Need for Speed (NFS) is aracing game franchise published byElectronic Arts and currentlydeveloped byCriterion Games (the developers of theBurnout series).[1] Most entries in the series are generallyarcade racing games centered around illegalstreet racing, and tasks players to complete various types of races, while evading the local law enforcement in police pursuits. Some entries also do not follow the basic setup of most titles and are instead simulation racers, focus on legal circuit races, featurekart racing game elements, or feature illegal street racing but not feature police pursuits.Need for Speed is one of EA's oldest franchises not published under theirEA Sports brand.[2]
The series titles have been overseen and developed by multiple notable teams over the years, includingEA Canada,EA Black Box,Slightly Mad Studios, andGhost Games. SeveralNeed for Speed games have been well-received critically, and the franchise has been one of themost successful of all time, selling over 150 million copies as of October 2013.[3] Thefranchise has expanded into other forms of media, including afilm adaptation and licensedHot Wheels toys.[4]
The UK-basedCriterion Games would develop the 2010Hot Pursuit title; a successor to 1998'sNeed for Speed III: Hot Pursuit. The game introduced a social platform, titled Autolog, which allows players to track game progress, view leaderboards, share screenshots with friends, among other features.[7] The 2010Hot Pursuit game would be well-received; a remastered version was released ten years later in 2020.[8] As a result ofHot Pursuit's critical success, in-contrast to the mixed reception of the Black Box-developed installments since 2007'sNeed for Speed: ProStreet, Criterion would become the lead developer of the franchise going forward.[9] AtE3 2012, Criterion Games vice president Alex Ward announced that random developers would no longer be developingNFS titles. Ward wouldn't confirm that allNeed for Speed games in the future would be developed entirely by Criterion, but he did say the studio would have "strong involvement" in them and would have control over whichNFS titles would be released in the future.[1][10]
In August 2013, following the downsizing of Criterion Games, EA Swedish developerGhost Games would become the main studio for the franchise, and oversee its future development.[11][12] At the time, 80% of Ghost Games' work force consisted of former Criterion Games employees.[11][12] From 2013 to 2019, Ghost Games would developNeed for Speed Rivals,the 2015 franchisereboot, 2017'sNeed for Speed Payback, and 2019'sNeed for Speed Heat. WhileRivals was positively-received, the 2015 reboot and its follow-ups received more mixed reviews.
As part of a larger company organization in September 2023, Criterion Games was shifted from EA Sports to EA Entertainment, with the majority of the studio working to support theBattlefield series, though some of the studio were still assigned to develop the nextNeed for Speed title according to EA's Vince Zampella.[15] EA stated that development on the nextNeed for Speed title had been placed on hold in February 2025, as EA shifted the whole of Criterion onBattlefield 6 and later rebranded Criterion as Criterion – A Battlefield Studio in August 2025, though they plan to bring back the series at a later time.[16][17]
Almost all of the games in theNFS series employ the same fundamental rules and similar mechanics: the player controls arace car in a variety of races, the goal being to win the race. In the tournament/career mode, the player must win a series of races in order to unlock vehicles and tracks. Before each race, the player chooses a vehicle and has the option of selecting either anautomatic ormanual transmission. All games in the series have some form ofmultiplayer mode allowing players to race one another via asplit screen, aLAN or the Internet. SinceNeed for Speed: High Stakes, the series has also integratedcar body customization into gameplay.
Although the games share the same name, their tone and focus can vary significantly. For example, in some games the cars can suffer mechanical and visual damage, while in other games the cars cannot be damaged at all; in some games, the software simulates real-car behavior (physics), while in others there are more forgiving physics.
Need for Speed: Shift and itssequel took asimulator approach to racing, featuring closed-circuit racing on real tracks like theNürburgring andLaguna Seca, as well as the fictional street circuits in various cities likeLondon andChicago. The car lists include a combination of exotics, sports cars, and tuners in addition to special race cars.
