When I play a driving game, the last thing I usually want is a realistic experience. For me, “realistic driving” means taking my compact car through downtown traffic to the grocery store. But when the designers behind Shift 2: Unleashed talk about the “driver’s battle,” they aren’t referring to the ordeal that I face — namely, dodging shopping carts and pedestrians while navigating a too-crowded parking lot. They’re referring to how Shift 2 goes about recreating a real-world driving experience; and I spoke with Jesse Abney, a producer on the Need for Speed franchise, to find out three ways the game mimics reality.
1) A Realistic View
Going one step further than the original Shift‘s cockpit cam, Shift 2 allows you to play the game from a driver’s-eye-view. Abney says, “Inside the helmet, the physics engine is imparting the pressure load on the camera, really playing up what it’s like to be a driver.” So as you increase your speed in the faster cars, you’ll be able to see a realistic blurring at the edge of your sight, imparting a feel of pressure and genuine momentum. While it seems like a small difference, the connection between just looking at the track through the windshield, and actually seeing things from the driver’s perspective already lends a huge psychological connection.
