Need for Speed developer, Criterion Games, is apparently axing its cross-gen compatibility. According to VentureBeat’s Jeff Grubb Giant Bomb show, Grubbsnax (via VGC), the game is coming out this year and even dropped the month that it’s slated to release. While that’s all well and good, apparently it can’t be just good news when it comes to EA games.
He did clarify that Criterion axed the past-gen versions in favor of an exclusively current-gen experience.
“Need for Speed is still coming this year… that’s true, that game should be coming in November. If you are a Need for Speed fan who has bought a next-gen console, here’s some news; it’s next-gen only. They are shifting to next-gen only.”
Of course, this is just a rumor, but with the long rumor-turned-real track record, Grubb’s claim wouldn’t be too shocking. Last year, we already saw the game get delayed and Criterion Games got put on the roster as a support studio for Battlefield 2042.
EA did assure fans that the studio was still hard at work making the next Need for Speed entry and it would release in 2022 on both current and past-gen consoles. But, we suppose EA changed their minds and felt like going all the way and only supporting current-gen consoles was the smarter move. If all Grubb says is true, it’s gonna get its time in the spotlight sometime in November.
With next to no notice, Electronic Arts made the executive decision to pull several Need for Speed games from the market as well as shutter their severs.
One of the game’s developers took to Reddit to announce this and assure fans “decisions to retire games are never made easy.” They continued it by noting they are “shifting gears” (not sure if that pun was intentional or not) towards the franchise’s future.
You can still play the games if you already own them and race against your friends or foes to your hearts content until EA shutters their online servers August 31. If you for some reason can’t live without your Need for Speed fix, you can still play the games offline.
Despite its seemingly unwavering, and unending, popularity the Need for Speed franchise has really fallen off my radar since 2012’s Most Wanted. The further the franchise strayed from the stripped down thrills of earlier entries into attempts at recreating the Fast and Furious universe, the more my interest waned, especially as Forza Horizon jumped into the fray and quickly became king of the arcade racing hill. So it wasn’t with a whole lot of excitement that I dipped my toes back into Ghost Games and EA’s latest addition but, for the most part, Need for Speed Heat has done an admirable job of bringing me back into the fold, despite making some pretty bad first impressions.
KICK THE TIRES
On the surface, Heat looks like a pretty shallow makeover of previous games that uses neon lights and 80s vibes to gloss over any lack of ambition in game design, and the first hour of the game did nothing to allay those suspicions. I spent much of those first 60 minutes watching boring cutscenes, following brain-dead NPCs and fighting the urge to throw my controller as I searched in vain for even some basic control options.
The story in Heat is abysmal, let’s just get that out of the way. You’re likely to hate every minute you’re required to watch these characters awkwardly trying to connect with each other over the thrill of illegal street racing, as if you haven’t seen this plot done better half a dozen times. I hope, if EA goes this route again, they just bite the bullet and license Vin Diesel and Dwayne Johnson’s talents; at least then it would be entertainingly stupid, instead of just aggravatingly boring.
The default control options in this game infuriated me. The steering sensitivity turned my allegedly nimble Nissan 180SX into a boat, and I could find no place in the options to even adjust it. The default drift method made absolutely no sense to me (my 11 year old, however, had no issue with it, so perhaps this is just a case of Old Man Yells at Cloud) Turns out that’s because you’re not even given the option to adjust those controls until you’ve completed several races, for some reason. It’d have been nice to know that going in, so I didn’t waste so much time feeling old and blind. The end result was almost demoralizing as this racing junkie retried the tutorial race repeatedly, wondering why I couldn’t even break into the middle of the pack. Eventually I took the L and just moved on; by then even more story was starting to sound appealing.
