Need for Speed - Most Wanted - A Criterion Game (USA / Ar)
Xbox 360
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Reviewed in 2012
84
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✪ Reviewed on April 29, 2023
78
Criterion revisit Most Wanted in 2012 with an open map and Burnout flow grafted onto NFS hardware. Autolog progression hooks, police chases flirt with arcade perfection, and the 360 version offers one of Brighton's most beautiful night rides.
Your verdict
Category
Racing1 player7+
Description
Racing by Criterion Games and EA Games, November 2012. Drivers challenge rivals in a fully open fictional city to explore freely with the connected Autolog system. Spectacular race sequences triggered in the open city, licensed performance cars and online multiplayer integrated into the open world. Criterion's Most Wanted reboot.
Need for Speed - Most Wanted - A Criterion Game review
4/5
Art direction
★★★★★
"Striking"
4/5
Music
★★★★★
"Excellent"
1/5
Story
★★★★★
"Anecdotal"
Gameplay
"Excellent"
Fun
"From the very first seconds"
An open city to roam freely, where you challenge rivals, shake off the police and climb a most-wanted list through wild races. The freedom to bomb anywhere you like and the thrill of chases create a constant high. Snappy, spectacular and superbly made, an arcade racer that turns the whole city into a playground for outlaw drivers.
North American (NTSC-U) edition of Need for Speed - Most Wanted, a Criterion reimagining transposing Need for Speed's chase into an open world where you challenge a list of wanted racers. Widely distributed in North America, its appeal stays measured and rests on this open approach to a beloved license rather than scarcity, the Asian pressing being rarer. A piece valued by fans of open-world racing.
Is Need for Speed - Most Wanted - A Criterion Game still worth playing in 2026?
Released in 2012 on Xbox 360, Criterion's Need for Speed Most Wanted blends the saga's chase spirit with an open urban world to roam freely, where each car is found hidden in the city rather than picked from a menu. The sense of speed, the wild races against police and the social Autolog system create constant rivalry. The story is nonexistent and the driving very arcade. But the pure pleasure of driving and shaking off the law stays intact. The partial server shutdown limits the social aspect. For fans of open world arcade racing, this title keeps a strong appeal today.
