NFS '15 was UNDERGROUND 3... and it's on a timer

Not the Underground 3 we wanted, but the one we got. INB4 they shut this down too.

[@Noah-Lach]

This game would have been the perfect Underground 2 successor if the handling model wasn't atrocious. That's been the single greatest factor holding back *every* Need for Speed title since the Criterion days.

[@thereviewden]

I know, right? That and the online requirement.

[@utilizator500]

I don't understand how they released 20 NFS games before this one and managed to put out a handling system THIS bad. And the online only requirement was just the nail in the coffin. Worst part is, EA probably now thinks no one wants Underground 3.

[@michaelskoomamacher5652]

​@@utilizator500what do you expect from forcing an FPS-focused physics engine to make a racing game? Thanks Patrick Soderlund

[@AhmadWahelsa]

@@utilizator500 All half of the NFS works goes down to the drain because the engine change, on top of that it's a non open world FPS focused game engine,

[@997tt7]

​@@michaelskoomamacher5652Unite is proof that the frostbite engine isn't to blame for the atrocious physics nfs has. Because both 2015 and Heat unite have really solid handling

[@joshuapowell9002]

Crazy how a game in 2015 still looks better than the games made in 2019 and 2022

[@tomaprd]

Yeah and 2015 was better than 2019 and 2022

[@christohees9150]

​@@tomaprdno NFS heat was good 😂

[@tomaprd]

@@christohees9150 didn’t mean that,altough that applies too,i meant the year 2015 was better than 2019 and 2022

[@thereviewden]

They really nailed the visuals.

[@dcm032]

Yes and thats the reason i love 2015

[@PROcrastiDRIVESVofficial]

5:00 FINALLY! FINALLY!!!!! Someone who understands the difference in car customisation THEN vs NOW. Underground 1 & 2 represented a time where craftsmen sculpted UNIQUE body kits and widebody kits, which transformed the design of a car into something special with it's own character and identity. Customisation NOW is just BOLT ON CARBON AERO. Splitters, cannards, bolt on overfenders, diffusers, giant GT racing chassis mount rear wings etc. GONE are all of those lovely 90s/00s sculpted bumpers, side skirts, SPOILERS (NOT WINGS) and INTEGRATED AERO, i.e. splitters and diffusers which were PART OF THE bumpers not just bolted on. The older style gave more opportunity for artistic expression and artistic freedom... Don't even get me started on paint and vinyl (bright colours and interesting designs) vs now everything neutral or grey. Neon tubes THEN vs LEDs NOW. Car Trunk audio setups with GORGEOUS sculpted speaker cabins, LCDs and neons vs today's boring wooden floor with people's airbag suspension system and a bunch of pipes and wires going everywhere... Today's show cars are all just bone stock (visually) cars sitting on the same $10,000 overpriced 3 piece wheels, with stance and flush fitment and those fucking instagram handles in the rear quarter window. I'm increasingly becoming an old out of touch millennial boomer that is convinced that everything sucks now. I was right on the cusp between two different ages. Right when internet and social media began a paradigm shift. I can objectively say that as far as cars & video games (and a lot besides) go, it was better in the 90s/00s and it sucks now.

[@Toxic2T]

Truth, the 'Drift Missile' trend took over and now it's a cultural car thing. Worst thing to ever happen on the tuner culture.

[@thereviewden]

Yeah, it's more of a richbros (tm) culture now. I was lucky to grow up seeing Eclipses and 3000gts with a few light mods, there's never been anything like 'em. Agree on the neons too!

[@NeuralSensei]

Veilside RX-7 is tuber legend.

[@theripefruit4343]

thanks for saying it, I tried so many times to explain it but you nailed it. the scene, the music, everything was better 90s/00s.

[@edoo1]

This game has a different meaning to me since Ken Block died. R.I.P our Legend❤

[@thereviewden]

It still feels strange he's gone, another reason I wish these games could be preserved.

[@luizribeiro2716]

The graphics are still insane

[@nym5qu17]

i really liked the car selection even tho it was way too small

[@thereviewden]

It's got some winners, especially if you like the Toyota 86 ;)

[@shortcat]

it's only small compared to forza and gran turismo. it's huge and much more varied compared to black box era nfs

[@RobinMarquez-hr1hr]

At least it still had Toyotas..

