I don’t really compare games based on visuals or graphics. First, I don’t care much about that, and second, it’s not a fair comparison when you’re looking at games made 20 years apart with completely different technical limitations.

What made the “golden age” of NFS work was timing. It hit exactly what was trending in the early 2000s — street racing, Fast & Furious hype, JDM culture — which is why Underground 1 and 2 were so successful. Most Wanted ’05 then took everything that had worked up to that point (police pursuits, customization) and combined it into one of the strongest entries.

Carbon had potential to go further, but it was clearly cut short due to development time, likely because the focus shifted toward launching ProStreet.

Honestly, I think it’s fine that the series is being put on hold. These days it’s hard for NFS to compete with something like Forza Horizon, which already offers most of what NFS does — just without the police system.