Need for Speed | |
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Developer(s) | Ghost Games [lower-alpha 2] |
Publisher(s) | Electronic Arts |
Director(s) | Craig Sullivan |
Producer(s) | Leanne Loombe |
Designer(s) | James Mouat |
Programmer(s) | Jonathan Janesjö |
Writer(s) | James Worrall Justin Trefgarne Adrian Vershinin |
Composer(s) | Photek |
Series | Need for Speed |
Engine | Frostbite 3 |
Platform(s) | PlayStation 4 Xbox One Windows |
Release | PlayStation 4, Xbox One Windows
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Genre(s) | Racing |
Mode(s) | Single-player, multiplayer |
Need for Speed is a 2015 online racing video game developed by Ghost Games and published by Electronic Arts. The game was released for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One in November 2015, while a Windows version released in March 2016. It is the twenty-second Need for Speed installment, and serves as a reboot of the franchise.
Need for Speed received mixed reviews from critics, who praised the game's visuals and customization but criticized it for being always-online with the inability to pause, which would also lead to performance issues on all platforms. The game was succeeded by Need for Speed Payback in 2017.
The first gameplay footage of the pre-alpha build for Need for Speed was revealed at EA's press conference at E3 on June 15, 2015. The E3 presentation shows a part of the story, followed by the customization of a Subaru BRZ which showed the new and improved customization system, and the 'action camera' which was later revealed to be one of the five different camera angles. There are five different gameplay types: Speed, Style, Crew, Build, and Outlaw where players can earn points for engaging in to progress in the game through five overlapping storylines. Need for Speed takes place in the fictional city of Ventura Bay and its surroundings which is based on Los Angeles. [3] [4] [5]
Need for Speed has a redesigned 'Wrap Editor', and body modifications return to the series after nearly five years. The game features real-life tuning companies including RAUH-Welt Begriff, SEIBON, and RTR Mustang. A new 'Handling Slider' was exhibited in the E3 gameplay video, which combines the best elements of the earlier Black Box titles' grippy tires, as well as the drift style of the newer Criterion titles.
The story revolves around the player and a small ragtag group of racers waiting to be noticed by any of the game's five icons, all of them being real-world motorsport and street racing figures. Spike (Adam Long) wants to meet Magnus Walker, Amy (Faye Marsay) has a desire to greet Akira Nakai, Robyn (Christina Wolfe) wants to come to Risky Devil, Manu (Howard Charles) wants to impress Ken Block, and Travis (Leo Gregory) is inspired by Shinichi Morohoshi. As the game progresses, the player earns money and reputation among the other drivers and people he meets along the way. As soon as the player defeats Magnus Walker, however, a cutscene appears in which Spike becomes jealous and angry, saying that the player got the chance before Spike did. After this, Spike gets over it because of Travis saying to him that if one of them gets noticed, they all get noticed. Once the player becomes the ultimate icon, the final challenge is against Travis, Spike, Amy, Robyn, Manu, and the icons. After the race, the final cutscene includes all of them taking a group photo together, with the player wearing a mask to hide his true identity.
Following the 2010 release of Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit , EA's own developer Criterion Games, developers of the award-winning racing video game series Burnout , was given stewardship of the Need for Speed franchise with 2012's Need for Speed: Most Wanted . In a 2012 interview, Most Wanted executive producer Matt Webster told that while all future Need for Speed games may not be developed by Criterion, the studio would have creative oversight of the franchise moving forward.