[@Toxic2T]

Unlike The Crew, this NFS can be modded and patched. Just like NFS World.

[@Splomf]

Is there patches to remove the online-only, or run a local server on the same machine as the game is running on?

[@thereviewden]

Yeah, the overhauls and mods look cool, but still nothing for offline. Maybe like Motor City the fans will revive it if it's taken down.

[@okami3995]

it actually has a "play alone" mode. so i think the modders will be able to make it offline tho

[@fpser4888]

how does that work? why can this be patched, but the crew cannot?

[@RiC3R69]

They Wanted to Name it UnderGround 3 But some laws didn't let them

[@thereviewden]

I had no idea! Crazy stuff.

[@MrBossFML]

It's underground 3 in our hearts

[@RiC3R69]

@@MrBossFML yea

[@michazmuda1477]

I would rather count Carbon as UG3

[@RiC3R69]

@michazmuda1477 did u know if the yearly release window wasn't a thing CARBON could've been totally different ? It was supposed to be a dark racing game Set in a post-apocalyptic world in industrial looking cities

[@MrLukassky]

Also the game ia broken with backwards compatibility for PS5. After few races your timer becomes invisible for events and you have infinitely regenerating nitrous.

[@thereviewden]

I got that a few times, but only after server resets. The PS5 works...kinda.

[@RiC3R69]

My Fav Modern NfS

[@thereviewden]

Awesome to hear!

[@RiC3R69]

some parts of this map are the remake version of NfS CARBON and UnderGround 2 Maps

[@thereviewden]

Cool info. I know they re-used tons of maps for the PSP games.

[@NikodemSzusti]

If someone does not like handling and police, there is a community mod called "Unite" that try to make handling better and police harder to escape. Anyway, seeing what happened with The Crew 1, buying this NFS is asking for loosing the game in near or distance future. And about game itself, game still looks gorgeous, but it was also known for notorious issue with problem loading roads. On PC several times I had a hard time winning some races because game was constantly not loading a road at some point during specific racers. Also what game lacks is that you cannot skip many cutscenes (cringe level it's so hard, that I had to often make breaks). Overall it was enjoyable but because of the whole "online only" this game should be played immediately after buying it instead moving it to the backlog like many people do this days. Otherwise, this game can be already gone when you will finally decide to play it.

[@thereviewden]

I heard about the overhaul mods, they looked pretty cool.

[@Toxic2T]

Unlike The Crew, this NFS can be modded and patched. Just like NFS World.

[@digital.garage]

Mods are great & Unite is still going strong. There is another community server called “Slidewinders” that also overhauls modern NFS, its more sim-drift handling focused tho

[@blackboxmobile7106]

Straight up. You are probably one of the best reviewer out there. You bring a certain history along with your reviews. A true passion unlike alot of channels just putting out anything for views.

[@thereviewden]

Aw, I appreciate that!

[@CropDudia480p]

playing this game with a decent handling mod is still very fun! it doesn't fix all it's flaws but driving around and soaking everything in is amazing

[@digital.garage]

Very much agree!

[@lumirairazbyte9697]

One of the very few advantages of an online-only game, is that the game, years or even months after launch, becomes heavily discounted at a point that becomes the price of an espresso or even FREE, like what happened with The Crew a year before EOL. Online-only (especially licensed ones) are the most depreciated thing in gaming.

[@NFSBeast2365]

your video is spot on. If the game could be played offline, if there was even more support post launch, and the handling wasn't so damn annoying, this could've been such a blast.

[@firstnamelastname6738]

5:00 I don't know what Speedhunters are doing now but I would prefer their input than having khyzyl Saleem kits and whatnot imo

[@ByteRide_40496]

I remember the the teaser release. From that day it was underground 3 for us. Besides the handling I still think this is a masterpiece. After 2015 they tried too hard ard failed

[@guinaevere]

Eyes up here, Travis!! Seriously, what the heck is he checking out??

