First we got the Need For Speed. Slick tracks, cool cars, and high-speed racing made it one of the most satisfying PSone releases. Before we knew it we were in Hot Pursuit – always being chased by the cops, never free to break the law as we pleased. Most recently they took the race Underground, boosting our engines with nitrous. Drag racing hasn't been the same since.

Despite our best efforts, the fuzz discovered our location. They're onto us, but they're not in hot pursuit. No, it's bigger than that. We're serious criminals now, and all we've done is break the speed limit. (And cause a few car pileups, but that's it, honest!) Now we've been added to their Most Wanted list. The boys in blue are after us, and all we can do is continue doing what we do best: speed.

Need For Speed: Most Wanted 5-1-0 is the pocket edition created exclusively for PSP. Buy fancy cars, enter races, unlock the upgrades, and work your way to the top of the Black List. Buy ugly cars too if you like – as with Gran Turismo, that's all you can afford at the start of the game. Visual upgrades can turn that box-on-wheels you're driving into something much more attractive, but that cuts into your performance upgrade funds. Visual upgrades are very popular in racing games, but for me it's all about the win. I'd rather ensure my success at the end of a long race than have the most stylish ride.

 
This screen was taken from one of the game’s computer-generated videos.

If style is your thing, Most Wanted has what you want. Everything is customizable. Change the paint job, add pre-made vinyl decals, buy new rims, color tint the windows, and acquire new hoods and spoilers. Body kits allow you to drastically change the appearance of your car. To enhance performance, buy suspension kits for improved handling. Purchase turbo kits, engine kits, and chassis upgrades to increase your top speed and acceleration rating.

EA's sports games are big on Gamebreakers, so it comes as no surprise that Most Wanted introduces a new one: Speedbreaker. The Speedbreaker slows down your vehicle for a limited amount of time. It's similar to execution to Burnout 3 and Burnout Revenge but has a different purpose. Here are your goal is to avoid collisions, not cause them. By slowing the speed of the entire game, not just your individual vehicle, you can easily maneuver in and out of tight spots. The amount of time you have with your Speedbreaker is determined by how full its meter is. You can fill that meter by driving over 100mph at any time during the race.

Most Wanted could be referred to as a training game for future PSP racers due to its temporarily frustrating steering mechanics. The PSP's sliding thumbstick is put to good use but takes an awful lot of practice to get used to. In the beginning you don't have much money and can't afford more than the cheapest rides on the lot. This car, whichever you choose, has low handling, low acceleration, low everything. Even if you had more cash you couldn't buy the best available because they have not been unlocked. That's one of the game's ways of regulating your progress. Cars are unlocked for winning races, just as new events are.

 
Another look at the game’s CG effects.

The promise of a better ride is extremely tempting, but I must stress that your first few hours are going to be frustrating. On one hand the difficulty is fairly easy. Cops are a pain, but your opponents lack the intelligence and persistence needed to win. There were several times when I'd get a late start and be several seconds behind and magically come back at the end and win the race. I've got nothing against a comeback, but my skills sucked at that point, as they should at the beginning of any game. Most Wanted's opponents seem to like giving second chances. They also don't mind running into other vehicles, which slows them down by at least four seconds.

Meanwhile, as you rack up win after win, the cops become increasingly smarter, dodging traffic and road blocks like a pro. As successful as I was, it wasn't until about the third hour that I had upgraded my vehicle to the point where it was a good match for my steering ability. I'm highly experienced at these games and can delve into new racers and immediately start kicking butt. But the PSP's analog stick is much different from what we're used to on the home consoles, and I'm willing to bet I'm not the only gamer who's still adapting.

Once this point had been reached it was time hit the gas and see what the rest of this game had to offer. Career mode is where I've been drawing most of my comments from. It's also where you're likely to spend the most time playing. Online play is available, but that feature won't get much attention if you're not near a WiFi hotspot and don't have the proper setup and Internet connection at home. Nintendo is releasing a USB adaptor that is said to remedy this problem for the Nintendo DS, allowing broadband users to go online instantly. Hopefully Sony will do the same.

Career mode is broken down into about 15 tiers, each of which has a minimum of five race events. This includes one boss race, which is a one-on-one joy ride to the finish line. Cops interfere as always, but if you maintain your vehicle with new upgrades neither police nor your opponent will be able to keep you from becoming the champ.

Heat, Circuit, Time Trial, Knockout and Tournament are the main event types. Earn respect points for each successful win – first place grabs the most respect, but you can get by with less every now and then.

 
More CG.