After just one year later, during a Gamescom interview with Need for Speed Rivals executive producer Marcus Nilsson told that the newly created Ghost Games studio was now in charge of the franchise; about 80 percent of Criterion was working on Rivals with the remaining group working on a mysterious "new project." A month later, vice president and creative director of Criterion Games, Alex Ward announced that 60 to 65 people moved from Criterion over to Ghost Games UK, seemingly permanently, to work on Rivals and the franchise, leaving about 20 at Criterion. [6]
In April 2013, Electronic Gaming Monthly published a report that a reboot of 2004's Need for Speed: Underground 2 could be the next NFS game; [7] that report was contradicted hours later by Criterion's Alex Ward. [8] [9] Initially it was suspected that Criterion would not be developing racing games in the short-term, but Ward clarified that he was speaking personally instead of speaking for the studio. [10] In a 2013 interview with VideoGamer, Ghost's Marcus Nilsson stated that they were working to restore the credibility of the franchise. [11] He also suggested a sequel to 2004's Underground 2 if the conditions were right. [12] Later in the year, at the Eurogamer Expo, Nilsson hinted that the franchise might return to a style of progression in the future similar to the Underground - Most Wanted - Carbon series. [13]
In 2014, Electronic Arts CEO Andrew Wilson announced that there wouldn't be a new Need for Speed game that year, making it the first year since 2001 that a Need for Speed game was unreleased. [14]
On 21 May 2015, EA announced their next Need for Speed game, with a teaser trailer, [15] following marketing material tease days before. [16] EA later clarified that the new Need for Speed game is not really a spiritual Underground 3 game, but it would still "share a lot of the stuff that made that game great". [17]
On 29 May 2015, EA confirmed that Need for Speed would require an online connection to play, but reassured that "the benefits are nice" for requiring such restriction. Previous Need for Speed games have featured connected online worlds for players to race and inhabit together, although they have not required a player to stay connected to play the game. [18] This was met with criticism from critics, who pointed to 2013's SimCity , which was unplayable at launch as a result of requiring an online connection to play. The reason for an always-online internet connection was because of Autolog's new in-game snapshot feature explained by Marcus Nilsson which rewards the players and their snapshots with Rep Points, Experience Points and in-game money if other players liked them enough. [19]
On 14 September 2015, Electronic Arts announced that Need for Speed for Windows had been delayed to Spring 2016 in order to allow Ghost Games to give the version an unlocked frame rate and increase the visual quality. [20] The Windows release date has later been updated to a more precise 15 March in the US and 17 March everywhere else, and March 10 as a demo in the Origin access program. Along with that announcement, several other announcements were made, among which include Windows-exclusive support for 4K resolution, various gamepad and steering wheel controllers, and the previously announced unlocked frame rate, as well as a manual transmission option for both the PC and console versions. [21]
The game is offered in two editions: the Standard Edition and the Deluxe Edition. The Deluxe Edition includes several extra features and content, such as a lifetime discount on all purchases made with in-game currency, a special VIP Icon, exclusive car wraps, more upgrades, and a pre-modified BMW M3 (E46) modeled after the M3 GTR from 2005's Need for Speed: Most Wanted as both the leading car on the game's cover and the player's tricked-out starter car that is in the garage next to the Honda Civic, the Subaru BRZ, or the Ford Mustang Foxbody in the "purchase your first car" menu.
The game has neither microtransactions of any sort nor paid DLC. All additional content is available for free through mandatory updates, leading the game to be called the "Living Game" by developers. [22]
On 13 November 2015, the first game update was teased. [23] Dubbed the Icons Update, the update was released on 25 November 2015, and saw a maximum rep level increase to 60. The update also includes two new unlockable bonus cars, improvements on wrap editor, new daily challenges, community events and a few new preset wraps. [24]
On 9 December 2015, Ghost Games released the Legends Update, which added (among other changes) songs from previous Need for Speed games, a maximum rep level increase to 70, new collectables and wraps, and the ability to mute phone calls. The update also introduced a new event series featuring Eddie and Melissa from Need for Speed: Underground . Upon completion of this event series, the player will unlock Eddie's 1999 Nissan Skyline GT-R V-Spec. [25]
On 3 February 2016, Ghost Games released the Showcase Update, which added fully customizable license plates and the ability to share car wraps to friends or the community, in addition to repair shops and improvements on photo-taking features. [26] On 3 March 2016, an update dubbed the Hot Rods Update was released, which added drag races, two hot rod cars, a manual transmission option, and an increase in the number of garage car slots from five to ten. [27] On 24 March 2016, the 2017 facelift of the Nissan GT-R Premium (R35) was added to the game. [28]
On 27 April 2016, the sixth and final update, the SpeedLists Update, was released, which introduced multiplayer tournament series, where players can compete against each other to earn SpeedPoints to raise their multiplayer rank. The update also introduced the new ability to replay story missions with increased difficulty through Prestige (unlocked by completing all story missions). [29]
Aggregator | Score |
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Metacritic | (PC) 68/100 [30] (PS4) 66/100 [31] (XONE) 65/100 [32] |