[@Shftrz]

He's checking if our Jordans is real or fake (probably)

[@codymachado]

I still play this game nearly every day. Im gonna miss the shit out of it if they end up shutting it down. But i think they could do an offline update for it

[@IketaniWolf]

The crazy thing is that this game was the main reason why I wanted a Xbox one back in high school and it still look dope to this day

[@user-uh2tp2os3u]

How did you even come to idea to put TDU PS2 soundtrack in here man?!?!❤

[@noscrim]

very good review. i agree with you. best looking nfs imo. i really liked the game - up until the late game, where you become too fast and uncontrollable - also Travis is cool af idk what you talking about

[@k20a_dave]

That game has been critisized big but honnestly none is perfect, era wise it was huge. The immersion with real life cutscenes and all was nice

[@issaouighassen849]

I used lancer evo for drift and bmw m3 and gtr for racing i didnt catch that turning problem that you spoke of

[@Zappieroth]

I think I tried this a few years ago, The always online (which didn't work even back then) sucks. The roads are all flat, square and boring. Like you said the Police is never able to keep up. I think I refunded it pretty quickly, And that was when it was on sale for like 3 bucks lmao.

[@thereviewden]

I hear ya.

[@vcp2077]

Handling model is a big no-no, its so inconsistent even when driving the same car in one race you'll see variations. That became more consistent in Payback/Heat. But nothing can beat the feel of Ventura Bay and its roads, I think a rolling day/night time would have been even better. To be honest, the aesthetic of 2015-2019 NFS Games is just brilliant.

[@thereviewden]

Absolutely!

[@Fast_Attack]

My problem with modern racing games are the environments which are usually more colorful then a gaming PC and lack all the alleyways and so on. I miss the old racing games like TDU, Midnight Club, The old NFS games and so on that captured a real environment that like idk it’s hard to explain but the environment plays a big role in my opinion

[@user-fd4hf6ml5w]

To those who's struggling with this game's handling model, your tire pressure largely influences the handling characteristics of your car, and how it functions in this game is counter-intuitive compared to IRL suspension setting principles, handling mods only does a little compared to the tire pressure, so try nailing it down first and see if it would improve your experience. Everything transferable knowledge IRL clicked for me after I found out the tire pressure being the culprit of the flawed handling model.

[@TomokoxKuroki]

great review. wanted to replay this one a while back with some mods, but was held back by the weird controller issues making it basically unplayable, which wasnt an issue when i first played it a few years ago. just like you i thought id be able to figure it out, considering how often i fight with older games to get them working properly, but i just had no dice with this one. the biggest point i disagree with the majority on in regards to this game is the cops. i kinda like that theyre slow and can barely keep up with a tuned car. it feels fitting for a game with a very grounded real-world car culture and street racing vibe, whereas having the death-defying cop chases with dozens of corvettes and swat teams and such like in most wanted, heat, etc. would be kind of an immersion break, as would the total absence of any police force like in the underground games. but it also probably helps that i dont really enjoy dealing with cops in most games. i just wish this game didnt have the outlaw missions forcing you to engage and basically wait for them so you can complete the objective.

[@thereviewden]

Fair enough! I just got used to Most Wanted I guess.

[@TomokoxKuroki]

@@thereviewden i mean im really the odd one out for thinking this way lol. i just wanna vibe and not get trapped in a battle for my life

[@lifeofcorn894]

as somebody who was 16 when underground 1 and 2 came out and fast n furious was about cars and everywhere in pop culture. I always felt this was a underground 3 I always wanted. from the colors to the lights to the ity. you never be 16 again ill never feel like it was. enjoy this game guys.

[@TrueHDR]

maybe travis was the friends we made along the way

[@thereviewden]

Oh😆please no!!

[@luxerhusku2609]

I just reached Level 50 in 2015 and I gave a 6. I really thought the handling was awkward and the AI was very rubberband-y and dumb as they tend to hit you in Drift Trains as well as the other AIs around the map that interrupted your races or drifts. But the more I played the game, I think a 7 is probably worth it. I just set the handling slider to -2 and equipped the Sport+ Drift Tires on my cars and they all grip and drift pretty good. Not perfect, but it makes drifting the Supra a lot better to do. Definitely recommend the Sport+ Tires. And setting the handling to -2.

[@thereviewden]

Same here on -2 for drifting, but I just couldn't get the Supra to handle no matter what.

