EA unveils NFS Underground sequel

Chavs and boy racers rejoice! EA has finally announced a direct follow-up to Need For Speed Underground, promising to build on the original game's mixture of arcade-style racing, shiny visuals and Max Power style tune-up options. Expect under-car lighting, and all manner of other fancy upgrades that fans of The Fast And The Furious and trendy sportswear will be able to immediately latch onto.

The adventurously titled Need For Speed Underground 2 (and not NFS: Most Wanted as was rumoured - maybe that's the GBA version) will feature a free-roaming city divided into five distinct neighbourhoods, and will see players following rival racers to initiate events, tip players off to the best racing spots and show them where to buy upgrades. Midnight Club II, anybody?

Performance tuning and customisation options will obviously be tinkered with, and more than 30 licensed cars will be present - almost guaranteeing that NFSU2 will return to the top of the charts, where it spent countless weeks after its November 2003 launch, when it appears on store shelves later this year on PS2, Xbox, Cube, PC and GBA.

Although E3 hasn't been all that forthcoming with details (or screenshots - the one pictured is the only one we've seen), we'd bet good money that E3 will see the game showcased in more detail.