Review: Shift 2 Unleashed [w/videos]

Filed under: Toys/Games, Reviews

Need For Speed Gets Real

Shift 2 Unleashed Review – Click above for high-res image gallery

It was a risky proposition: taking a series as fabled for its antics as Need for Speed and placing it into the cold, calculating hands of a simulation developer. That developer is Slightly Mad Studios, which has roots to the SimBin team that created the groundbreaking GTR on the PC. The resulting game was the first Need for Speed: Shift – truly a fresh title and, more importantly, a truly great racer, managing to straddle the console racing and simulation genres and do both admirably well.

Now, it’s sequel time. Ian Bell, sim-racing guru and co-founder of Slightly Mad, said that this game has the “most advanced physics system ever released.” We’re not sure we’d go quite that far, but in testing this one we’re quite confident in saying that this is certainly the most realistic Need for Speed game yet, which is perhaps why it’s officially shedding that prefix and just billing itself as Shift 2 on the PS3, xBox 360, and PC. Still, not everyone will enjoy the punishment this game can offer, so read on to see whether this is one supercar sim that’s for you.

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Gallery: Shift 2 Unleashed

Continue reading Review: Shift 2 Unleashed [w/videos]

Review: Shift 2 Unleashed [w/videos] originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 29 Mar 2011 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Video: Tommy Milner laps Laguna Seca in NFS: SHIFT 2 Unleashed

Filed under: Motorsports, Videos, Toys/Games

Tommy Milner Need For Speed: Shift 2 Unleashed lap

Tommy Milner Need For Speed Shift 2: Unleashed lap – Click above to view video after the jump

Tommy Milner made his mark driving for BMW Rahal Letterman in last year’s ALMS series alongside Bill Auberlen and Dirk Werner. Together, they won the team and manufacturer championships in the ALMS GT Class.

Milner also managed to win the Dubai 24 Hour race overall in the Need For Speed BMW Z4. This year, Milner’s behind the wheel of the Compuware GT2 Corvette C6.R, and managed 3rd in class at Sebring.

To promote Need For Speed Shift 2: Unleashed, Milner took some hot laps of Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca driving a GT1 Corvette C6.R. Without any driving aids, Milner laid down a 1:21.709 lap, just two seconds behind the GT1 lap record of 1:19.304. Click past the jump to check out a video of Milner’s lap.

[Source: YouTube]

Continue reading Video: Tommy Milner laps Laguna Seca in NFS: SHIFT 2 Unleashed

Video: Tommy Milner laps Laguna Seca in NFS: SHIFT 2 Unleashed originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 22 Mar 2011 19:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Video: Pagani Huayra tearing up SHIFT 2 Unleashed

Filed under: Performance, Europe, Videos, Toys/Games, Luxury

Pagani Huayra in Need For Speed Shift 2 Unleashed

Need For Speed Shift 2 Unleashed Pagan Huayra – Click above to watch video after the jump

We hate to be the ones to tell you this, but chances are pretty slim that you’ll ever get the opportunity to slide behind the wheel of the new Pagani Huayra. Blame it on the numbers. Pagani is only planning on cranking out so many Huayra models, and there just so happens to be a shave under 7 billion people on the planet. Throw in the fact that each of the 700-horsepower Italian exotics will carry a price tag of near $1.35 million and the odds start to look even more bleak.

Hey, at least you’re in good company. We’re sitting in the exact same boat as you.

Fortunately for all of us, then, the Need for Speed franchise has come to our rescue. While we may not be able to find out in person just how fast 740 pound-feet of torque can move a 3,000 pound supercar, we will get a shot at flinging the carbon-fiber creation down a few virtual streets in Shift 2 Unleashed. In fact, the game is the only racing outlet to feature the newest addition to the Pagani family, so if you want to play with this bad boy, you’re going to have to pick up the latest addition to the Need for Speed library. Hit the jump for a quick trailer.

[Source: Need For Speed]

Continue reading Video: Pagani Huayra tearing up SHIFT 2 Unleashed

Video: Pagani Huayra tearing up SHIFT 2 Unleashed originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 18 Feb 2011 19:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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