Most of the games in the franchise includepolice pursuits in some form or other. In some of the games featuring police pursuit (e.g.Need for Speed III: Hot Pursuit), the player can play as either the felon or the cop.[18] The concepts ofdrifting anddragging were introduced inNeed for Speed: Underground. These new mechanics are included in the tournament/career mode aside from the regular street races. In drift races, in games likeUnderground andNeed for Speed (2015), the player must defeat other racers by totaling the most points, earned by the length and timing of the drift made by the player's vehicle.[19] In drag races, the player must finish first to win the race, though if the player crashes into an obstacle or wall, the race ends.[19] InNeed for Speed Payback, the player has to earn a certain number of points to win; increase their multiplier based on how many points they get, whilst passing through a limited number of checkpoints.[20]
The concept ofcar tuning evolved with each new game, from focusing mainly on the mechanics of the car to including how the car looks. Each game exceptNeed for Speed: Hot Pursuit has car tuning which can set options for items likeABS,traction control, ordownforce, or for upgrading parts like the engine or gearbox. Visual tuning of the player's car becomes important in tournament/career mode after the release ofNeed for Speed: Underground 2, when the appearance is rated from zero to ten points. When a car attains a high enough visual rating, the vehicle is eligible to be on the cover of a fictional magazine.[21]
Originally the series took place in international settings, such asrace tracks inAustralia,Europe, andAfrica.[23] Beginning withUnderground, the series has taken place in fictionalmetropolitan cities.[24] The first game featuredtraffic on "head to head" mode, while later games traffic can be toggled on and off, and starting withUnderground, traffic is a fixed obstacle.[24] Most of the recentNeed for Speed games are set in fictional locations of our world, in a number of different time periods. These include, but are not limited to, Olympic, Bayview, Rockport, Palmont City, Tri-City Bay, Seacrest County, Fairhaven City, Redview County, Ventura Bay, Fortune Valley, Palm City and Lakeshore City.
Known asNeed for Speed: Road Challenge in most European countries and Brazil,Need for Speed: Conduite en état de liberté in France,Need for Speed: Brennender Asphalt in Germany, andOver Drivin' IV in Japan.
Known asNeed for Speed: Porsche 2000 in most European countries, Brazil, Australia and Asian markets, and asNeed for Speed: Porsche in Germany and most of Latin America.
Revival of theHot Pursuit name. Later was remastered in November 2020, prior to the 10th anniversary of this release (first remastered title in the franchise).
The originalNeed for Speed was released for3DO in 1994 with versions released forMS-DOS (1995),PlayStation, andSaturn (1996) following shortly afterwards.The Need for Speed and itsSpecial Edition were the only games in the series to support DOS, with subsequent releases for the PC running only on Windows (excludingNeed for Speed: Carbon which was also released on Mac OS X).
The first installment ofThe Need for Speed was the only serious attempt by the series to provide a realistic simulation of car handling elements through the direct collaboration of Staff members fromRoad & Track. Electronic Arts left the handling dynamics tuning with the automotive magazine's seasoned drivers to match vehicle behavior including realistic over and understeer that remains impressive decades later, as well as sounds made by the vehicles' gear control levers and other functions. The game contained vehicle data with spoken commentary, several "magazine-style" images of each car, and short video clips highlighting the vehicles set to music. Most cars and tracks are available at the beginning of the game, and the objective is to unlock the remaining locked content by winning tournaments. This version featured chases by police cars, a popular theme throughout the series.
Another version calledThe Need for Speed: Special Edition, was released only for the PC in 1996. It featured support forDirectX 2 andTCP/IP networking, two new tracks, but dropped the ever-popular flip and go in favor of the more generic scene reset after an accident, a portents of the arcade-style gaming that would dominate the series ever after.
Need for Speed II (NFS II) featured some rare and exotic vehicles, including theFord Indigo concept vehicle, and featured country-themed tracks from North America, Europe, Asia, and Australia. A new racing mode was also introduced, dubbed "Knockout", where the last racers to finish laps will be eliminated. In addition, track design was more open-ended; players could now "drive" off the asphalt, and cut across fields to take advantage of shortcuts.Need for Speed II: Special Edition includes one extra track, extra cars, and support forGlide. The PlayStation port ofNFS II also took advantage of theNeGcon controller, and theDual Analog andDualShock controllers as well.
Need for Speed III: Hot Pursuit addedHot Pursuit mode, where the player either attempted to outrun the police or be the cop, arresting speeders.NFS III took advantage of the multimedia capabilities by featuring audio commentary, picture slideshows, and music videos. This game was the first in the series to allow the downloading of additional cars from the official website. As a result,modding communities sprang up to create vehicles. The PC version was also the first game in the series to support Direct3D hardware.