Publication | Score |
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Destructoid | 6/10 [33] |
Electronic Gaming Monthly | 7/10 [34] |
Game Informer | 7/10 [35] |
GameRevolution | [36] |
GameSpot | 8/10 [37] |
GamesRadar+ | [38] |
GameTrailers | 8.3/10 [39] |
Giant Bomb | [40] |
IGN | 6.3/10 [41] |
VideoGamer.com | 5/10 [42] |
Need for Speed received "mixed or average" reviews, according to review aggregator Metacritic. [30] [31] [32]
Luke Reilly of IGN gave the game a score of 6.3 out of 10, praising the game's great visuals and sound and the drifting feeling, but criticizing the game's story, the game being too brief, the multiplayer, AI, daft time-of-night effects, having no drag racing, and no ability to pause the game. [41] Alexander Kalogianni of Digital Trends awarded Need for Speed a score of 6.0 out of 10, praising the game for its gorgeously stylized game world, multitude of tweakable car characteristics, engaging visual, customization options, and cool soundtrack, but criticized it for repetitive mission types and the AI being aloof. [43]
Scott Butterworth of GameSpot gave the game an 8 out of 10. Butterworth praised Need for Speed for the visually stunning city, deep rewarding progression, genuinely customizable handling, and nail-biting sense of speed, but at the same time criticized the rubber-banding AI, draconian drift scoring system, and always-online, rendering the game unable to be paused. [37] Sam Loveridge of TrustedReviews gave Need for Speed 4½ out of five stars giving praise to the stunning night racing and weather effects, but panned the inability to play offline, the inability to pause gameplay, and the "insufferable" live action cutscenes and constant calls. [44]
Despite the mixed reception, the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences nominated Need for Speed for "Racing Game of the Year" during the 19th Annual D.I.C.E. Awards. [45]
The Need for Speed reboot had 67% of copies sold on PS4, with 33% on Xbox One. [46] Need for Speed was the seventh best selling game in the United States in November 2015 according to the NPD Group. [47] The game debuted at #6 on the Japanese Sales Charts, selling 19,000 copies. [48] In the UK, it reached number 2 in the sales chart, behind Call of Duty: Black Ops III . [49]
On January 28, 2016, Need for Speed saw twice as many monthly active players in Q3 compared to Need for Speed Rivals . [50]
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Need for Speed (NFS) is a racing game franchise published by Electronic Arts and currently developed by Criterion Games. The series generally centers around illegal street racing, and tasks players to complete various types of races while evading the local law enforcement in police pursuits. Need for Speed is one of EA's oldest franchises not published under their EA Sports brand.
Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit 2 is a 2002 racing video game, the sixth installment in the Need for Speed series following Porsche Unleashed (2000) and the direct sequel to Need for Speed III: Hot Pursuit (1998). It was developed by EA Black Box for the PlayStation 2, and a distinctly different version by EA Seattle for GameCube, Xbox, and Microsoft Windows. Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit 2 features cars from various high-performance and exotic car manufacturers. Players can compete in races using these cars, or opt to play as a police officer and pursue speeders.
Need for Speed: Underground 2 is a 2004 racing video game developed by EA Black Box and published by Electronic Arts. It is the eighth installment in the Need for Speed series and the direct sequel to Need for Speed: Underground. It was developed for Windows, GameCube, PlayStation 2, and Xbox. Game Boy Advance and Nintendo DS versions were developed by Pocketeers, and a PlayStation Portable version, titled Need for Speed: Underground Rivals, was developed by Team Fusion. Another version for mobile phones was also developed by Ideaworks Game Studio. Like its predecessor, it was also commercially successful, selling around 11 million copies worldwide and breaking sales records in the United Kingdom.
Burnout 3: Takedown is a 2004 racing video game developed by Criterion Games and published by Electronic Arts. It is the third instalment in the Burnout series, which is characterised by fast-paced arcade racing. A staple of the series is the use of boost, earned through risky driving, to rapidly increase a car's speed. The central mechanic introduced in Burnout 3 is Takedowns, which allow players to slam their opponents until they crash. Takedowns work in conjunction with the boost system by filling up and extending the boost meter. Aside from standard circuit races, the game features modes focused on performing Takedowns on rival vehicles and causing monetary damage at a junction occupied with traffic. Each game variant is featured in a single-player campaign mode called World Tour, which serves as the primary method for unlocking new and faster cars. The game supports both online and split-screen multiplayer.
Criterion Games is a British video game developer based in Guildford. Founded in January 1996 as a division of Criterion Software, it was owned by Canon Inc. until Criterion Software was sold to Electronic Arts in October 2004. Many of the studio's titles were built on the RenderWare engine, which Criterion Software developed.
Need for Speed: ProStreet is a 2007 racing video game developed by EA Black Box and published by Electronic Arts. It is the eleventh installment in the Need for Speed series and a follow-up to Need for Speed: Carbon (2006). Unlike its immediate predecessors, which focused on the contemporary illegal street racing scene, ProStreet focuses on legal circuit races that take place on closed tracks. The game blends elements of both sim and arcade racing games, requiring players to customize and tune cars for various race modes. Most races take place in real-world locations such as the Portland International Raceway, Mondello Park, and Autopolis.
