Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit 2

Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit 2
Developers: EA Black Box (PlayStation 2), EA Seattle (GameCube, Xbox, Windows) Publisher: Electronic Arts Platforms: PlayStation 2, GameCube, Xbox, Windows Released in US: September 30, 2002 (GameCube), October 1, 2002, October 21, 2002 (Windows) Released in EU: October 25, 2002, November 8, 2002 (Windows) Released in AU: 2002 (GameCube) This game has hidden development-related text. This game has unused text.

This page is rather stubbly and could use some expansion. Are you a bad enough dude to rescue this article?

Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit 2 is a sequel to the original Hot Pursuit, which also serves as the series' foray into the sixth generation of consoles.

This page primarily covers the non-PlayStation 2 versions of the game.

To do: Should the PS2 version be split off into its own page, considering that it's a considerably different game to the rest of the versions?

Debugging Stuff

An option called "Debug" can be seen among the text files. The exe also references a debug HUD. However, it's unknown if any other remnants survive of this.

Unused Text

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A placeholder widget message. This would have been seen when a widget needed a description.

Unused Textures

There are a couple of textures in GUIart.viv that are nowhere to be found in the release version of the game:

Unused car select logo for Ford SVT Mustang Cobra R.

Alternative version of the radar and a mockup of how it could've looked like.

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A few textures supposedly used for menus and loading screens that don't seem to match the style of those used in the final game.

PlayStation 2 Differences

The PlayStation 2 version was developed by Black Box instead of EA Seattle, and as thus, is very different compared to other releases.

• While driving a police car, outside of You're the Cop mode in a non-PS2 release, the police will sometimes identify it as a stolen vehicle.
• The PS2 release allows players to switch the gender of their driver, while the other versions do not.
• Police cutscenes in the PS2 release are shown in black and white with only one cop arresting the player. In every other release, they are shown in color with multiple cops and police dogs arresting the player. However, in the PS2 the police man models and animations are much more detailed, and gives you two chances before being arrested for good (even though one of the scenes show the player attempting to run away with the cop giving a chase).
• The PS2 version has better graphics, such as more detailed reflections, soft shadows and higher detail vehicle models.
• PS2 menus are different visually, compared to other versions.
• PS2 has exclusive "Desert" tracks.
• The police chopper in the PS2 version also drops rockets and bombs (!).
• Track layouts are different.
• Non-PS2 versions have more cop cars, such as the Lamborghini Diablo.
• The PS2 version has different event tree, but their purpose is the same for all the versions.
• The Ferrari 360 Modena is a PS2-exclusive car and an NFS Edition car to Ferrari 360 Spider.
• The NFS Edition cars in the PS2 version are much more fancy-looking compared to the other versions, where they are mostly repaints with pearl.
• Non-PS2 versions have the camera positioned slightly higher.
• The tracks are more detailed in the PS2 version.
• The controls for non-PS2 versions have a half-second delay before responding, and that applies even to the collisions with walls.
• The physics are different.
• The cops give up chases much more easier in non-PS2 versions.
• In the PS2 version the cops can use boost, which spews flames out of the exhaust (you also have this feature in You're The Cop mode).
• In the PS2 version, if you don't touch anything for a while in the menu, a short cinematic demo preview for the game will play.
• Replays for the PS2 version have cinematic cameras making it look as someone was recording the gameplay. In all other versions, you are stuck with the "behind the car" camera.
• Police vehicles can only be totaled in the PS2 version.

Unused Vehicles

An unused school bus mesh can be found in the files.

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  School bus.