High Stakes, developed by EA Canada and EA Seattle, was released in 1999. The game features more realistic elements than its predecessors and introduced a damage system that allows cars to take damage when colliding with objects, affecting their appearance and performance. It also introduced a series of economy-based tournaments, awarding players with a cash prize that can be spent on repairing, purchasing, or upgrading cars for subsequent races. The game's Hot Pursuit mode, which was introduced inHot Pursuit, was expanded with more options, allowing players to control police pursuits attempting to stop racers.
Porsche Unleashed (North America and Latin America title),Porsche 2000 (European and Australian title), or simplyPorsche (in Germany) is different from the previous versions because it featured onlyPorsches.
The vehicle handling in the PC version was said to be the most realistic in anyNFS game, but the PSX (PS1) version had very simplified arcade handling that fell woefully short of the hallmark handling offered in the first game. The player had to win races to unlock cars in chronological order from 1950 to 2000.Porsche Unleashed also featured a Factory Driver mode, where the player had to test Porsches to move forward in the game and did not feature a split-screen mode.
Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit 2 was the debut NFS title fromEA Black Box, and the firstNFS for thesixth generation consoles. Different versions of the game were produced for each platform. TheXbox,GameCube, andMicrosoft Windows versions were developed by EA Seattle, while the PS2 version was developed by Black Box Games in Vancouver.
Hot Pursuit 2 draws primarily from the gameplay and style ofNFS III, putting emphasis on evading the police and over-the-top tracks. Although the game allowed players to play as the police, the pursuit mode was less realistic than preceding versions ofNFS; players merely needed to "tap" a speeder to arrest them, as opposed to using simulated police tactics to immobilize a speeding vehicle. This was the first version since the start of the series not to feature an "in the driving seat" (cockpit) camera view, transitioning EA from realistic racing to arcade street racing. It was the last game in the series for the PC version to feature the split-screen two-player mode introduced inNeed for Speed II. For the multiplayer mode of the PC version,GameSpy's internet matchmaking system was used in place of Local Area Network (LAN) play.Hot Pursuit 2 was the firstNFS game to use songs sung by licensed artists under the EA Trax label.
Need for Speed: Underground was developed by EA Black Box and released in 2003. On PC, this was the firstNFS game to require Hardware Transform and Lighting in graphics cards. Most of the new elements inUnderground became defining marks of later installments in theNeed for Speed series.
Underground shifted from semi-professional racing and isolated circuits to thestreet racing style of otherarcade racing series: all circuits became part of a single map, Olympic City, except for drifts.Underground introduced two new play modes (Drag and Drift) and more tuning options than in the earlierHigh Stakes.Underground was also the first game in the series to feature a story, told viapre-rendered videos.Underground features tuner cars and has a wide variety of tuning options such as widebody kits, bumpers, spoilers, as well as performance upgrades such as engines andnitrous. City street racing is the primary focus of the game. There are no police inUnderground andUnderground 2, which drew criticism as police had been an important part of previous titles.
Need for Speed: Underground 2, was developed by EA Black Box and released in 2004. A demo of the game was placed as a bonus in copies of the EA/Criterion collaborationBurnout 3: Takedown.
InUnderground 2, the story mode continued, but there were new racing modes such as Underground Racing League and Street X, more tuning options, and a new method of selecting races. Also included was an "outrun" mode where a player can challenge random opponents on the road (similar toTokyo Xtreme Racer).Underground 2 also introduced severalSUVs, used to race against other SUVs. The most significant change vs. the originalUnderground was the introduction of its open world (free roam) environments,[126] setting the tone for numerous NFS games to come. This was also the publisher's most marketed feature at launch. In addition, the game featured actresses/modelsBrooke Burke andKelly Brook as in-game characters to help guide the player through the campaign.[127]
The customization features were significantly expanded on modifications that did not affect vehicle performance. Players were required to customize their car to a certain numerical value in order to be offered DVD and magazine covers, the only way to advance to higher game levels. The game featured more extensiveproduct placement for companies with no connection to auto racing. This game also had extensive customization options in the form of suspension upgrades, nitrous systems, and engine mods.
Need for Speed: Underground Rivals was the firstNeed for Speed game released on the PlayStation Portable. Different fromNeed for Speed: Underground 2 as it had no free roam and the cars were very limited, it was released in 2005.
