Need for Speed ProStreet - hands-on

Throw your previous preconceptions about NFS right out of the (tinted) window. If you imagine something like Burnout at one end of the arcade-y scale and Forza 2 at the end of the sim one, then ProStreet is revving up somewhere in-between - what EA's deeming "from boy racer to street racer."

So far, it handles entirely differently from any NFS so far. Imagine a cross between TOCA and Hot Pursuit and you're getting there, though there is the option to enable all sorts of driving aids if you're having trouble sticking to the track. Once all EA's ambitious new elements have come together though, we're looking forward to a racer that should lay the ghost of the utterly average Carbon to bed.

Whereas it used to be about bling, this year it's about performance. Why? Well, as the scene has become more mass-market, parts are much cheaper. Powerful 800hp cars are run-of-the-mill in the nowadays. What is a given is that this'll be the most authentic driving experience ever provided by the series, while maintaining the passion and sense of fun that NFS is renowned for.

It was back in the days of High Stakes and Hot Pursuit that we last saw a NFS game with driving assists. Then there is the night racing; now officially a thing of the past. And just wait until you see the new physics, damage and graphics engine... it's guaranteed to make you re-evaluate your perceptions of what next-gen really is.