Shift 2 Unleashed

Shift 2: Unleashed may not be the Forza or Gran Turismo competitor everybody was hoping it to be, but it is a damn good game, with a lot of really enjoyable moments.

68%Game Brain Score

graphics, gameplay

optimization, stability

60% User Score Based on 2,190 reviews

Critic Score 83%Based on 5 reviews

Platforms

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About

"Shift 2 Unleashed" is a racing simulator that emphasizes realism and immersion. Experience an authentic racing experience with advanced car physics, night racing, and real-world tracks. The game also includes a unique view system that shifts between interior and exterior perspectives, providing a distinct sense of speed and intensity.

Genres & Tags

Racing

Play Modes

+12

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60%

Audience ScoreBased on 2,190 reviews

graphics146 positive mentions

optimization18 negative mentions

The game features stunning graphics and a great sense of speed, making it visually appealing.
There is a good variety of cars and tracks, providing an enjoyable racing experience.
The helmet cam adds a unique immersive experience, simulating the feeling of being in the car.

The game suffers from significant input lag, making it difficult to control the cars accurately.
Frequent crashes and stability issues make the game frustrating and unplayable for many users.
Unskippable cutscenes and annoying voiceovers detract from the overall experience.

graphics
328 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
45%
48%
7%
The graphics in Shift 2 are generally praised for holding up well despite the game's age, with many reviewers noting that they are impressive for a title released in 2011. While some players appreciate the visual fidelity and detail in car models and environments, others point out that certain graphical settings can lead to performance issues, such as low frame rates and glitches. Overall, the graphics are considered a strong aspect of the game, though there are calls for improvements and optimizations.
- “The visuals are stunning.”
- “Fantastic graphics and detail on even the smallest design flourishes of the automobile are flanked by locations rendered in breathtaking accuracy.”
- “Graphically stunning, it's hard to believe this game was made in 2011; feels new.”
- “I played the tutorial, the graphics are worse than Shift 1, the narrator isn't as good, the driving physics are worse, everything is worse.”
- “Graphics: Shift 1 car models look so much better, there is no difference between any anti-aliasing setting, in-cabin camera makes all the gauges invisible, you can see them while using the helmet camera but it simulates head movement so you can't focus on the track.”
- “After all this time, I've given up... between the graphic glitches, bad animation like shifting a manual with a teleporting arm that resets every shift, to having to repair the game every month to even keep it stable...”
gameplay
158 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
19%
68%
13%
The gameplay has received mixed reviews, with some players appreciating its blend of sim and arcade elements, while others criticize the driving mechanics and frequent cutscenes that disrupt the flow. Many users noted issues with car handling, particularly during drift events, and highlighted poor optimization leading to crashes and frustrating controls. Overall, while the game offers a decent amount of content and immersive racing experiences, significant gameplay flaws detract from its potential.
- “The gameplay is a mix of sim and arcade, leaning more towards sim than arcade.”
- “Unleashed offers more of 'authentic and dynamic' racing simulator gameplay known from the first title, this time with improvements and few additions.”
- “Exciting and realistic gameplay compared to other NFS games, worth it for those who want to try sim racing without being too serious about the physics.”
- “The announcer's irritable voice was off-putting and out of place in this title, which affected gameplay in an obviously bad way.”
- “Worst driving mechanics in any racing game.”
- “The game crashing after 2 hours of gameplay alone should convince you enough to not spend your money on this terrible game.”
optimization
96 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
10%
71%
19%
The game's optimization has received significant criticism, with many users reporting poor performance, frame drops, and stuttering, particularly in the Steam version compared to the Origin version. Despite offering extensive customization options and a variety of vehicles, the overall experience is marred by optimization issues that hinder gameplay, making it one of the least optimized entries in the series. Users have noted that performance varies greatly depending on the platform, with some experiencing substantial frame rate differences.
- “Right from the start, the difference in performance was huge - I got 88 fps without any drops, where I had 35-40 fps in the Steam version.”
- “One of the biggest improvements individuals will notice after playing the first one is the way you upgrade the performance of the vehicles.”
- “With the addition of a horde of new cars, quantity of cars and classes, and the performance index system, there is now a whole new level of strategy in picking and choosing the best cars and parts to suit your gameplay, while still staying in the performance index rating.”
- “Probably the buggiest, least optimized game in the entire series since Undercover.”
- “The first is performance issues: this game struggles to run at decent frame rates, and busy parts of tracks have noticeable dips in frame rate.”
- “The keyboard keys are bound to impossible keys, in-game mechanics aren't optimized for PC, and the AI is poorly done, not to mention the fact that the game crashes often on high graphics.”
music
74 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
41%
43%
16%
The music in the game receives mixed reviews, with some praising the atmospheric and well-composed soundtrack, featuring notable artists, while others criticize the lack of variety, particularly during races where music is absent. Many players appreciate the menu music and its cinematic quality, but some report issues with only hearing a single track on repeat. Overall, while the soundtrack is considered a highlight by some, others find it repetitive and lacking during gameplay.
- “The music is gorgeous.”
- “The music is beautiful, the cars incredible and the experience is surreal.”
- “This is really great racing game overall it’s fun, very challenging to put some excitement into the game, great selection of cars & tracks, awesome customizations and even one of the best soundtrack lists to listen to while playing the game.”
- “One song plays on repeat in the menu.”
- “My reasons for not giving it a higher score is that it has a very lacking soundtrack (only one menu track on infinite loop), the career mode is really bad in terms of layout for example seasons/circuits don't have a points/position system, as long as you place 3rd you're good, so there is no overall winner in a class/series, and certain handling elements that bog you down when it shouldn't.”
- “Music mostly is horrible, repetitive and boring (depressive?) but the sound effects and car sounds are realistic and great.”
stability
