Need for Speed Unbound review round-up

Need for Speed Unbound is racing towards your PS5 console and the reviews are looking pretty positive all around. Maybe Criterion's racer will be a trophy list worth working on revving through this holiday season.

You can now put your foot down and start earning all those Need for Speed Unbound trophies — hopefully the race to the platinum trophy 'The Need for Speed' is a fun and relaxing time. While the trophies might entice you in, we have compiled a review round-up for you to peruse and get a good idea of how Need for Speed Unbound is fairing against the critics.

The reviews are in and Need for Speed Unbound impresses overall!

NFS Unbound is looking like a fun and addictive arcade racer, with a flaw or two

Overall, it seems as though the consensus is a pretty positive one for the newest installment in the Need for Speed series. While there are a lot of positives to take away from the reviews down below, some reviewers have pointed out a couple of more concerning issues that you may want to ponder over before you fire up the ignition. All-in-all it's looking as though we have a new contender for our best racing games on PS5 list and maybe even out best PS5 games list.

PlayStation Universe — 9/10

John-Paul Jones: "Visually astounding with a weighty handling model and some super clever design, Need for Speed Unbound is easily the best Need for Speed in years. Though the single-player story campaign is a little less inspiring than it needs to be both in terms of its plot and content, Need for Speed Unbound nonetheless sets a resoundingly solid foundation for the Need for Speed franchise to evolve into the future and is essential for fans of both the series and the street racing genre at large."

Push Square — 8/10

Stephen Tailby: "Despite one or two small complaints, Need for Speed Unbound is a great arcade racer, finally getting the series back on track. The versatile handling feels fantastic, and the single-player offers a highly engaging campaign, pitting you against the cops and other racers in equal measure. The much-talked-about cartoon effects succeed in bringing some flair to the experience, and it all runs wonderfully at 4K and 60 frames per second. If you can forgive a slightly underwhelming backdrop and a barebones online mode, the minute-to-minute action makes this more than worth taking for a spin."

The Gamer — 4/5

George Foster: "Beyond its unique art style, Need for Speed Unbound doesn’t do anything to reinvent the steering wheel, but it doesn’t need to. This is Need for Speed, so you know what you’re here for — fast races, cop chases, and more cars than you know what to do with. Unbound is all of that packaged in the series’ most stylish entry to date."

GamesRadar — 4/5

Justin Towell: "Need for Speed Unbound is a great showcase for a new generation of hardware. Criterion has delivered a high quality, breathtakingly fast open-world street racer that is both technically superb and strangely familiar."

GameSpot — 7/10

Richard Wakeling: "It's no worse nor better than its predecessor, making for another exciting arcade racer that's still held back by a few annoyances. It's another positive outcome following the low point that was Need for Speed Payback, but Unbound is unlikely to emerge from the shadows of the genre's most popular games."

Metro Game Central — 6/10

Game Central: "The best Need For Speed in a decade — but that says far more about the moribund state of the franchise than it does this workmanlike new entry."

GamingBolt — 8/10

RGT 85 — Enjoyed their time with it

What do you make of the reviews? Have you picked up NFS Unbound? How are you finding it if you have? Let us know everything and more in the comments below!

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Written by Sean Lawson

Sean is a Staff Writer with a focus on the geekiest Sony news. He writes stories about unobtainable PlayStation trophies, the best PS Plus games, as well as RPGs and Fighting games. He is also excited for Tekken 8, Dragon Age Dreadwolf, Baldur's Gate 3, and Dragon's Dogma 2 to launch on PS5. Sean’s favourite games include Mass Effect, Tomb Raider, Tekken, and Persona.