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Three new Need for Speed games. X360 / PS3 is sim, Wii version is arcade racer.

elkataselkatas Registered User regular
edited January 2009 in Games and Technology
Eurogamer wrote:
Electronic Arts has told Eurogamer that it plans to reinvent the Need for Speed series by launching separate core, casual and 'Play 4 Free' games this year.

Need for Speed: Shift will launch on PC, Xbox 360, PS3 and PSP this autumn - as will Need for Speed: Nitro on Wii and DS. Need for Speed: World Online will be released to the Asian online PC market this summer, before heading West in the winter.

Need for Speed: Shift will be made by Slightly Mad Studios of GT Legends and GTR 2 fame, with help from EA Black Box producer Michael Mann and EA Games Europe bigwig Patrick Soderlund.

Shift focuses on simulation racing - not just the realistic movement of cars, but also driver behaviour. This, EA marketing boss Keith Munro told Eurogamer, is what will set the game apart. Also, less baggy jeans and hip-hop.

"The urban underground was a manifestation of style in some past Need for Speed games for sure, but Shift focuses less on these style cues and more on mirroring the driver experience, that athleticism of being in a wickedly-intense race, and what it really feels like to be behind the wheel," Munro told us.

A flashy 3D HUD that mimics driver head movement, inertia and G-force will help achieve this. There's a cockpit view that lets players freely look around using the right thumbstick, too.

Munro reckons serious car enthusiasts will "love" Shift, and that mainstream racers will also get on board. He's quite excited.

"Need for Speed Shift is amazing and I think it will blow people away," said Munro. "The tech behind that game, the details that only a team with such racing pedigree could accomplish, and the ability to make you feel the intensity of a race is unprecedented. I can't wait for our fans to begin experiencing it!"

And, he added: "Regarding any new Need for Speed girls I can't comment, but I'll definitely mark down one enthusiastic vote for Josie Maran." Steady on.

Need for Speed: Nitro will be created by EA Montreal. Fast and fun arcade racing tops the bill, and will be matched by vibrant and eye-catching visuals, we're told.

"Need for Speed Nitro on the Wii and DS will not be a Mario Kart clone - Nintendo already does an excellent job with that," said Munro.

"Instead, we are evolving the arcade racer with a fresh and unique visual style that is very Need for Speed. The game will be rich and deep and will appeal to experienced arcade racers as well as casual players."

Need for Speed: World Online is the 'Play 4 Free' wild-card, and will be co-developed by series regular Black Box and EA's online studio in Singapore. Released to Asia first, this online PC game will let players pick and customise their choice of licensed vehicles and take on the rest of the world - well, Asia, before heading West after a thumbs-up there.

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Very interesting decision, and could work very well. Getting Slightly Mad Studios to do PS3 / X360 version was a smart move, and so is doing arcade racer for Wii without having PS2 version. Play4Free version could be good way to waste time, but I wonder on which NFS it will be based. Hot Pursuit?

Hypnotically inclined.
elkatas on

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    stigweardstigweard Registered User regular
    edited January 2009
    Shift looks very promising, especially coming from Slightly Mad Studios. GT Legends is one of my favorite racing sims, outdated as it is. I'm sure they will have full G25 support, and I have my fingers crossed that they will have TrackIR support as well.

    stigweard on
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    WillybubbaWillybubba Registered User regular
    edited January 2009
    The screenshot reminds me of GRiD.

    Willybubba on
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    YorkerYorker Registered User regular
    edited January 2009
    This looks good, wish we were getting a third hot pursuit game though, god i spent so much time on those.

    Yorker on
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    AbsoluteZeroAbsoluteZero The new film by Quentin Koopantino Registered User regular
    edited January 2009
    Looks pretty but I can't stand racing sims. Interested to see how Nitro on Wii turns out though.... I'm still waiting on a proper followup to the SF Rush series.

    AbsoluteZero on
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    citizen059citizen059 hello my name is citizen I'm from the InternetRegistered User regular
    edited January 2009
    Now this is something I can approve of. I haven't bought a Need for Speed title since HP2, though I was unfortunate enough to receive Underground as a gift.

    If the team producing Shift can come anywhere near the quality of the GTx games, it's a sure purchase for me.

    And I'll even try NFS:WO, even though as an ex-MCO player I know it'll never compare.

    citizen059 on
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    tofutofu Registered User regular
    edited January 2009
    Most Wanted was an excellent NFS game, I would rate it higher than HP.

    tofu on
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    HyperAquaBlastHyperAquaBlast Registered User regular
    edited January 2009
    Yes Most Wanted is excellent. Has everthing I could want in a racer with real cars.


    I can't do sim games at all. Hopefully this games isn't full on sim but half and half.

    HyperAquaBlast on
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    strebaliciousstrebalicious Registered User regular
    edited January 2009
    Good. I stopped playing the NFS series somewhere around Underground because I hated the rubberband effect that most arcade racers seem to have, causing you to be pixel perfect in your racing. Maybe Shift will bring me back around.

    strebalicious on
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    ZxerolZxerol for the smaller pieces, my shovel wouldn't do so i took off my boot and used my shoeRegistered User regular
    edited January 2009
    Need For Speed started going downhill after they tried to shoehorn retarded stories and shit down into something that really, really did not need it. Sure, I can appreciate cheesy FMVs, braindead stories, and gratuitious T&A eye candy if the game doesn't take itself seriously (see: Red Alert 3), but this "WAAGGH REPUTATION BLING RESPECT YO" bullshit was grating as all hell. Most Wanted is the last where I tolerated it, and mostly because it was a genuinely good game.

    A smack to the head to make it grow back the fuck up is what the series needed.

    Zxerol on
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