| Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit 2 | |
|---|---|
| Developer(s) | EA Seattle, EA Black Box |
| Publisher(s) | Electronic Arts |
| Year released | |
| System(s) | GameCube, PlayStation 2, Windows, Xbox |
| Preceded by | Need for Speed: Porsche Unleashed |
| Followed by | Need for Speed: Underground |
| Series | Need for Speed |
| Genre(s) | Arcade Racing |
|---|---|
| Players | 1-2 |
| Modes | Single player, Multiplayer |
| Rating(s) |   |
Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit 2, called Need for Speed: Poursuite Infernale 2 in France, is the sixth game in the Need for Speed series and is the last Need for Speed game from the Classic Era. The PlayStation 2 version of Hot Pursuit 2 is the first game developed by EA Black Box and is the first Need for Speed game made for the sixth generation consoles. In 2003, the game was awarded "Console Racing Game of the Year" at the sixth annual Interactive Achievement Awards. Like Need for Speed III: Hot Pursuit, police plays a major part of gameplay and it is one of the few Need for Speed games where you can be chased by the police or you could be the police. Like Porsche Unleashed before it, it was not sold in Japan.
Gameplay
Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit 2 introduction sequence.
Unlike Porsche Unleashed, the gameplay consists of arcade-style races and police pursuits. The diverse customization options, the special weather effects, and the day-night cycle seen in the last two installments have been dropped. Now players can only change the paint and they can still watch replays as in the original Hot Pursuit, with the ability to multiply how fast the replay plays from 1/8 the normal speed to 4 times the normal speed.
Police
The police in Hot Pursuit 2 can call in backup, roadblocks, and spikestrips like in previous games, but they can now also call in a helicopter. The helicopter will drop explosive barrels in an attempt to stop the racer. In the PS2 version of the game, it is possible for spikestrips to be hidden in the barrels. When being chased by the police, there is a bar that will appear above the rearview mirror. When it is blue, you are evading the police, but when it is red, the police think they can still catch you. Below the bar will be one or more stars. These stars represent your heat level. However, the heat level will be restricted depending on the difficulty level selected before the race. Beginner starts at one star and only goes up to three stars. Intermediate starts at two stars and goes up to four. Expert starts at three stars and goes up to five.
Local Law Enforcement
Police Departments
- Coastal Parklands Police Department
- Coastal Parklands County Sheriff's Department
- Coastal Parklands Highway Patrol
- National Forest Police Department
- National Forest County Sheriff's Department
- National Forest Highway Patrol
- Scenic Drive Police Department
- Scenic Drive County Sheriff's Department
- Scenic Drive Highway Patrol
- Island Outskirts Police Department
- Island Outskirts County Sheriff's Department
- Island Outskirts Highway Patrol
- Palm City Island Police Department
- Palm City Island County Sheriff's Department
- Palm City Island Highway Patrol
- Tropical Sunset Police Department/Tropical Circuit Police Department
- Tropical Sunset County Sheriff's Department/Tropical Circuit County Sheriff's Department
- Tropical Sunset Highway Patrol/Tropical Circuit Highway Patrol
- Fall Winds Police Department
- Fall Winds County Sheriff's Department
- Fall Winds Highway Patrol
- Alpine Trail Police Department
- Alpine Trail County Sheriff's Department
- Alpine Trail Highway Patrol
- Autumn Crossing Police Department
- Autumn Crossing County Sheriff's Department
- Autumn Crossing Highway Patrol
- Desert Heat Police Department
- Desert Heat County Sheriff's Office
- Desert Heat Highway Patrol
- Outback Police Department
- Outback County Sheriff's Office
- Outback Highway Patrol
- Rocky Canyons Police Department
- Rocky Canyons County Sheriff's Office
- Rocky Canyons Highway Patrol
- Redwood Park Ranger
Police Force
- Hellenic Police (Ellinikí Astynomía) (Pursuit Ford SVT Mustang Cobra R/Pursuit Dodge Viper GTS)
Police Stations
- Coastal Police Station
- Coastal Sheriff Station
- Desert Police Station
- Desert Sheriff Station
- Mediterranean Police Station
- Alpine Police Station
- Alpine Sheriff Station
- Tropical Police Station
- Tropical Sheriff Station
Police Cars
Coastal Police Vehicles
- Ford Crown Victoria
- Ford TS50
Alpine Police Vehicles
- BMW M5
- Holden HSV Coupé GTS
Mediterranean Police Vehicles
- Ford SVT Mustang Cobra R
- Dodge Viper GTS
Tropical Police Vehicles
- Chevrolet Corvette Z06
- Porsche 911 Turbo
Desert Police Vehicles
- Lamborghini Diablo 6.0 VT
- Lamborghini Murciélago
Police Officers
- Police Officer wearing blue uniform (Coastal Parklands, National Forest, Scenic Drive, Island Outskirts, Palm City Island, Tropical Circuit)
- State Trooper/Deputy Sheriff wearing brown uniform (Desert Heat, Outback, Rocky Canyons, Ancient Ruins, Calypso Coast, Mediterranean Paradise, Fall Winds, Alpine Trail, Autumn Crossing)
- Police Officer wearing sunglasses (Drives 10 police cars on all tracks in the PC/Xbox/Gamecube version)
Units
- Unit 31
- Unit 27
- Unit 28
- Unit 19
- Unit 54
- Unit 46
- Unit 9
- Rotor 1
Dispatcher
- County
Police Helicopters
Hughes MD 500
- Black and White Chopper (Coastal and Alpine tracks)
- Blue and White Chopper (Mediterranean and Tropical tracks)
- White, Blue and Yellow Chopper (Desert tracks)
Bell 206B III Jet Ranger
(PC/Xbox/Gamcube version)