48 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The stability of the game has been widely criticized, with users reporting frequent crashes, freezes, and various graphical glitches that significantly hinder gameplay. Many players have experienced issues across multiple platforms, leading to extensive troubleshooting efforts, and some have deemed the game unplayable. Despite its potential as a great racing title, the overwhelming number of bugs and performance problems have left a negative impression on the community.
- “Constantly freezes, horrible performance overall.”
- “In the end, I think this is a really good racing game, but it is so buggy for something from a major publisher and major franchise that I can't recommend it.”
- “Crashes, low FPS issues, and freezes are common.”
story
34 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
9%
79%
12%
The game's story receives mixed reviews, with some players praising its variety and excitement, while others criticize it for being minimal and repetitive, lacking a coherent narrative or satisfying conclusion. Many feel that the cutscenes are poorly executed and detract from the overall experience, leading to a sense of frustration, especially when technical issues prevent access to the campaign. Overall, the story seems to be a secondary aspect to the racing mechanics, with opinions varying widely on its effectiveness.
- “There is a good variety in cars, the story is great and it's simply amazing.”
- “The story is okay, but the sense of speed and achievement when racing in different cars is second to none.”
- “This game almost has Forza 5 graphics, but it has night racing customization options and somewhat of a storyline.”
- “First of all, Shift 1 barely had a story, but this game has even less. You just climb up the ranks playing meaningless repetitive races, and believe me, these races are much more repetitive than the first game was.”
- “The races and god-awful cutscenes that replace the story are a step back. The UI and the way you choose tracks and cars is also a step back, and that's saying something because while effective, Shift 1's UI was terribly unattractive.”
- “Also, this game just doesn't even have an ending. You unlock the last of the races, the drivers say something in their terrible cutscenes that I couldn't hear, not even about the story, but about the races we unlocked, which by the way, the final races are just drag races...”
grinding
16 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
25%
75%
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be excessively time-consuming, often requiring a significant investment of hours to progress, which may appeal to those with ample free time. The tedious menu navigation and repetitive tuning processes can detract from the overall experience, although some enjoy the challenge it presents once they overcome these hurdles. Despite the grind, many still appreciate the game's enjoyable driving mechanics and the satisfaction of tuning their vehicles.
- “You'll need a second life for grinding.”
- “4 hours later: very grindy, those who have a ton of free time will love it.”
- “As a result, the menu navigation is nonsensical and tedious.”
replayability
15 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
20%
60%
20%
Overall, the game offers significant replayability, especially for achievement hunters and those who enjoy various gameplay modes like time attack. However, some players find the unskippable tutorials and their repetition upon reinstallation detract from the experience. The addition of mods and features like the autolog system further enhance replay value, making it a compelling choice for long-term play.
- “If, like me, you're obsessed with getting all achievements, this game retains a lot of replayability after the years.”
- “Even better than the first, with tons of replayability.”
- “The autolog feature lends a great deal of replayability to the game.”
- “Unskippable tutorials, millions of them (no replay value). Reinstall = tutorials again.”
- “Don't play without the PTMU mod; it makes the game 100% more playable.”
- “Replayability: if, like me, you're obsessed with getting all achievements, this game retains a lot of replayability after the years.”
humor
12 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is highlighted by the absurdity of its controls and physics, particularly the unexpected message to plug in a controller while attempting to use a steering wheel for drifting, which many players found both shocking and hilarious. Players noted that the game's unrealistic handling leads to comical situations, reminiscent of past titles in the series that balanced challenge with humor. Overall, the game's quirks provide a source of amusement, making it a memorable experience despite its flaws.
- “For a game that is labeled as a realistic game, I was both shocked and dead laughing when a message asking me to plug a controller popped up while I was trying to play the drift mode with my steering wheel.”
- “Controls and physics are just as funny as in NFS Shift - a lot of skidding and steering delays.”
- “I hope the $3.99 I paid during the sale was worth laughing to the bank over.”
atmosphere
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
67%
33%
The atmosphere in the game is widely praised as legendary and unique for a racing title, enhanced by an amazing soundtrack and enjoyable career mode. Reviewers note that while the driving physics in subsequent projects are solid, they lack the fun and excitement that the atmosphere of this game provides, particularly due to its engaging sound design and dynamic AI.
- “Great atmosphere, amazing soundtrack, enjoyable career mode, nice physics model.”
- “Legendary, atmosphere is unique for a racing game.”
- “Their next project cars series are good at driving physics but they are not that close to the fun and excitement of driving as Shift does - all thanks to the atmosphere, soundtrack, and engaging AI.”
- “The next Project Cars series excels in driving physics, but it lacks the fun and excitement of driving that Shift offers, primarily due to its atmosphere, soundtrack, and poorly designed AI.”
- “The atmosphere in the next Project Cars series fails to capture the thrill of racing, making the experience feel less engaging compared to Shift.”
emotional
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players express frustration with the game's mechanics, noting that minor contact with opponents leads to significant setbacks, which can evoke feelings of inadequacy and helplessness. This emotional response is heightened by the AI's seemingly unaffected behavior, amplifying the player's sense of struggle and defeat.
- “And now he is extra emotional.”
- “I'm not a newbie to racing games, but this game made me feel like a novice!”
monetization
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The monetization strategy is perceived as hasty and poorly executed, leading to a sentiment that the sequel feels more like a cash grab than a thoughtfully developed game.
- “Just seems a bit sloppy and half-baked... like let's knock out a quick sequel for a cash grab.”

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83%Critics’ scoreBased on 5 critic reviews

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Buy Shift 2 Unleashed

9h Median play time

9h Average play time

20h Main story

50h Completionist

7-10h Spent by most gamers

*Based on 14 analyzed playthroughs

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