[@luxerhusku2609]

@@thereviewden That's understandable. The handling, no matter how much I tweaked it for the Supra, is awkward and I feel -2 makes it a little less awkward, but I got used to it. B2D in this game feels pretty tight as if you have to brake really early before coming to a corner; holding the brake down for like a second. As this is coming from a fan who loves B2D in the modern games too.

[@heyarnold2006]

This game is flawed, yet it is my favorite NFS. Making this game online-only was unnecessary, but easily fixable as long as you knew where the settings were. The handling model wasn't bad, but it could've been better. Having that Ridge Racer aspect of "Grippy vs Drifter" was a great idea that was terribly executed. The police are a joke after the 1st hour or 2 when you get access to car parts and upgrades. NFS Heat, logically, should be my favorite since it has good gameplay(even if the physics take awhile to get used to), great graphics, and a large car selection. But 2015's title is just so much *cooler*! And the aesthetic of night racing is just perfect in this game. Doing events and interacting with your in-game friends feels genuine. "Meh" acting aside, this is exactly what I envision when I think about a street racer's life. This is a game that's still gorgeous to look at almost 10 years later, and it offers fun times to players who are willing to give it a chance. I hope this and the older NFS titles stick around and don't get "The Crew" treatment.

[@that_biker_boy5550]

I’ve actually just started playing this game… and I’m really enjoying it, despite the handling being a little challenging at times! Lol. I didn’t pay it more than a week or 2 when it first came out. 🤦‍♂️

[@muvigamo2129]

NFS2015 is one of the best street racing games of all time. Definitely better than last 2 garbages (Heat and Unbound).

[@codymachado]

I love you

[@DepressedRockstar]

Heat wasn't so bad. I actually like it. Unbound is horrible. I played two hours of it and gave up. Thank got I got it free on PS plus

[@fremlo]

NFS Heat is what 2015 could've been, greatly under-appreciated game in all aspects. Also, nice review fam.

[@codymachado]

Nah heat isn't nearly as good man. So much more passion out into 2015 way better map to and a more detailed map

[@Fosten12]

2015 was a failure but had a lot of potential, the right direction and absolutely stunning graphics. btw HP2010 was the only NFS that got "brake to drift" right.

[@vtec5862]

I approve of your use of the TDU1 PS2 music

[@thereviewden]

Stuff that isn't copystruck, Hah!

[@vtec5862]

@@thereviewden such an underrated game man. You don't see many people covering it either

[@BNR_248]

The underground series ran on the EAGL engine, the handling dynamics of the car was awesome, the engine was made for arcade racing. This game was let down by using the Battlefield FPS frostbite engine on a car game, it just felt heavy, slow and very "brake to driftyyy". The modification aspect was okay, but the logic wasn't really there, you could do 5 variations of a crankshaft upgrade - which as a car enthusiast seems so dumb. I upgraded an evo without touching clutch or transmission, but it still added on 2 extra gears making it an 8 speed. Need for speed underground on the other hand, each mod has a logic behing it, e.g. street engine package was an exhaust and intake, pro was a cat back exhaust, and head work, extreme was a built bottom end consisting of forged rods, pistons & crank. There was so much better logic behing it. Upgrading the transmission actually affected gearing, ratios etc.... It even had a bloody dyno. NFS 2015 had none of that. The performance upgrades were merely just labels against a tick box on the backend. No depth at all. Undeground was a balance between arcade with a hint of simulation - it was perfect. The games engine was made well tailored towards racing, lots of actual car logic implemented in the game. NFS 2015 was quite lacking, cheesy live action scenes, police logic was worse than mostwanted/carbon, the map had really small cities with huge freeways, there was a lot left on the table.

[@BNR_248]

To add to this, I spun up NFS Underground 2 a few years back on pc, and i downloaded a program which lets you adjust values of the ECU and Turbo. I raised the value of the turbo -which was some arbitrary number like 17221 within the program, which translated into a boost pressure PSI value in the game. Anyway, it essentially increased the boost, and it actually resulted in more power in the game. The boost gauge needle also showed a higher reading, matching the value i added in the program. The performance bars were higher, the dyno readings were higher and the car was faster. The logic was actually tied to the performance aspects of a car, just like real life. it just had so much depth in its coding, wasn't just an arbitrary value tick box in the backend.

