We tend to consider the third chapter as that of maturity, in which the bases developed at the outset and then confirmed in the second episode find a further development, consolidating the project with a complete and virtually void experience. Is this what Need for
Speed Payback is for Ghost Games? The Swedish studio, owned by Electronic Arts, took the reins of the franchise succeeding Criterion and provided its own interpretation of the atmospheres and elements that have always characterized it, in this case the clandestine races, the immoderate attention to the tuning, the theme of considering oneself heroes of the road that is so much “anti-system” and that in this new chapter it is gutted in a way that is all coherent.
Pursued by the police, Tyler has no alternative: he makes a pact with the man who wanted to rob and both are committed to revenge against the Lodge. To succeed in the enterprise, however, it will be necessary to bring together the band …
LONGING FOR SPEED
Six months after the betrayal of Lina Navarro, Tyler finally decides to act: she puts herself on display during a race to get an engagement with the Lodge, so she participates in one of the races rigged by the organization just to send her to rolls, crossing the line for first and losing a lot of money to their sworn enemies. Discovered the cards, the matter becomes serious and are then recalled in action Mac and Jess, whose function in the game is not only narrative but also practical: where
Ty is specialized in traditional races and acceleration, Mac can drive offroad and in the challenges of drifting, while Jess is a teacher of escapes, especially by the police.Different types of events that in the wide open world of Need for Speed Payback require the use of specific cars, divided into five categories: race, acceleration, skid, off-road and escape.
When the team meets and history engages, the map of Fortune Valley and the surrounding area is progressively filled with a large number of activities: the main missions, which revolve around ten gangs to be defeated and finally to challenge the Lodge, are accompanied several secondary quests, in the form of simple speed races, speed cameras to be overcome at full speed, collectibles of various kinds and finally the “catorci”. The latter are glorious cars, with extraordinary
potential but reduced in bad conditions, which must be restored after finding the components within the scenario, in a sort of treasure hunt that often involves spectacular leaps and a deep exploration of the area, almost as if it were an adventure and not a driving game.
This type of vocation emerges clearly during the experience with Payback, which then pushes the content front and offers a main story that is completed within twenty hours, but to which are added all the collateral activities to which we mentioned poc ‘
In short, very respectable numbers, but how is the driving model? From this point of view the developers have remained consistent with the work carried out primarily by Criterion, in the form of an undoubtedly arcade approach in the impacts and management of the drift, but at the same time solid and able to discretely make the differences between the various cars.
You can travel around the map in a pleasant way (taking advantage of fast journeys to garages, workshops and distributors to cover long distances), there are no casual meetings with the police (their intervention is limited to flight missions) and traffic represents a element of deep discomfort only in a few moments, when perhaps the front with a van ruins the performance a few
meters from the finish line. About that,unfortunately remains the “elastic” effect between the cars in the race that makes certain comebacks less credible and detracts from the effect of nitro , essential to regain ground when we are in difficulty, especially when facing an event with a car of a lower category compared to the one requested.
