Recent reviews by Dwight Hut Pizza

Note : Played with Thrustmaster T80 (emulated since not officially supported) and Trustmaster T300 RS
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Need for Speed Heat is a open world driving/racing game that takes place in the fictional city of Palm City. As you play, you'll be earning bank (in-game currency) and reputation (experience) through various events and activities. With bank you can buy new parts, customizations, and vehicles. On the other hand, you are able to unlock these same things through reputation which goes towards your overall level (1-50). It's a really intriguing system that'll keep you wanting to keep playing to get those top performing cars and build the car of your dreams.

The intense, arcade-style racing combined with a significant number of vehicles to choose from as well as some gorgeous graphics to top it makes this experience pretty enjoyable and definitely something I'd recommend to others. Overall, though the game does seem to fall short in some areas, I'd give it a 8/10 for being a dam fun game to play when you want some fast-paced, exciting racing.

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Split into gameplay, story, graphics, soundtrack, and world for whatever you want to hear about the game.
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The Gameplay

The gameplay of Need for Speed Heat is split into primarily two sections, day and night which you switch between manually. During day, you will be doing officially sanctioned circuit races for bank. After not to long, you'll most likely find that they are a bit generic and can get a bit repetitive at times, but they are nice to do when you want to take a break from night races. When your not racing and are in the open world, there are various activities and collectibles to do across the maps such as jumps, speed traps, drift zones, and more. These will rewards you with bank, reputation, and some neat customization options if you complete a number of them in their respective districts. All of these activities and collectibles can also be done in the night section of the game.

At night is where I believe the game really shines, where you do illegal street races (circuit or sprint) to gain reputation. Racing at night though involves one catch: you will gradually get a higher heat level the more you race and do events. While you are racing, patrol cars will go around the map and if they stumble upon you or the other racers, will initiate a pursuit. Yes, this can happen dynamically at any moment as your racing which can lead to some chaotic and intense moments that really make night racing exciting. Your heat level will determine the intensity of the pursuits and how much the police will send at you to attempt to stop you. However, the higher your heat level is will determine how much of a multiplier you'll get to your reputation when you finish your night at a safe house. If you get busted by the police though by either getting your vehicle completely stopped for a certain duration of time or getting damaged too much, all of that multiplier will go down to the base level and a portion of your bank will be lost. What this makes for is a exciting risk and reward system where the more you race, the bigger rewards you'll reap, but if you get busted it will be lost.

The Story
Note: Just minor background details, no major spoilers

The story of Need for Speed Heat is in my opinion, not bad but not amazing either and is a bit too short. I would say it is a good story with some interesting characters that will keep you intrigued and wanting to find out more. To give you some background, the story is centered around a bad cop named Lt. Frank Mercer and putting an end to his corrupt high speed task force which have rose controversy in Palm City. You'll, have to do this by making a name for yourself on the streets of Palm City with the help of some other characters in the story. It's not too over the top or cheezy and the cutscenes with some good character animations that the story is displayed through manages to pull it off.

The Graphics

On the graphical side of Need for Speed Heat, the game looks absolutely gorgeous, more so at night. The dark lighting at night really sets the mood for the underground racing scene of night. To add to that, the neon lights of the Miami inspired Palm City can make for some beautiful racing at night. During day, the game looks good, but I feel the lighting could use some improvement and can seem a bit bland at times compared to its night counterpart. Given that Palm City is inspired by Miami, there is a lot of water with some good, detailed reflections which really add a lot to the visuals considering there is so much water. With these reflections, the game looks really nice after it rains with all the puddles everywhere reflecting the surrounding environment.

The Soundtrack

Need for Speed Heat's soundtrack has probably been one of the most disliked aspects of the game, more specifically the radio music. Many people including me don't like a good handful of the soundtracks you can hear on the radio. For me, most of the songs I don't like are the mexican soundtracks which plays a lot during day due to them feeling pretty generic. Most of the music you hear at night is rave type of music, which I believe actually fits really well actually into the gritty, underground racing vibe you get during night. I think where the game's soundtrack does exceed in though is the pursuit music which differs based on day and night pursuits just like the radio. Furthermore, it is also dynamic and will change too based on events such as if reinforcements are called or a rhino is incoming which is a nice added detail to it. The pursuit music (especially at night) manages to fit perfectly with the arcade-racing, setting an uneasy tone that gets your heart pumping while you try to escape.

The World

The world of Palm City in Need for Speed Heat is big and spreads across a vast area of land from countrysides to curvy hillside roads to the big, dense heart of Palm City itself. There is a lot to discover and find here, though the world could definitely use some more liveliness. This is mostly due to how the traffic density can be pretty low, more specifically in the city itself. Strangely enough, it feels like the more spread out roads of the countryside have more traffic then the actually city itself which definitely seems a bit odd. There are some nice little details you can spot though such as helicopters flying around as well as birds, but they don't really do too much justice to the world's overall unlively atmosphere.

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Bomber Crew is a cartoony, pixel style game taking place during WWII where you take control of a bomber and manage it and its crew members. You go on several missions across Europe involving you bombing German facilities such as hangars and factories while also defending your bomber from German fighters.

Don't let the game's art style fool you, it is a very challenging and intense game that requires a lot of trial and error on your part. Yes, you will make mistakes and you are going to eventually lose your bomber and some of its crew once. But, that's where the game's fun comes at. Some of the most fun and tense moments can be when everything is going wrong.

Let me put you in a situation. You just bombed a German hangar and are now returning to base when German reinforcements arrive, several squadrons of fighters heading right towards your direction. Your gunners try their best to keep them off the bomber but one of the fighters manages to get right behind your bomber. They shoot through the rear damaging equipment inside and severely injuring the rear gunner. You desperately try to get a first aid kit to them but the fighter prevents anyone from going to the rear. Once you have realized your pilot could perform a corkscrew maneuver to lose the fighter it is already to late. In your desperate measures to save the gunner you failed to realize that both your starboard engines had been severely damaged by other fighters which eventually fall off the wing. Luckily you just reached the English Channel and now all you had to do is fly over to get to safety. Your bomber takes a beating but you manage to somehow make it across and into the safety of the United Kingdoms. The result of this mission? Several dead crew members and a whole lot of bullet marks on your bomber.

These intense, fast paced moments are where the game truly shines. It gives you a fear of loss of your precious crew and bomber every time you come into a situation like this. It isn't like most other games where as when you lose your bomber and crew they are gone forever and you will be given a new bomber and crew. Though, this is what makes it so rewarding. The heat of battle fill you with adrenaline since you actually have something at stake, which makes these moments truly more exciting. When your able to barely make it out alive, it is the most satisfying and rewarding moment.
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The game gets a solid 8/10. The challenging but rewarding system makes your experience really worthwhile and addictive. Its art style compliments it's arcade-like gameplay well and everything overall works flawlessly with very few minor issues. If these types of games peak your interest, I recommend you buy it and give a try.