Police chases represent a significant body of the gameplay, and includes thefree-roaming aspect ofUnderground 2, but with less extensive vehicle customization features. The story mode is a different style fromUnderground, with CGI effects mixed with live-action. The game featured the Blacklist, a crew consisting of 15 racers that the player must beat one-by-one to unlock parts, cars, tracks, and to complete career mode. The player had to meet certain requirements before they could take on the next Blacklist rival, such as races completed, milestones achieved, and bounty earned.
A specialBlack Edition ofMost Wanted was also released, featuring additional races, challenges, and a few bonus cars; it also included a behind-the-scenesDVD. Both versions were available for the PlayStation 2, Xbox, and Windows-based PCs, while only the standard edition was available for GameCube, Nintendo DS, and Xbox 360.
Most Wanted had extremely positive reviews and received universal acclaim from reviewers in many gaming websites and magazines, praising the graphics, sound effects, and general gameplay. With 16 million copies sold worldwide,Most Wanted is the best-selling game in the franchise.[128] A game, also namedNeed for Speed: Most Wanted, was released in 2012 with British developerCriterion Games responsible for the development.
NFS: Carbon continued the story fromMost Wanted, but the game has far less emphasis on the police.Carbon saw the return of nighttime-only racing, with a selection of cars similar to that ofMost Wanted.Carbon introduced a new feature wherein the player is allowed to form a "crew" that aids the player in races. Drift events returned to the series inCarbon. Drag racing was removed from the series, but a new type of race called "Canyon Duel" was added, where the closer the player is to the leader, the more points they accrue. If the player overtakes the leader and remains in front for 10 seconds, they win automatically. Another new feature is "Autosculpt", which allows players to custom-fabricate their own auto parts.
The Collector's Edition features three new cars, ten specially tuned cars, six new races, and a bonus DVD with behind-the-scenes footage on the making of the game.
Need for Speed: ProStreet, developed by EA Black Box, was released in 2007. Key features of the game included realistic damage, a return torealistic racing, modeling, and burnouts.[129][130] The game lacked the free roam mode found in earlier releases, instead, all of the races were on closed race tracks that took place on organized race days. The game consisted of drag races, speed challenges (essentially sprint races and speed traps), grip races (circuit racing), and drift races.
Need for Speed: Undercover, developed by EA Black Box, was released in 2008. The game had a significantly longer development cycle than previous games, taking 16 months to develop.[131] EA portedUndercover to various mobile devices. It was the lastNeed for Speed game forPlayStation 2. EA Games president Frank Gibeau stated that since sales ofProStreet did not live up to EA's projections, the franchise would go back to its "roots". However, the game received lower scores on aggregate thanProStreet.
The game focused on tuning and police chases, featured over 50 cars, and took place in a fictional city called Tri-City Bay. The player's role was as an undercover cop, trying to stop street racers. Containing live-action cutscenes that feature the actressMaggie Q, the game also featured a damage system where parts could break off after a crash.
TheCollector's Edition for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 added another five new cars, twelve new circuits, and sprint and checkpoint track configurations. Also included were specially tuned versions of ten existing cars, plus 35 exclusive vinyls for adding a unique visual style.
Need for Speed: Shift, developed by Slightly Mad Studios, was released in 2009. It features over 60 cars and 19 tracks, some of which are licensed tracks while others are fictional. The improved driving simulation was accompanied by an adaptive difficulty, while it reintroduced a cockpit view.NFS: Shift focused on racing simulation rather than the arcade racing of previous titles.
NFS: Shift received better reviews than the prior three games in the series. TheSpecial Edition contained a specially-tuned BMW M3 GT2, and an Elite Series track. Two items of downloadable content were released for the game.
Need for Speed: Nitro is the firstNFS game made exclusively forNintendo DS andWii, featuring arcade-style gameplay and targeting a casual audience, released in 2009.Need for Speed: Nitro was also available as a social multiplayer game on Facebook.[132]
Need for Speed: Nitro-X (2010) is a newer installment for use with theDSi/XL and the3DS system. Essentially the original release, it was updated with several updates: 18 licensed vehicles; new police units; custom tags; 16 updated tracks; a revised career mode; local multiplayer matches for up to four players; and new rewards and unlockables. The game was released as a digital download only, released in 2010.