[@thereviewden]

Nothing like swapping in a racing camshaft that's the SAME 4000rpm redline in a Foxbody Windsor.

[@KhanKhan-sb4gu]

All the budget went to the visuals i guess

[@_feara]

1:37 Why is the Nostromo self destruct playing?? D:

[@forbiddencoma2367]

The handle control was awful I had to be aggressive with my speed in that game

[@Rockport1911]

NfS 2015 just wasnt a name anybody could do anything with at launch ( just as criminal as naming NfS 2012 MostWantedf). Like you said there was nothing to reboot and it wasnt big enough for it ( like FM8). Then the marketing tried to lure us in with these celebrities in the cutscenes. But then the cutscenes turned out extremely cringy with constant Monster product placement ( which kind explained how the characteres behaved). But in contrast to that the handling model wasnt that great ( which even mods cant fully fix) and the racing was unremarkable in contrast. Only good thing people praised where the graphics which still look good.

[@thereviewden]

I could see a reboot after Undercover or ProStreet, but the series had plenty of good titles since them. And yeah, they were all jacked on CONSTANT energy drinks!! Lol

[@deadmauciha7696]

Story of nfs unbound is pretty good but i got stuck. I lost all my car's .... Now need to start from B....

[@copiuum]

and now imagine if nfs 2015 was based in fairhaven, the county where nfs mw 2012 is based of!

[@oliverdaniel8055]

what is the track name? that's playing in the background. Thank you

[@thereviewden]

That's 'Superstar Dreams' from the PS2 Test Drive Unlimited sir

[@kamilwaek8326]

for me it is perfect ug3 game, except that you must compromise the feeling of driving and time attacks are unplayable.

[@SDRIFTERAbdlmounaim]

3 days ago.... things changed.

[@thereviewden]

Really, what happened? I heard The Crew has a potential fan server project, is that what you mean?

[@Johnmarston1.]

Remeber nfs rivals was an online only game and it got an offline patch so im not worried about it getting lost to history

[@itsfsg1900]

Heat was underground 4, or Carbon 2 My favorite out of the whole series, its just over way too fast

[@thereviewden]

I think of Carbon as MW2, but it DID have the autosculpt.

[@alexviralata1356]

I really enjoyed this game, but I didn't have any issues what so ever. Granted, I play on Linux and some times, the experience is better than on Windows, not always but quite often. Even to this day I find the graphics amazing, and I also thought it was just like an underground game. The only downside for me was the lack of variety. But it is still a very good game! Cheers!

[@thereviewden]

Glad to hear! I think it's something to do with XInput vs DirectInput, but yeah Linux has its advantages.

[@B1acKBMWW]

I still play online on Xbox one. I turn map off and speedometer off and music off.

[@ContriteBiggs]

Had potential, but it seems when progress is made, regression takes it away two-fold. Looks great just doesn’t play great. It would be a great direction to go street racing sim instead of this arcade non sense. They could even split it up, leave arcade for those players and give the racers who want more realism(physics and handling) that. Seems to be fleeting for modern racing. Underground 2 seems to be NFS climax and they’ve gone downhill since.

[@frexupozdro]

Good game but prestige mode killed me

[@g1xo]

the car customization lacks sooooooooo hard, the game obviously has an entire "drift" culture added to it and u can have yur car setup for it but there's no inspiration for any of the rwd cars in the game aside from the s13,ae86, and a few others but even then there's not much drift inspired modifications in the game...

[@thereviewden]

Well at least you get THREE versions of the Toyota 86!!! (thats sarcasm)

[@watch_kitty]

Did you censor 1:40? Or was that KZbin?

[@thereviewden]

Hahah! No, that's a reference to my The Crew vid.

[@watch_kitty]

@@thereviewden oooh oki

[@SPIDERMAN2015]

Is it still available to play or it done ?

[@WolfGamers100]

By now, it's still available.

[@SPIDERMAN2015]

@@WolfGamers100 and you have choice to pick which console you could download the software?

[@WolfGamers100]

@@SPIDERMAN2015 yes, I think

[@thereviewden]

Oh it's still here, just for how long...

