Need for Speed Unbound vs Need for Speed: Underground 2
Need for Speed Unbound is an open-world racing game from Criterion Games (2022) while Need for Speed: Underground 2 is a racing game from EA Vancouver (2004).
Quick answer: Need for Speed Unbound has the higher Metacritic, 73 to 65.
Need for Speed: Underground 2
What each one is
Need for Speed Unbound is filed under Open-World and Racing. In contrast, Need for Speed: Underground 2 under Racing.
Race to the top, definitely don’t flop. Outsmart the cops, and enter weekly qualifiers for The Grand: the ultimate street race. Pack your garage with precision-tuned, custom rides, and light up the streets with your style.
Need for Speed: Underground 2 is a 2004 racing video game developed by EA Black Box and published by Electronic Arts. It is the eighth installment in the Need for Speed series and the direct sequel to Need for Speed: Underground. It was developed for Windows, GameCube, PlayStation 2, and Xbox. Game Boy Advance and Nintendo DS versions were developed by Pocketeers. Another version for mobile phones was also developed by Ideaworks Game Studio. Like its predecessor, it was a commercial success, selling around 11 million copies worldwide and breaking sales records in the United Kingdom.
Story, characters and reception
Plot
In Lakeshore City, the player (female player voiced by Elizabeth Grullon, male player voiced by Ian Nelson ) and their friend and partner Jasmine/Yaz (portrayed by Ashleigh LaThrop) refurbish an old junker car in their mechanic shop owned by their mentor Rydell (Dwayne Barnes). After winning a couple of street races, Yaz has a disagreement with Rydell over a car and grows tired of being stuck in the same job daily, and wishes to do something better. She… (Wikipedia)
Reception
Reception Need for Speed Unbound received "generally favorable" reviews from critics for the PS5 and Xbox Series X/S versions, while the PC version received "mixed or average" reviews, according to review aggregator website Metacritic . During the 26th Annual D. I. (Wikipedia)
Plot
The story takes place after the initial events of Underground , shortly after the player beats Eddie and his street racing gang The Eastsiders in Olympic City, along with Melissa. Revered as the best street racer in Olympic City, the player wins a race while driving a blue Nissan Skyline GT-R and promptly receives a call from an unidentified individual with an "invitation" to join his team, followed by a threat explicitly disclaiming that he is not… (Wikipedia)
Reception
Reception Need for Speed: Underground 2 received positive reviews. GameRankings and Metacritic gave it a score of 86% for the Mobile version; 83. 50% and 82 out of 100 for the PC version, 82. (Wikipedia)
At a glance
| Need for Speed Unbound | Need for Speed: Underground 2 | |
|---|---|---|
| GamingPickz Score | 5.9/10 | — |
| Steam rating | Mixed (60%, 60,177) | — |
| Critic aggregate | 73/100 | 65/100 |
| Price | $69.99 | Unknown |
| Install size | 50 GB | — |
| Steam Deck | unsupported | Untested |
| Released | 2022 | 2004 |
| Developer | Criterion Games | EA Vancouver |
Prices and Steam ratings are read live and move over time.
Need for Speed Unbound vs Need for Speed: Underground 2, point by point
Each facet side by side. A round is marked won only where a figure settles it; feel and "which is better" carry no mark, because no number we hold decides them.
Genre and premise
Need for Speed UnboundOpen-world racing gameNeed for Speed: Underground 2Racing gameWhat each is filed as. Each game describes itself in full above; we do not judge a premise.
How it plays
Need for Speed UnboundRacing, Open World, ActionNeed for Speed: Underground 2No descriptive tagsThe tags players apply most, in order of votes. A read on feel, not a verdict.
Reception
Need for Speed Unbound ✓Metacritic 73Need for Speed: Underground 2Metacritic 65Metacritic's critic aggregate, from the game's Wikipedia reception where it was never on Steam.
Content and scale
Need for Speed Unbound60,177 reviews · 19 add-ons · 50 GBNeed for Speed: Underground 2—Reach and footprint, not quality: more reviews or a bigger install is not a better game.
Price
Need for Speed Unbound$69.99Need for Speed: Underground 2UnknownRead live from Steam and subject to change.
Need for Speed Unbound takes 1 of the marked rounds to 0. That is only what a number can decide, not which you will enjoy more.
Which to pick, by what you want
- The better reviewed of the two: Need for Speed Unbound (Metacritic 73)
Where they differ
RacingMultiplayerOpen WorldActionDrivingSingleplayer
Tags players apply to one game and not the other.
Difficulty and who each is for
By the tags players apply, Need for Speed Unbound is relaxed, easy to pick up. Need for Speed: Underground 2 is middle-of-the-road on difficulty.
Accessibility features
Steam store pages declare 6 accessibility features for Need for Speed Unbound and 0 for Need for Speed: Underground 2. A declaration is a floor, not a review.
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Common questions
How different are Need for Speed Unbound and Need for Speed: Underground 2 in scope?
Need for Speed Unbound has drawn 60,177 Steam reviews, ships 19 add-ons and installs in 50 GB. Need for Speed: Underground 2 lists little scope data.
Is Need for Speed Unbound or Need for Speed: Underground 2 better?
Neither carries enough reviews for us to score it reliably, so we do not call a winner. The table above shows what each does have.
Which is cheaper, Need for Speed Unbound or Need for Speed: Underground 2?
One or both do not have a current listed price, so a straight comparison is not possible. See the table above.
Should I get Need for Speed Unbound or Need for Speed: Underground 2?
Need for Speed Unbound has the higher Metacritic, 73 to 65. It also depends on what you want: the "which to pick" section above calls out which is cheaper, lighter on storage, better on a Steam Deck and the safer bet by weight of reviews.
Do you rank one above the other for a fee?
No. Neither game, nor anyone else, pays for placement or a verdict here. The order and every figure come out of the same public data the rest of the site uses.
Related comparisons
All comparisonsHow we compare, and what we will not do
The GamingPickz Score is a composite of player sentiment (adjusted for sample size), the critic aggregate and popularity, computed by the same code every ranked list on this site uses. The Steam rating label is Valve's own, reconstructed from the positive percentage and review count. Prices are read live. We do not write an opinion of which game is "better": we report the numbers and say which wins each measurable question above.