Need for Speed: World was afree-to-playMMO racing game forWindows-basedPCs. It took on the gameplay style ofMost Wanted andCarbon, focusing on illegal street racing, tuning and police chases, and adding classic MMO elements to the mix.World incorporated almost exact replicas of the cities of Rockport and Palmont, the cities ofMost Wanted andCarbon respectively, into its map design.World was originally scheduled for an Asian release in the summer of 2009, but the game was not released at that time and it was released worldwide in 2010.[133][134] The game was in public beta-testing limited to residents of Taiwan in October 2009
Need for Speed World closed its servers in July 2015. They soon after removed the ability to create new accounts for the game and began winding down their support for it. Leading up to closure, there were several "end of the world" promotions and in-game events held.[135]
Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit was developed by British games developer Criterion Games and published by Electronic Arts in 2010.[136] It focuses on racing and police chases rather than car customization. The game won many awards at the E3 2010, including "Best Racing Game", becoming the first game in theNFS series since the originalHot Pursuit to win anE3 award.
There were over 60 cars, most available to both racers and cops, but a few were exclusive to either side.[137] Unlike previousNFS titles, there was no customization, and the game takes place in a fictional rural area called Seacrest County, which the "free roam" feature lets you explore.Hot Pursuit allows play as either police or racer. The game also features many weapons, with some exclusive to the cops or racers. The biggest feature introduced was Autolog, which tracked player progressions and recommended events to play. In addition to its statistical system, Autolog also featuresFacebook-like speedwalls where players can post their comments and photos while in the game.Hot Pursuit has received some of the best reviews of the series.
TheLimited Edition gives players exclusive access to theAlfa Romeo 8C Competizione and FordShelby GT500. Various downloadable content was released for the game.
A remastered version of the game,Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit Remastered, was released in November 2020 forPlayStation 4,Xbox One,Nintendo Switch, and Microsoft Windows.[138] It features cross-platform multiplayer, enhanced visuals, quality-of-life improvements, all main DLC from the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 versions, the return of Autolog, and 4K support for PlayStation 4 Pro, Xbox One X, and Windows.[138]
The sequel toNeed for Speed: Shift,Shift 2: Unleashed was developed bySlightly Mad Studios, and released in 2011.Shift 2 includes theAutolog feature introduced inHot Pursuit.[139] It also includes features such as night racing, an in-helmet camera, and a more in-depth career mode.Shift 2 features more than 140 vehicles available for racing and tuning, a smaller number compared with other racing games such asForza Motorsport 3 andGran Turismo 5. There are also 40 real-world locations including Bathurst, Spa-Francorchamps and Suzuka as well as fictional circuits.
TheLimited Edition features three unlocked cars, and an additional 37 career race events.[140] Two downloadable contents were released forShift 2.
Need for Speed: The Run was developed by EA Black Box, and released in 2011. The game continued the street-racing gameplay of Black Box's previous titles, with a story based on a race across the United States from San Francisco to New York.
The game featuredquick time events with the player, for the first time inNFS history, exiting their car and traveling on foot.The Run was powered byDICE'sFrostbite 2engine, making the game the first non-shooter and one of the first console titles to use the engine. Additionally, theNFSAutolog was also used in the game.
The Run employs a large range of real-world vehicles, which can be altered with visual upgrades. An XP (Experience points) system is used for unlocking cars and events. TheLimited Edition features three exclusive cars and five exclusive challenges with bonus rewards and achievements.
Need for Speed: Most Wanted was developed by British games developer Criterion Games, and released in 2012. The game picked up on theMost Wanted IP, as opposed to theHot Pursuit extension.[141] This was the first game made subsequent to Criterion Games taking over theNFS series from Black Box.
It features open-world racing, and most of the cars in the game are available from the start, hidden in different locations.[142] It also features a blacklist of 10 instead of 15, and there is no story or visual customization for the game. It is powered by Autolog 2.0. Performance upgrades are available for all the cars in the game, such as chassis, tires, nitrous, and bodywork.[143] Milestones and achievements are unlocked through a variety of ways, e.g. completion of races and breaking through billboards.