[@kimL93]

Come on nfs make it tokyo wangan expressway full loop and hill touge

[@CorbynsCombo]

Loved 2015, the last great NFS game imo, handling if Abit naff but a great game

[@user-vf2pg4ve4n]

just give us a fkn prvt server EA

[@No-vq1iv]

NFS 2015 was Undercover 2 and it deserves to get shut down.

[@997tt7]

It can't be it's not yellow enough

[@codymachado]

Disagree and undercover wasn't bad at all..

[@No-vq1iv]

@@codymachado Yeah that's not up for debate, sorry. Even IGN couldn't lie about how bad it was.

[@thereviewden]

That's another level of brutal, friend

[@Yngdady]

Underground games didn't have police chases

[@whyleo-]

7:48 play NFS 2015 Unite Mod

[@rafahrynkiewicz8274]

For me NFS 2015 was a let-down, so big that I have never played any new NFS since, and went back to Hot Pursuit 2, Porsche and Underground 2. Pros: 1. Graphic are beautiful even after 10 years 2. Car selection is pretty varied 3. Reuse of classical NFS 3 and 4 music Cons: 1. Hard to navigate through the map, compared to Underground 2 2. Characters - OK, it's ot really a flaw, plot was always weak in NFS, for some it may even be a part of the charm AND FINALLY: 3. HANDLING - it is the single worst driving racing game I have ever played. No game before or after has even come close to the disastrous handling model (or rather lack thereof). No wait, probably Watch Dogs might compete. Plus I've got the glued gas pedal bug, which has made the game literally unplayable.

[@firstnamelastname6738]

I don't know I find it very clickbaity to call this ''NFS 15 was UNDERGROUND 3''. Yes they wanted to call it Underground 3 and from what I've heard they backed out because they were worried that it would not live up to the name. I don't think this game deserve to be called UG3 mainly due to the always online DRM, poor handling and weird execution. + the customization was never really that great and was pretty limited due to the restrictions and lack of customization parts for most cars. Only a handful had which were the 180sx and S15. The R34 has maybe 2 bumpers at best. It just does not live up to the name. But it had the best atmosphere and foundation for a gritty street racing type of game....which they threw out with payback and hasn't been back since... Will mention this though: I think this game will be very good once the servers are shut down and community + offline serves are made alongside custom cars (which is a possibility) and new parts. Someone made a body-kit mod for the EK9 Civic already but it only replaces already existing parts for now.

[@thereviewden]

I dunno, I thought it was a fair comparison. If I wanted to do clickbait I would have a giant Soyface of myself like everyone else.

[@FurryestX]

I mean .... You can PIRATE NFS 2015... sooooo... yep...

[@zebracakez41]

Underground 1 and 2 were the best they made single player was best bcus online only stinks bcus eventually it's gonna be shut down exactly like the original crew I don't even know what too do now I bought the original crew can't even play it anymore oh I lived the street glow on the first two underground games too

[@speedbuiz]

dang...even now this game looks incredible. I remember playing this on PS4 and imagining what else NFS could do with more power...and everything else looks like trash in comparison....2015? We need better artists, not better hardware. Only bad-bit I remember was the soundtrack- they put too much "Trendy Pop" into it. It's like they have one guy at Ghost Games with a chronic "mentally ill music taste".

[@thereviewden]

It sure is a looker, and YES, it wouldn't stop playing 'Clap Track'.

[@DoomyRei]

Toyota supra

[@dannyortega6454]

Yeah I love hated this game cause of the stupid online only

[@wrxshyt4972]

I still play this by date and prefer it over modern need for speed games. It's by far my MOST favorite Need For Speed game.

[@B1acKBMWW]

I tuned steering range to slow response

[@R0CKtheR3D]

NFS 2015 was NOT Underground 3 💀

[@thereviewden]

I'll never live down the shame😄

[@kkd0099]

u have no idea what u are yapping about

[@fabians1885]

wouldve been a good game if the main factor, the driving, was fun

[@codymachado]

It is and can be tuned a lot

[@kaedeschulz5422]

The stock game is garbage because it's handling. Yes online only is absolute GARBAGE!

[@vipvopvoy2350]

This game was crap

[@OHNmotorsports]

Ok? Did anybody ask?

[@user-yo7vp9nc9b]

The game is shit