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Criterion’s Ditched Ideas Include A Fresh Take On Medal Of Honor

It's always fun to learn about ditched video game projects that almost were.

For example, we know Criterion Games as the racing masters; the team that brought you various Need for Speed and Burnout titles have excelled in the world of virtual driving. But everyone makes mistakes, as illustrated by studio director Alex Ward.

On his Twitter page, he discussed several failed attempts, including a concept that would've been called "Need for Speed: Millionaire." Basically, you hit the lottery and started buying supercars for you and your friends, and "it was supposed to be Freeburn meets Top Gear challenges." Ward said the team struggled to make it work – they even had a playable build – but ultimately ended up making the well-received Hot Pursuit .

Then they tried a new Burnout set on the famous Route 66 . Ward said the team actually rented cars to do it for real but again, it just didn't pan out. Lastly, Criterion tried a different genre: They wanted to make a quasi-open-world Medal of Honor entry that would let the player assume the role of the Germans (oh, all sorts of controversial):

"I once spent a month or so writing up a Medal of Honor game where you played as the Germans. For the first half. Invading England. I was a HUGE MoH fan back in the day. Would have loved a crack at it. Would have gone open world a bit too. And been very British at core."

Yeah, I loved MoH once, too. And this would've been interesting, no doubt. But we're happy that Criterion stuck with the ideas that did work, 'cuz those are great games.

Criterion Not Done With Burnout, But May Opt To Branch Out

Criterion has made a name for itself as being a fantastic studio for racing games.

The Burnout series may top the list for some, but don't forget that Criterion also made Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit and will be responsible for the upcoming Need for Speed: Most Wanted , which is slated to launch on October 30. So what are their plans for the future? More high-octane crowd-pleasing racers?

Well, yes and no. In a recent interview with The Guardian , Criterion creative director Craig Sullivan first said "there's still a lot of stuff we want to do with driving." He added that they will certainly produce another Burnout game, and they'd like to continue to push the boundaries of the genre. But here's perhaps the most interesting quote:

"We might make a Road Rash game…but then we might make a game without vehicles in it. I mean, we made Black, I was the lead designer; we might make a game about blowing the crap out of each other. But Road Rash seems like a good fit for Criterion…"

Dude, Road Rash ! They could make a totally kick-ass game, I think. As for branching out and trying other things, we should probably encourage that for the sake of freshness and creativity. But then again, those racing fans will always want the goodness for which Criterion has become known…

EA Preps A Next-Gen Need For Speed?

We can always use more Need for Speed .

Although Need for Speed: Most Wanted is slated to hit on October 30, Electronic Arts is already looking forward to the next installment in the esteemed racing franchise.

Thanks to an eagle-eyed reader, we turn our attention to EA's Gothenburg's website , where they're looking for people to work on a brand new Need for Speed entry. The message on the main page reads:

"Would you like to be a part of EA? Would you like to work on a game in the Need for Speed franchise? You now have the opportunity to become a part of EA Gothenburg and fulfill those two wishes."

There are no less than 16 positions available, and perhaps the most interesting part is that EA Garthenburg is preparing for the "new generation of games," which sort of implies that this fresh NFS effort will be for next-gen consoles. Now is about the right time to begin staffing up for such a project, as a variety of rumors have hinted at a 2013 launch for either the new Xbox or PlayStation (or both).

Either way, NFS is definitely one of those titles we can't leave behind. It's just too iconic to die.

Criterion To Need For Speed Franchise: “You’re Mine!”

Oh come on. Who didn't picture Shang Tsung saying this to Liu Kang in the first "Mortal Kombat" movie during the final confrontation? You all did.

Anyway, various development studios have taken a crack at EA's vaunted Need for Speed series over the years. Burnout designers Criterion delivered 2010's Hot Pursuit and are currently working on a new Most Wanted , but Black Box stepped up in between to give us The Run . Well, no more trading off. NFS is Criterion's baby now.

As reported by Game Informer , Criterion vice president Alex Ward revealed that from here on out, his team will be charge of making new Need for Speed experiences. He says it's "entirely a Criterion gig now," although this doesn't necessarily mean the team won't ever utilize outside help. Said Ward:

"Going forward now, with Most Wanted and what we'll do in the future [will have], shall we say, a strong Criterion involvement. I'm personally involved in how the cars drive, how the game will play out, how connected they are, and what the features are."

He also added that it would be "amazing" if a big title in the future encompassed several previous NFS titles ( SHIFT , Most Wanted , Underground , Hot Pursuit ); having all such elements in one racing game should be pretty freakin' epic. And if there's one studio that can pull it off…yeah, we'll side with Criterion.

Criterion Working On Need For Speed Or Burnout For Vita?

The Vita could use another great racing game. Wipeout 2048 is fantastic but Ridge Racer (while it got a lot better after release), wasn't quite up to snuff.

Besides, the Need for Speed name is always capable of driving sales, right? Superannuation noticed a job listing for UK studio Criterion Games; it's for a software engineer who will – evidently – work on a new project for Sony's new portable. Few specific details are found.

Apparently, the information included "optimizing and tuning the game resource system for the PS Vita" but since the news, that has been altered to "optimizing and tuning the game resource system for other platforms." Nice attempt at a save, but it's probably too late. Criterion delivered Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit in 2010 and the downloadable Burnout Crash last year, but we haven't heard much from them since.

Maybe a new NFS for the Vita is precisely what they're working on, or at least a new installment that will be available on home consoles as well as the handheld. Then again, maybe it's a new Burnout …we'd be enthusiastic about either, really.

New Dead Space, Need For Speed Arrive Before April 2013

In addition to the $80 million EA is tossing at the new generation , they also handed out some really excellent current-gen news.

The publisher plans to drop new installments in both the Dead Space and Need for Speed installments before this fiscal year ends, which means those titles will be on store shelves before March 31, 2013.

The new NFS entry is slated for the third quarter of the publisher's fiscal year, which means it should drop around October. Dead Space was dubbed as a "blockbuster" game for the new year. There was little doubt that a third Dead Space was coming and of course, Need for Speed can never die.

But we'll definitely want to learn more about both titles. We're wondering what angle they plan to take in the new NFS; more realistic or more arcade-like? As for Dead Space , that redefined the very nature of survival/horror this generation; call it a third-person shooter if you want, but let's face it- These bad boys are basically what Resident Evil could've/should've been.