In Need For Speed II the player takes control of eight Super Cars and races his or her way through six different tracks from Australia to Nepal. Much like the first in the series, the sequel has plenty of high performance cars to choose from, including the McLaren F1, Ferrari F50, Lotus GT1, Jaguar XJ220, Ford GT90, Isdera Commendatore 112i, Italdesign Cala and Lotus Esprit V8, each handling differently.

Once the player has beaten the six tracks, a new track is made available. It's a fast paced racing game which is intended to play more like an arcade racer than a true simulation, though the player can select which driving style suits him or her best: arcade or simulation.

There are three game modes: single race, tournament (in which the player must get the highest score in order to win) and knock out (in which the player has to outrun at least one car at the end of each track to avoid elimination). Car settings such as gear ratio, downforce, break bias and color can be customized. The opponents' skill can also be chosen, as well as the presence of civilian traffic in the tracks. The game offers four options of camera views: heli-cam, tail-cam, in-car and road cam. A replay mode with eight cinematic cameras is also available.

The main difference between this and the previous Need for Speed game is in the tracks, with less open road tracks in this sequel. Also, there are no cops to chase the player. However, the tracks available are have a range of detail, and some have changing weather conditions while the player races.