Burnout is a series of racing games developed by Criterion Games. The first two games were published by Acclaim Entertainment, while later instalments were published by Electronic Arts.
Burnout Paradise is a 2008 racing video game developed by Criterion Games and published by Electronic Arts for PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and Microsoft Windows. It was also released on the PlayStation Store and via Xbox Live Marketplace's Games on Demand. It was later added to the libraries of Greatest Hits and Platinum Hits titles and was made backward compatible with the Xbox One in November 2016. It is the first game in the Burnout series to be released on Microsoft Windows.
Star Wars Battlefront is an action shooter video game developed by DICE and published by Electronic Arts in November 2015. The game, based on the Star Wars film franchise, is the third major release in the Star Wars: Battlefront sub-series, but is considered a reboot to the previous games, instead of a sequel, to reflect the new Star Wars canon that Lucasfilm established after being acquired by The Walt Disney Company.
Need for Speed: Nitro is a racing video game and the fourteenth title in the Need for Speed series. It was published by Electronic Arts for the Nintendo Wii and DS platforms. The Wii version was developed by EA Montreal, who have previous experience with Nintendo consoles, while the DS version was developed separately by Firebrand Games' Florida studio.
Need for Speed: World is a massively multiplayer online racing game published by Electronic Arts, and the fifteenth installment of the publisher's Need for Speed franchise. It was co-developed by EA Black Box and EA Singapore, with Easy Studios and EA Vancouver later taking over operations during its run. It was the first freemium game in the Need for Speed series and was available on Microsoft Windows. World was released worldwide on July 27, 2010. However, people who ordered a "Starter Pack" had an early "head-start" in the game, which started on July 20, 2010.
Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit is a 2010 racing video game developed by Criterion Games and published by Electronic Arts for PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Wii, Microsoft Windows, iOS, Android, webOS, and Windows Phone. The Wii version was developed by Exient Entertainment. Hot Pursuit is the sixteenth Need for Speed title and was released in November 2010, with digital distribution versions released within December 2010. The game serves as a revival of the Hot Pursuit name first used in 1998's Need for Speed III: Hot Pursuit.
Need for Speed: The Run is a 2011 racing video game developed by EA Black Box and published by Electronic Arts. It is the eighteenth installment in the Need for Speed series and is Black Box's final entry in the series before the studio's closure in April 2013. Following an extensive marketing campaign, the game was released on November 15, 2011, for PlayStation 3, Windows, Xbox 360, Nintendo 3DS and Wii.
Need for Speed: Most Wanted is a 2012 racing game developed by Criterion Games and published by Electronic Arts. Most Wanted is the nineteenth title in the Need for Speed series and was released worldwide for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, PlayStation Vita, iOS and Android, beginning in North America in 2012. A Wii U version, under the title Need for Speed: Most Wanted U, was released in 2013. Like its predecessor, the 2010 Hot Pursuit title, the game is a revival of the original 2005 Most Wanted title.
Need for Speed Rivals is a 2013 racing video game developed in collaboration between Ghost Games and Criterion Games, and published by Electronic Arts. It is the twentieth installment in the Need for Speed series, and the debut title for Ghost Games.
EA Gothenburg is a Swedish video game developer owned by Electronic Arts (EA) and located in Gothenburg. The studio used to have two other locations; one based in Guildford in the United Kingdom and another in Bucharest, Romania. From 2013 to 2020, they oversaw the development of the Need for Speed racing game franchise. Employees of Ghost include former staff members of EA DICE, Black Box, Criterion Games and Playground Games.
Need for Speed Payback is a 2017 racing video game developed by Ghost Games and published by Electronic Arts. The game was released for PlayStation 4, Windows, and Xbox One on November 10, 2017. It is the twenty-third installment in the Need for Speed series.
Dangerous Driving is a racing video game developed by Three Fields Entertainment, released on 9 April 2019 for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One.
Need for Speed Heat is a 2019 racing video game developed by Ghost Games and published by Electronic Arts for PlayStation 4, Windows, and Xbox One. It is the twenty-fourth installment in the Need for Speed series and commemorates the series' 25th anniversary.
Need for Speed Unbound is a 2022 racing video game developed by Criterion Games and published by Electronic Arts. It was released for PlayStation 5, Windows, and Xbox Series X/S on December 2, 2022. Unbound is the twenty-fifth instalment in the Need for Speed series, and the successor to 2019's Heat. It is the first game in the series to be developed by Criterion since 2013's Rivals, and the studio's first as the main developer of the series since 2012's Need for Speed: Most Wanted.