Average
We've been getting spoiled by handheld games that have been dead-on ports of their big console brothers. Sadly, Juiced 2 reminds us that the PSP doesn't have the crank of the next-gen consoles and that the UMD can't hold as much junk as a DVD. The result is that most of the things that impressed us about the 360 version of the game -- the ability to ultra-customize your driver and the hugely deep online game -- didn't make the cut.
While Eliminator was primarily about speed (and looking good while speeding), Juiced 2 tosses drifting into the mix. You'll still do a whole mess of get-there-first racing, but you'll also do just as much drifting. Unlike the 360 game, here you're unable to come up with a cool on-screen version of what you may -- or may not -- really look like. Your first order of business is buying your initial car. Fortunately, you start the game with $40,000, which is roughly $40,000 more than most people have in their pocket when they have to buy their first car.
But just having the right car for the job doesn't guarantee success. The game has some control issues, but happily, they're correctable. To its credit, the game controls a bit tighter on the handheld than it does on the 360 when it comes to the circuit racing. On the flipside, we also found the controls for the drifting to be a little more user-friendly on the PSP. Where the game does share some on-screen similarities with the next-gen version is in how lousy the default camera is. You'll want to step the camera back a notch -- and this goes for both the circuit and drift racing -- to really be able to see what the heck is going on around you and to be better able to control your wheels.
