Need for Speed: Rivals is a chase that never ends

You could think of Need for Speed: Rivals as a ceaseless game of vehicular cat-and-mouse. There will always be Racers, who get their thrills from boosting high-end sports cars, and Cops, whose job it is to take these delinquents out of commission. But with Rivals' open world and seamless transition into races, you need never let the chase end until your adrenal glands finally run out of gas.

Once you've chosen a side, either with or against the law, you're free to roam the scenic streets of an absolutely massive city. One feature that feels entirely unique to Rivals is the AllDrive mechanic built into online play, which can shift you from solo racing to multiplayer madness with nary a single load screen or lobby invite. With AllDrive, there's never a dull moment--because whether you're a Cop or a Racer, there's always someone else to outrun.

Racers roam between Hideouts, hubs that act as a getaway spot and a warp to any other Hideouts you've discovered. Besides flooring it to avoid getting busted by the five-o, Racers are constantly taking a high-stakes gamble with their points, which stack up quick when speeding through traffic but disappear completely if you wipe out or get caught by the Cops. Should Racers want to make a statement, they can ram into a Cop car or challenge another Racer to start a chase immediately.

What's awesome is that there's always action nearby, no matter where you decide to speed off to. If you see a checkpoint or an opposing car, a simple tap of the L1 button will instantly start a race--no load screens, cutscenes, or corny dialogue to deal with. As soon as you finish a race, you'll spot another one nearby, letting you leapfrog from one intense event to the next without pause. We could easily see ourselves losing hours to this continuous structure of play; all that's left to do is pick a side before Rivals' release on current and next gen later this year.

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