LIGHT THE FIRES
Once the game stops bothering you with its undercooked plot, takes the training wheels off, allows you to tailor your controls to your specific tastes and lets you loose on the streets of Palm City, things change for the better in a hurry. I was able to tweak not only my steering sensitivity but also the amount of downforce my car was allowed to endure. More importantly I was allowed to swap out drift styles and go back to the tried-and-true method of mashing your Square button to get sideways in an instant. Soon enough I was putting opposing crews in my rearview with regularity, and having a damn good time doing it. I’ve never liked the way NFS does boosting, though, and unfortunately this game is no different. Boost takes forever to build and is largely ineffective in its use, especially since your AI opponents seem to “anticipate” your use of it by matching with their own boost, regardless of track position or circumstance or whether it makes any sense for them to do so. More importantly, the core thrill of arcade racing that made this franchise so popular feels like it’s back in form for the first time in years. Heat, more than any arcade racer I’ve played in recent memory, delivers a true sense of speed and danger, especially when you’re weaving through oncoming traffic at high velocity; there’s a genuine sense of the displaced air and that momentary sway of your car before you course-correct that lends a surprising amount of authenticity to a game that otherwise plays fast and loose with the laws of physics.
HOT FUZZ
You split your time in Palm City in a revolving day/night cycle trying to do two disparate but equally important things: earn Bank and accrue Rep (because this is Need for Speed and normal words for things don’t apply). Bank is money you earn during the daytime to buy new cars and upgrade existing ones. All the classic toys are back, such as radar jammers, and a few new additions and surprises. Rep unlocks new Night events, as well as new customization options for all the cars in your garage. It can only be won at night, when the cops apparently finally wake up and decide to chase you after everyone’s gone to bed and the streets are empty of pending civil lawsuits. Rep can be earned simply by winning races, but to really rack up the points you’re going to need those cops, and lots of them. Every Heat level you earn (up to Level 5, similar to previous games) while being chased by cops acts as a Rep multiplier, so if they’re going to be chasing you anyway, you may as well knock a few cruisers into the water or smash them into buildings on your way.
The higher the Heat, the more aggressive the cops get, the more potential rewards await. It’s a classic gameplay loop, but it’s executed incredibly well in Heat, such that I honestly spent most of my time in game simply cruising around town at night looking for cops to antagonize, just begging them to come get some. After particularly strong showings against them I’d run back to my garage or safe house to call it a night, because Rep can only be successfully and permanently earned at the end of a night cycle; get busted at any point before that and Ghost Games forces you to watch as the police gleefully strip you of all your hard work.
LOOKING SLICK
Need for Speed Heat’s visual aesthetic also won me over eventually, if only because it so earnestly tries to recreate Miami nightlife, or at least the Hollywood ideal of it. There’s more pink neon than you can shake a fist at, and it always seems to be raining at night no matter what, but it’s a killer retro look for children who grew up on Miami Vice reruns. The car models could use work, however, not necessarily because they’re bad so much as they simply pale in comparison to other games out there such as Forza Horizon 4 or Gran Turismo Sport. When you’re blitzing through downtown at 100mph, though, it’s kind of hard to care.
HOT LAPS, BUT NOT MUCH ELSE
Ultimately my biggest complaint with the gameplay in Heat is the lack of variety and options. Outside of your basic circuit and sprint races, there’s not much to do. There are billboards to smash and collect, and speed traps to set off among others, and completing each of these little side missions can reward you with seriously impressive machinery, but coming off the heels of Forza Horizon 4’s big British playground where the fun is mostly limited to your imagination, Heat feels a bit confining.
Chances are you already know if this game is for you. It’s Need for Speed through and through, for better or worse, but the execution is far better here than the last few attempts I’ve made to dive back in. If you’re looking for classic, core arcade racing without a lot of frills and don’t mind a story mode that is distracting at best, you could do worse with your $60 than Need for Speed Heat. Problem is, you can also do better.
Well, it’s official, E3 2017 has started and it started with EA’s conference EA Play Saturday afternoon. Overall the conference was a bit slow at points but it had some good moments. There are only a couple of new announcements but we got a good look at what’s to come from the big company. Let’s take a look at the announcements they made at the conference.
EA spent a good chunk of the conference showcasing the second installment of Battlefront. There are all kinds of improvements to the second game and they took into account all of the feedback they received for the first game. Which I commend them for. There will be a lot more customization such as customizing your character, vehicles, and more characters (including the amazing to watch Darth Maul). There is also a story mode that bridges the gap between the 6th and 7th movies.
Although Battlefront wasn’t a game I got into myself, this looks pretty enticing. I like Star Wars but I’m not a huge multiplayer fan so I’m still on the fence. But I think it looks good and although it was hard to get a feel of what it’s like to play, the footage of the live play through had some really cool moments in it.