Need for Speed: Rivals was developed byGhost Games (formerly EA Gothenburg) in association with Criterion Games, and was released in 2013 for thePlayStation 4,[144] Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360,[144] andXbox One.[144] It runs onDICE'sFrostbite 3 Engine. It has the same basic concept asNeed for Speed: Hot Pursuit, but with new features like the AllDrive system, and several pursuit techs.
Need for Speed: No Limits was released in 2015 foriOS andAndroid, and a mobile installment in theNeed for Speed video game series, developed byFiremonkeys Studios and published by Electronic Arts. It is the franchise's first original title made exclusively for mobile devices, unlike past mobile games in the series that were simply adaptations of variousNeed for Speed games.
A full reboot of the franchise developed by Ghost Games, the game was released in 2015 for PlayStation 4 andXbox One, with a release for Microsoft Windows viaOrigin in 2016.
Set in Ventura Bay, the game has five different gameplay styles in which points are collected in order to progress through five overlapping storylines, in addition having a redesigned 'Wrap Editor' and body car modifications.
The PC version was released in 2016 via Origin in two different editions. The Standard Edition is the base edition, whereas the Deluxe Edition has the styling pack, performance pack, tricked-out starter car, exclusive wraps, unique identifying stickers, VIP icons, and a lifetime discount on all items using the in-game currency.[145]
EA and Ghost Games releasedNeed for Speed Payback in 2017 for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One. The game has an offline single-player mode unlike theprevious title.[146]Payback is set in Fortune Valley. The game is focused on "action driving" and has three playable characters (each with different sets of skills) working together to pull off action movie-like sequences, in addition having a 24-hour day-night cycle.
Need for Speed Heat was released in 2019 for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One.[147][148][149] The game is set in Palm City. Unlike the previous title, which featured a full day-night cycle, the time of day can be switched when needed between a day and night period, with each period offering different races and payouts.Heat is similar to other titles and features a "Heat" system in which players earn rep when participating in police pursuits, with greater amounts offered during night than in the day. This was the last title released by Ghost Games before its dissolution in 2020, after which Criterion took full creative oversight of the franchise.
Revealed byEA in October 2022,Need for Speed Unbound is developed byCriterion with assistance fromCodemasters. The game features acel-shaded art style for its characters and vehicle effects while retaining the photo-realistic look of the cars from previous games. The map is based in a fictional city inspired byChicago called Lakeshore City. The game was released on thePlayStation 5,Xbox Series X/S andPC on December 2, 2022. American rapperASAP Rocky appears as a character in the storyline, driving a modifiedMercedes 190E.[150]
WhenV-Rally was released in 1997, it was developed byInfogrames Multimedia and had no connection with theNeed for Speed games. Electronic Arts acquired the rights to publish the PlayStation version of the game in the United States in order to help sales of the game, due to the fact thatrally racing held little support in the U.S. The game was not originally intended to be part of theNeed for Speed series; neither the game's development was done byElectronic Arts Canada (which at the time was the primary developer of theNeed for Speed series), nor was it developed in as association with Electronic Arts in any way. Later versions of the game were solely published byInfogrames and were released under their original names.
In the late 1990s, EA Canada partnered withParadigm to work on an entry in the series for theNintendo 64. It was described in theNext Generation magazine as having exclusive tracks and vehicles, Rumble Pak support and the series' trademark gameplay mechanics.[151] The game was ultimately canceled between late 1998 and early 1999. Electronic Arts had signed a deal with Volkswagen to make a game around theNew Beetle, thus altering theNeed for Speed 64 project intoBeetle Adventure Racing.[152]
Much like with the originalV-Rally, EA purchased the rights to publish the PlayStation version ofV-Rally 2 in North America. Infogrames published the Dreamcast version of the game in North America asTest Drive: V-Rally. Later games in the series would have no connections to eitherNeed for Speed orTest Drive.
