Except to the most hardcore players, Shift is a fun game with a great experience, but almost leaves you wanting more.
The career mode is fairly solid; the money you gain goes towards upgrading your car (one nice touch: paint, vinyls, and rims don't cost money!) or buying a new car. With over 60 cars, there's a pretty decent selection, and you're sure to find favorites in each tier (Camaro SS, anyone?)Races and cars are both divided up into 4 tiers, and as you earn stars by placing in events or achieving mini objectives like reaching point or speed thresholds, you unlock higher tiers and more events. Another nice feature is that if you're stuck and need money but your car just isn't cutting it, you can do manufacturer or invitational events, where the car is provided to you (and more money is often earned for winning invitationals anyway).
The drift mode = impossible. I've just skipped it so far and done other races, and that by no means keeps you from completing the game (or getting any achievements, for those AchievementHunters out there). Rather than having to force your car into a drift, you have to keep it under control as it naturally tends to slide out from under you. I imagine that with a lot of practice (read: several hours) you might get the hang of it, but I just haven't had the patience for it yet.
The points/profile system are great, because even if you lose an event, you could still earn points and rank up. Points are earned for precision moves like following the racing line (ideal path through a track), passing opponents without making contact, or getting perfect launches from the starting line. They are also earned for aggressive moves, like bumping other cars or spinning them out, drafting, and sliding around turns. Between that and the thrill often involved in the last minute struggle to win, it actually doesn't feel that bad to come in second place, and you just want to go at it again to get that win. Which is completely possible, since you can revisit any race as many times as you want. However, to keep it fair, you cannot enter a Tier 1 race with a Tier 4 car for example.
Definitely the best aspect of the game and the reason you want to keep coming back for more is the first person 'cockpit' view. A lot of work was put into this, and it clearly shows in all the little details, from every button and knob on the dash to your driver's hands flexing on the wheel or quickly shifting gears. It's fun being able to check your mirrors, see a car coming up behind or next to you, then block or try to shove them off the track. Getting annoyed by that car in front of you and can't get past? Put pressure on their rear bumper until they start to fishtail and spin out, just be careful they don't take you out in the process. The faster your car, the wilder the ride - there are times where I just hit the brake out of fear when you're flying down the track at over 200 mph.
Online mode - well, internet at school sucks, but I can imagine it would interesting to see whether people are aggressive drivers or more worried about winning a clean race.
Overall, I would say that NFS Shift is a refreshing game after the last few entries in the series. Staying away from that blurry kind of presentation as seen especially in Carbon, it's a blast to race these beautifully-modeled cars through crisp, sunny environments. The excellent first person experience will keep you coming back for more - ever seen those commercials for Dave and Buster's, where people are doing everyday activities and it reminds them of playing games at this grown-up version of Chuck E. Cheese? Well it'll be kind of like that when you get into your real car, where suddenly you'll get an urge to get home and play NFS Shift once again. If you don't want to pay the full $60, it's at least worth a rental. So what are you waiting for, get racing!