.
I love this game. I never understood the hate. It was new and different with a much better story than undercover. Sense of speed was awesome and the difficulty progression made you push. I love it
The hate came from of die hard Black Box fans who stan NFS UG1/UG2/MW 2005 to death and talk crap about NFS Carbon, Pro Street and every NFS after NFS MW 2005 pretty much.
I remember back then people were unhappy because they wanted so bad NFS UG3 or MW2 and say how NFS HP 2010 was ''better'' even though it had brake to drift handling which everyone hate.
The others are just ''it's just too short.'' Hopefully it explains everything.