Need for Speed: Underground is a 2003 racing video game and the seventh installment in the Need for Speed series following Hot Pursuit 2 (2002). It was developed by EA Black Box and published by Electronic Arts. Three different versions of the game were produced: one for consoles and Microsoft Windows, and another for the Game Boy Advance. An arcade version developed by Global VR and co-published by Konami came out two years later.

Unlike previous Need for Speed games, which featured sports cars and exotics, Underground featured vehicles associated with the import scene. It was the first game in the series to offer a career mode that features a comprehensive storyline, and a garage mode that allowed players to fully customize their cars with a large variety of brand-name performance and visual upgrades. All races take place in the fictional Olympic City.

Underground was critically and commercially successful, selling around 15 million units and receiving positive reviews. It was followed by Need for Speed: Underground 2 in 2004.

The game begins with a circuit race set in Olympic City (A fictional city based mainly on the city of Seattle and named after nearby Olympic National Park), with the player driving a white Honda/Acura Integra Type R that sports a unique set of vinyl and a wide body kit. They dominantly win the race; only to be awakened from a daydream by a woman named Samantha.

Samantha is the player's contact in Olympic City, touring them across the import culture scene and illegal street racing therein. Albeit poking fun at the player's choice of car, she helps the player buy their first car and kickstarts the player by introducing them to local street racers such as Jose (who offers circuit events), Klutch (who offers drag events), and Dirt (who offers drift events). In event #7, she introduces him to T.J., a mechanic who rewards them with numerous performance upgrades and parts, provided they win their time trial challenges. Samantha also issues time trials to the player, her rewards being unique visual modifications instead.

Eventually, the player draws the attention of The Eastsiders, after racing their members Chad, Kurt, and Todd to climb up the racing ranking boards. Eddie, the leader of the gang and his girlfriend Melissa take notice of the player. Eddie is the current best underground racer in Olympic City - unimpressed by the player, he insults them for their racing skills, going as far as demanding they "take a taxi home so that he can get home faster" while throwing cash at their face, and signaling for a taxi cab to pick up the player in an event.

In time, the player develops too much reputation and hype to be ignored by Eddie, who proceeds to challenge them to race Samantha to continue upward in the ranking boards. She gets infuriated by the player's acceptance and loses after she totals the engine of her Honda Civic Si during the race. Her car is taken by T.J. for himself thereafter. Deeply saddened by the player's willingness to race her and the loss of her car to T.J., Samantha distances herself from the player, but they continue receiving race offers nonetheless.

Building up to the endgame, the player faces and defeats Chad, Kurt, Todd, and Dirt for the #1 rank of their respective boards, then faces T.J. in Samantha's vandalized Civic in a pink slip race. They win the car back and return it to Samantha, rekindling their friendship. Samantha rewards the player with a unique body kit choice.