The unfortunate thing is that the game puts so much into each event that you'll end up racing the same track at least a dozen times. Three times is Ok. Five is alright, and I'd even accept seven if there were a lot of courses to look forward to. But there aren't that many, which is why the game recycles so often. Remember how early PSone racers reversed all of the tracks to extend the length of the game? Most Wanted does that, too.

Players will notice that aggressive driving increases the meter on the left side of the screen. That's your Heat rating. The higher your Heat, the more aggressive angry cops will be when chasing you. What constitutes "aggressive" driving? Speeding, high-speed collisions, and anything defiant towards a cop. Ram him hard enough to avoid getting busted and your rating will increase. One of the most fun ways to gain Heat is by performing a near miss. You know what those are: drive toward oncoming traffic and swerve just before the two of you collide. Oncoming traffic is inept and will not swerve under any circumstance.

Collisions don't happen too often, but when they do you can't help but laugh at the bouncy physics. This is an arcade racer, so you'd expect a crash to bounce the vehicle around a bit. What you wouldn't expect is to see it fly into the air, spin three times and land on all four wheels. The same thing happens to cop cars. If you slam into a car at the right angle (from the front side or back side), the vehicle that's been hit is likely to do a 180 and start driving backwards. Opponents will try to turn around as quickly as possible. Cops are likely to be the best at doing this (they're the best at everything it seems). This is another odd physics element that isn't quite effective or annoying -- just laughable.

 
I’d like to show you actual gameplay footage but this is all that’s been provided to us.

Despite its many imperfections, Need For Speed Most Wanted 5-1-0 is one of the better racing games released for Sony's wonderful handheld system. Perhaps that isn't saying much considering the number of flaws. However, it's vastly superior to Underground's PSP outing in speed, track design and graphics. Being chased by the cops is one of the best parts – chasing down speeders as a cop is one of the most disappointing. I like the upgrade system, but it's too basic to make up for the lack of track variety and high level of repetition. The much vaunted Tuner Takedown mode, which lets players catch speeders, is a bit of a snore. Tap the speeder's rear end a few times and he's "down." That's a far cry from the takedowns of the Burnout series.

I know many of you are excited for a new handheld Need For Speed. I was too. But I urge you to rent this one before making that impossible to undo $50 commitment.

Gameplay: 7.3
Got the need for speed? Then you may want to look elsewhere. Need For Speed Most Wanted 5-1-0 isn’t as quick, as sharp, or as reliable as its predecessor, Hot Pursuit. I had fun at times, but there were also quite a few moments when I wanted to cross the finish line just so I could move onto the next event. Little did I know the next event would turn out to be very similar to the last one, and so on. There’s some fun to be had here, but it’s not worth the full game price tag, not when the content is only half as good as what the home consoles offer.

Graphics: 7.9
Most Wanted's visuals don't shine as brightly as Ridge Racer and Wipeout Pure. The cars and environments look good but have those little jagged edges everyone made fun of when PlayStation 2 launched. It's a small flaw but it takes away from the overall appeal of the visuals.

There is one standout graphic quality that cannot be found in any other handheld racer: realistic reflections. They're nearly on par with Gran Turismo 3, which should paint a clear picture for those who have played that stellar PS2 racer. Every tree you cruise under and every bridge that's passed is beautifully reflected off the backside of your car. Buildings, too! Street signs, and anything else that's a part of your surrounding environment. The reflections are very detailed, moving and bending just like the real thing. As big as the PSP's screen is, most of the reflections are so small that you might not even notice them. The artists took the time to add 'em anyway, and for players like myself who want games to be as realistic as possible, their hard work will be very appreciated.

Sound: 4.0
Repetitive rap music and sub-par rock tunes make for one boring soundtrack. Sound effects are generic and do nothing to excite the player.

Difficulty: Easy/Medium
Not as challenging as the previous games, Most Wanted works on an easy upgrade system. If you lose a race, chances are you’re in need of a better engine. That does the trick almost every time.

Concept: 7.0
Underground meets Hot Pursuit plus a few Burnout-inspired features that don’t work very well.

Multiplayer: 7.0

Overall: 7.2
Most Wanted is a game with ridiculous physics, hard-to-master controls and a repetitious event scheme. It’s got most of what the console versions have minus some of the excitement. Its entertainment value is short and fun can only be had when the game is played in short amounts. Tracks are rehashed more times than I could count. I liked their design, but anything, no matter how good it is, gets old after it’s been experienced several times in a row. Need For Sped fans should rent if they want to see the direction that’s being taken with the series, a direction that could lead the series to victory a few years down the road.