We just posted about this game recently and it’s no surprise to see it show up at E3. They showed a gameplay trailer that showed off some of the action. I was a little on one side of the fence (aka probably not interested) at first but after watching the gameplay video I’m a little more on the fence now. The footage reminds me of the older games with the sense of speed and exciting car chases. Maybe I’ve been out of the Need for Speed loop for too long but, EA, you now have my attention.
This was one of their new announcements and it was quite a short teaser. It’s Bioware’s newest game and seems to have a bit of a Destiny vibe mixed with Evolved. The teaser didn’t really tell us a whole lot but there will be a longer trailer later today at the Microsoft conference.
A Way Out is the other new announcement and one of the more interesting ones. The game is made by the creators of Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons which was a pretty cool game that came out a few years ago. A Way Out starts out as a prison break game but what makes this game interesting is the bold decision to make it only a co-op game.
Unlike Brothers you have to play with someone else to play the game. It’s an interesting choice but I think it makes sense. You and a friend can be doing two completely different things in the game. While you can play online, it’s recommended you play local co-op. It’s an interesting decision to say the least. Whether having mandatory co-op turns out to be a good or bad thing remains to be seen but I think the game looks pretty interesting anyway
Battlefield is another game that looks fun but I’ve never played it. But if you are a fan of the game it looks like you have some neat stuff to look forward to. Night maps take place, of course, at night and add a new dynamic and strategy to the game play. The biggest expansion is the In the Name of the Tsar DLC that takes place in the wintry world of Russia. You’ll get more vehicles and unit types as well as new locations. Looks pretty cool.
EA Sports
Of course it wouldn’t be EA without their annual sports games. Both Madden 18 and Fifa 18 include a story mode which actually look halfway interesting. And NBA Live 18 combines both street ball and the official court allowing you to get a reputation on the streets as well. I’m the wrong person to ask about sports games but I think some of these new additions look interesting. I think a good story could be really good for drawing people in.
The EA conference was a mixed bag but I did find myself a little interested in a couple games that I was probably just going to blow off before. Namely Battlefront and Need for Speed. Not a bad start to E3 overall.
What do you think of the EA announcements? Are you excited for anything they are coming out with? Changed your mind on anything?
A few days ago Electronic Arts revealed the latest in the Need for Speed series called Payback . It’s been a few years since we’ve seen a new entry into the series. It was in 2015 that they attempted to revitalize the series by releasing Need for Speed to hit or miss reviews.
Payback is adding a bit more of a story to the game. It includes a single player campaign that can be played completely offline. You play as one of three characters who are teaming up in a revenge story against a criminal underworld. Hence the title I suppose. According to EA you can expect a lot of “intense heist missions, high stakes car battles, epic cop pursuits and jaw dropping set pieces.”
It is an open world game and car customization will definitely be a thing in Payback. There are plenty of licensed cars as well. As is per usual for the series. There are also plenty of goodies if you get the special edition of the game including souped variations of cars.
Need for Speed has been around for quite a long time. The first game debuted on the original Playstation in 1994 and it’s one of the few racing games I got into. I think the police chases were a pretty awesome game mechanic. I may try Payday at some point or another if it does well. I’m not feeling the Fast and Furious vibe all that much though. Not to bash the movies or anything but I feel like they could get a little more creative.
Need for Speed Payback comes out on November 10th. Check out the PS4 launch trailer below.
What do you think? Are you a fan of the series? Is the Fast and Furious vibe to your liking?
All you had to do to enter was leave a comment under the original article, and it might've helped if you Liked us on Facebook and Followed us on Twitter. Although really, all I did was start scrolling up and down among the comments, close my eyes, and point. Now, strictly from a logical perspective, this meant that if you wrote a bit more about why you wanted these games, you had more of a chance to win, 'cuz your comment would've taken up more space. 😉
But perhaps karma intervened, too, because I think the winner had a pretty solid story behind his entry. And it's:
sawao_yamanaka
If he could email me at bdutka[at]psxextreme.com , I'll send over the codes. Just a reminder, sawao, these will only work on a North American PlayStation 4 console. If you don't reside in the region, I'll have to pick another winner. If you do, congrats!
And by the way, it's feasible I'll have more codes to give away during the holiday season, so stay tuned…
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