[Pros and cons summarised at end]
As a huge racing fan, buying almost every game that releases I have to say that SHIFT 2 is among the best of them across the board.

Unfortunately, it's Steam page is marred by reviews that start with 'excellent game' before proceeding to not recommend due to the DRM policies and performance issues in the Steam client (This was the last game Electronic Arts released on Steam before Origin came along). I, running a mid-range PC on an i5 and a R9 270 with 12GB RAM, have not noticed these issues so far, the main one being crashes to desktop, rendering unplayable unless placed in Origin (Which can supposedly be achieved with a copy/paste of the CD Key you receive). The second issue people see with this is its DRM policy, the game can only be installed on 5 PC's/across 5 system resets before it can be activated no more. If you are someone who intends to reset or purchase a new PC an additional 4 times whilst playing this game, this could be an issue, mind you EA Support is surprisingly good, last time I had issues installing a game they fixed it and gave me a limited edition upgrade on two occasions, but of course they will migrate you to Origin.

When (and if according to these reviews) you get into the game, it is superb. The visuals still hold up incredibly well and the soundtrack within the menus and loading screens is great - composed with the assistance of award-winning composers, one of whom is now doing the Game of Thrones' soundtrack.

The gameplay is immensely intense; you know if you hit the driver in front or brake slightly too late it could all be over in a savage first person crash. At most times this game is more of a survival horror than a racing game, it doesn't feature a rewind feature like most sim-racers of the time and instead of casing you as the car, you are actually cast as the driver, something racing games have never really tapped into. This is achieved by the amazing 'helmet cam', taking you not only into 1st person but direct from the driver’s vision. The cockpit blurs under high intensity, the camera shake is perfect and the tilt as you approach a corner really adds the dynamics and intensity, this is also aided by 'motivational' comms messages at the start of races and Vaughn Gittin Jr. who teaches you the basics and introduces you to events, his spotlight of which is drifting, which I have to say is pretty uncontrollable, the general consensus is that the drift events in the career are near impossible.

The career overall is very good, you start low end in 'Modern D', D class vehicles such as hatchbacks and work your way up to the FIA GT1 World championship, along the way you are given tasters of what's in store such as time trials or 'hot laps' in Bugatti's and Lambo's which occur about 20% through the game alongside difficult and exhilarating championships and invitationals which can earn you McLaren's and exclusive Team Need for Speed/Speedhunters tuned beasts. Overall the career isn’t the longest and you can probably have it done in under 40 hours, but despite this you still won't have anywhere near enough to buy all the cars which you can still work for through quick events, online and seasonal events.

The cars in this game are very detailed and each have fully rendered interiors *cough* Gran Turismo 5 *cough*, all of them, par a few which are already done up, offer livery choices, including the ability to fully create your own with 100's of stickers which can be placed anywhere on the car, rim options and incredibly open and detailed handling tuning, alongside performance upgrades and body kits for every vehicle. The vehicle range is very varied, especially taking into account that PC players receive the classic Legends and Speedhunters DLC's for free with additional cars and career events. Cars range from classic & retro to hatchback, sport, super, hyper, muscle and open-wheel alongside their respective race versions and tunes from all across the world.

Tracks are also very detailed, but you hardly have the time to look at them when your hitting 200mph and there’s a corner 70yds away - the selection is quite large with almost all the major and quite a few minor tracks from around the world present alongside a few fictional ones too.

Pros:
Car customisation
Racing intensity and sense of speed is off the charts
Vehicle selection
Free DLC packs for PC
Track range
Visuals still hold up very well
Soundtrack
Career Progression

Cons:
Pro's only apply if you get the game and it works
EA's DRM policy
Drift events
Can get frustrating

Overall I would 100% recommend this game, unless you plan on restoring your PC an additional 4 times. Drift events are completely avoidable in the career progression.

[b][Pros and cons summarised at end][/b] As a huge racing fan, buying almost every game that releases I have to say that SHIFT 2 is among the best of them across the board. Unfortunately, it's Steam page is marred by reviews that start with 'excellent game' before proceeding to not recommend due to the DRM policies and performance issues in the Steam client (This was the last game Electronic Arts released on Steam before Origin came along). I, running a mid-range PC on an i5 and a R9 270 with 12GB RAM, have not noticed these issues so far, the main one being crashes to desktop, rendering unplayable unless placed in Origin (Which can supposedly be achieved with a copy/paste of the CD Key you receive). The second issue people see with this is its DRM policy, the game can only be installed on 5 PC's/across 5 system resets before it can be activated no more. If you are someone who intends to reset or purchase a new PC an additional 4 times whilst playing this game, this could be an issue, mind you EA Support is surprisingly good, last time I had issues installing a game they fixed it and gave me a limited edition upgrade on two occasions, but of course they will migrate you to Origin. When (and if according to these reviews) you get into the game, it is superb. The visuals still hold up incredibly well and the soundtrack within the menus and loading screens is great - composed with the assistance of award-winning composers, one of whom is now doing the Game of Thrones' soundtrack. The gameplay is immensely intense; you know if you hit the driver in front or brake slightly too late it could all be over in a savage first person crash. At most times this game is more of a survival horror than a racing game, it doesn't feature a rewind feature like most sim-racers of the time and instead of casing you as the car, you are actually cast as the driver, something racing games have never really tapped into. This is achieved by the amazing 'helmet cam', taking you not only into 1st person but direct from the driver’s vision. The cockpit blurs under high intensity, the camera shake is perfect and the tilt as you approach a corner really adds the dynamics and intensity, this is also aided by 'motivational' comms messages at the start of races and Vaughn Gittin Jr. who teaches you the basics and introduces you to events, his spotlight of which is drifting, which I have to say is pretty uncontrollable, the general consensus is that the drift events in the career are near impossible. The career overall is very good, you start low end in 'Modern D', D class vehicles such as hatchbacks and work your way up to the FIA GT1 World championship, along the way you are given tasters of what's in store such as time trials or 'hot laps' in Bugatti's and Lambo's which occur about 20% through the game alongside difficult and exhilarating championships and invitationals which can earn you McLaren's and exclusive Team Need for Speed/Speedhunters tuned beasts. Overall the career isn’t the longest and you can probably have it done in under 40 hours, but despite this you still won't have anywhere near enough to buy all the cars which you can still work for through quick events, online and seasonal events. The cars in this game are very detailed and each have fully rendered interiors [I]*cough* Gran Turismo 5 *cough*[/I], all of them, par a few which are already done up, offer livery choices, including the ability to fully create your own with 100's of stickers which can be placed anywhere on the car, rim options and incredibly open and detailed handling tuning, alongside performance upgrades and body kits for every vehicle. The vehicle range is very varied, especially taking into account that PC players receive the classic Legends and Speedhunters DLC's for free with additional cars and career events. Cars range from classic & retro to hatchback, sport, super, hyper, muscle and open-wheel alongside their respective race versions and tunes from all across the world. Tracks are also very detailed, but you hardly have the time to look at them when your hitting 200mph and there’s a corner 70yds away - the selection is quite large with almost all the major and quite a few minor tracks from around the world present alongside a few fictional ones too. [b]Pros:[/b] Car customisation Racing intensity and sense of speed is off the charts Vehicle selection Free DLC packs for PC Track range Visuals still hold up very well Soundtrack Career Progression [b]Cons:[/b] Pro's only apply if you get the game and it works EA's DRM policy Drift events Can get frustrating Overall I would 100% recommend this game, unless you plan on restoring your PC an additional 4 times. Drift events are completely avoidable in the career progression.