HSV SV99 (Series 2) (Australian version only)
Holden MHRT (Australian version only)
Ford Falcon XR8 (Australian version only)
Nissan Skyline GT-R (Japanese version only)
Key Features
As is its predecessor, Need for Speed III: Hot Pursuit, High Stakes retains police pursuits in game, as well as introducing three new racing modes: High Stakes, Getaway and Career. High Stakes is a racing mode in which the reward was the losing player's car. Getaway requires the player to outrun a pursuing police vehicle for a given time period. Career mode incorporates a monetary reward system that allowed a player to purchase vehicles and performance upgrades while earning cash by racing in a chronological set of tournaments. Another innovation was the introduction of damage models. Vehicles which have been involved in accidents featured visibly crushed car bodies and suffered from performance penalties. After a race in Career mode, the player was given the option to purchase repairs.
Although damage cannot be repaired within a race, it can be repaired between races if you are playing in the new career mode. Unlike the tournaments in Need for Speed III, this career mode has higher stakes attached to it, if you'll pardon the pun. You start you off with a wad of cash and asked to purchase a lowly BMW Z3 or a Mercedes SLK 230. Then you enter a series of circuits organized into tiers. As you advance through the tiers, you earn more money, which you can use to repair your car between races, upgrade your existing cars, or buy new vehicles.
Several new game modes have been added to this latest version. Drivers can participate in a ''high stakes'' race where you and a buddy race for pink slips. At the end of the race, the loser's car is deleted from his memory card and transferred to the winner's card. Imagine the heartbreak when you lose a car you've been building for some time.
High Stakes' coolest new feature is the ability to play as the cops in Hot Pursuit mode, nailing speeders by calling for backup, setting up roadblocks, and putting down spike belts via a pop-up menu. Of course, you can still play as the perp and try to dust the cops, while a two-player split- screen option lets you and a bud battle on both sides of the law.
As is its predecessor, Need for Speed III: Hot Pursuit, High Stakes retains police pursuits in game, as well as introducing three new racing modes: High Stakes, Getaway and Career. High Stakes is a racing mode in which the reward was the losing player's car. Getaway requires the player to outrun a pursuing police vehicle for a given time period. Career mode incorporates a monetary reward system that allowed a player to purchase vehicles and performance upgrades while earning cash by racing in a chronological set of tournaments. Another innovation was the introduction of damage models. Vehicles which have been involved in accidents featured visibly crushed car bodies and suffered from performance penalties. After a race in Career mode, the player was given the option to purchase repairs.