Having come through the flames, Carbon certainly delivers a sizzling racing experience to fans and beginners alike. Fresh from the heat, innovation and flexibility emerge as key features of the racing experience. But the best bit is the balance the game provides between novelty and tradition. Like a fresh mix of revolutionary flavours coupled with that familiar taste of Mum's cooking, Carbon promises innovation while staying true to the series.
You are a kick ass underground racer on a stolen car speeding away from Sergeant Cross, an anti racing police officer hot on your heels. Sound familiar? No? Well, for those who've just dropped in, that's the ending of NFS: Most Wanted, the previous game to the series. Significance? Well, it's where you begin in Carbon. The story continues where Most Wanted left off. Now, I'm not going to waste my time harping on the plot, because playing for plot in a racing game is like saying you read playboy for the articles. So let's move on.
I did mention innovation right? Well, previously, in Most Wanted, players got to selectively take down rivals on the Black List. In Carbon, it's a whole new ball game, okay, so it's not really a ball game but you get the idea. This time, rivals get their butts kicked territorially. Rival gang owns territory A, you defeat rival gang, and territory A is yours, till someone else contests for it that is. Its Carbon meets Risk, Risk meets Carbon in this new style of game play.
Take a trip down to The Grand Prix and you notice that racers aren't alone - they have a team backing them up. That's right, Carbon embraces this concept and behold, the crew is born. Referred to as wingmen, they aid you throughout the game, having various roles each beneficial in a different way. There are the scouts who speed ahead and plot the shortest path for you, the drafters who give you the needed boost to overtake and the blockers who harass the enemy to slow them down. While they may seem useful on paper, some avid NFS fans like Mark Ho, 16, find them more annoying than helpful. "They tend to get in your way, colliding and blocking, and although it doesn't really affect the outcome, it's just a hindrance, sort of like sitting next to a really fat guy on a train for 2 hours. Now, that would suck. Oh and watch out for this guy Neville, his voice is really irritating and he's slower than my grandma."
So what really is the best innovative change in Carbon? One magic word comes to mind - auto-sculpt. Finally, a whole new system of flexible designing is in town. Gone are the old NFS days of interchangeable parts. All hail in a new world of creation as auto-sculpting allows you to adjust the shape, size, colour and overall design of not only your ride, but also every trinket and doodad you buy in the market. "It's really addictive this auto-sculpt thingy, I love it. Half my gaming time was just spent designing the car - it gives satisfaction," Mark Ho said.
And yes I confess for I too have spent more time creating the look rather than actually racing, but hey, who wants a 200mph vehicle that looks like a taxi?
There you have it, innovation straight from the fire. Okay, so it's not really groundbreaking but it does give a whole new experience with enough familiarity to warrant that buy. Ultimately, EA went for the balance and I have to say, it worked out fine. And hey, with Valentine's Day round the corner, why not rev up Carbon and redefine the term speed dating with your partner?
Written by Paul Ho
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