At the time of the beginning of the development ofPorsche Unleashed, Electronic Arts was planning to make similar games with Ferrari and BMW. Because EA Canada would developPorsche Unleashed, EA Seattle was counting on developing the Ferrari game, although this idea was canceled even before the release ofPorsche Unleashed.[153]
Need for Speed: Web Racing was an online-only conversion ofNeed for Speed III: Hot Pursuit made available in 2001 as part of EA.com's Platinum service. 11 cars and various courses fromNeed for Speed III were included, as well as one course from the firstNeed for Speed. Single-player and Multiplayer modes were made available.[154][155]
Originally conceived as part of theNeed for Speed series under the titleNeed for Speed: Motor City,[156] during development all single-player elements would be discarded in favor of an online-only model. The result,Motor City Online, was aracingMMO game released by EA on October 29, 2001. The point of the game was to buy classic cars, tune them, and race them against other players. The game went offline less than two years later to enable EA to focus onThe Sims Online. Later, EA would develop a new online racing game, calledNeed for Speed: World.[157]
Need for Speed: Top Speed was an online-only promotional racing game released on October 1, 2002, as part of EA Pogo and America Online's online-only AOL Games' First Play programming initiative. Made to promote both MacGillivray Freeman's 2002 IMAX filmTop Speed and the then-new Porsche Cayenne Turbo, the game uses three existing courses fromPorsche Unleashed renamed to refer to Canadian locations due to the sponsorship of Travel Alberta Canada.[158]
Need for Speed: Underground Rivals was released for thePlayStation Portable (PSP) in 2005 inJapan in February, theUnited States in March, andEurope in September. In terms of design, the game was very similar to theUnderground series, allowing players to select and drive cars acquired in the garage, as well as customize them (car parts, spoilers, etc.). The game featured a couple of new musical tracks, and some others from previousNeed for Speed games.[159]
Need for Speed: Most Wanted 5-1-0 is aPlayStation Portable spin-off ofMost Wanted, released on the same day as its console and PC counterpart. Similar toMost Wanted,Most Wanted 5-1-0 features a similar 15-number blacklist and Career mode, with the addition of Tuner Takedown, a "Be the Cop" mode not found inMost Wanted.Most Wanted 5-1-0 lacks many elements of its console and PC counterparts, such as cutscenes, a storyline, and a free-roam mode, and contains minor differences (including the inclusion of a blacklist racer's real name instead of their nickname). The game's title is based on the numbers 5-1-0, which is the police code for street racing.
Need for Speed 10: TerrorFive was a concept pitched to Electronic Arts around 2008. The portfolio page of a former presentation director of EA Black Box says the "goal" of the game was to answer the question "How can large scale street races take place in a post 911 US city?" Concept art depicts a group of street racers named "TerrorFive", alongside a mockup of gameplay in which players seemingly hack into police cars.[160][161][162]
Need for Speed: Millionaire was a canceled online-only entry developed by Criterion Games, which started development around 2008 after the release ofBurnout Paradise andNeed For Speed: Undercover. It would have seen the player and friends go on adventures after a lottery win and the purchase of many supercars, described by Criterion director Alex Ward as "Freeburn meetsTop Gear challenges". The game was worked on for six months and had a playable version, but was canceled in favor ofNeed for Speed: Hot Pursuit.[163][164]
Need for Speed: Edge was afree-to-playMMO racing game developed by EA Spearhead (formerly EA Korea) and published by Nexon from South Korea andTencent Interactive Entertainment (known asNeed for Speed Online) from China. It is the third free-to-play game in the franchise overall, along with being the only free-to-play racing game that runs on theFrostbite 3 game engine. The PC version is based on the 2013 titleNeed for Speed Rivals, while the mobile version (sometimes referred to asNeed for Speed: Duel) is based onNeed for Speed: No Limits.[165] Released on December 14, 2017.[166] Nexon shut down the game on May 30, 2019.[167]
Need for Speed Mobile (known asNeed for Speed: Assemble in China, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau) is afree-to-playOpen worldracingmobile game developed byTiMi Studios and published byElectronic Arts for worldwide andTencent Interactive Entertainment for China andGarena for Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau.[168] The game runs on theUnreal Engine 4, this is the first and also only game which runs on Unreal Engine in the series. The game released on July 11, 2024 in China,[169] and released on October 31, 2024 in Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau.[170]
EA worked withDreamWorks Pictures to create a film version ofNeed for Speed starringAaron Paul as Tobey Marshall, a mechanic and street racer who was framed by a wealthy business associate.[171][172] The movie was released byDisney'sTouchstone Pictures on March 14, 2014, months before the franchise's 20th anniversary. Despite receiving negative reviews, the film ended up grossing over $200 million at the worldwide box office.
In April 2015, a sequel was reported to be produced byChina Movie Channel, Jiaflix, and 1905.com in association with EA Games.[173][174]
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