The Need For Speed Franchise May Be On Life Support

The Breakdown

• The studio behind the latest Need for Speed video game is ‘solely focused on Battlefield.’
• The last Need for Speed game launched in 2022.  
• There have been 25 Need for Speed video games in the last 32 years.  

The Need for Speed video game franchise is over 30 years old. The first game launched in 1994, but the studio behind the most recent iteration, Criterion, is now focused on other projects, casting doubt on the future of the long-running racing series.  

In an interview with IGN, Rebecka Coutaz, the vice president and general manager for Battlefield Studios Europe, told the publication that the studio is "solely focused on Battlefield."  

Criterion began making Need for Speed games after Electronic Arts bought the studio in 2004, with its first being Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit, which arrived on consoles and PCs in 2010. It then made 2012’s Need for Speed: Most Wanted.

The studio began shifting away from producing Need for Speed with 2016’s Battlefield 1, helping Electronic Arts’ Call of Duty competitor while Ghost Games began producing NFS games. Criterion would assist with the development of Battlefield 5, Battlefield 2042, and Battlefield 6 before returning to develop the last installment, Need for Speed Unbound.

Need For Speed Payback

30 Years Of Need For Speed

Need for Speed launched the series in 1994 with publisher Electronic Arts, available on PlayStation, Saturn, 3DO, MS-DOS, and Windows. The game would simply become Need for Speed with its second installment in 1997, and it would have a nearly yearly cadence of games for the next quarter-century.  

Over its 32-year history, there have been 25 games produced by multiple developers, including various EA outfits, Exient Entertainment, Eden Studios, Firebrand Games, and more.  

The franchise was made available across multiple platforms, including portables like Game Boy Advance, PlayStation Portable, Android, and iOS. The games have focused on illegal street racing and evading police pursuits.  

What To Play Instead Of Need For Speed

If you are looking to get your street-racing fix now that Need for Speed is no longer a priority for Criterion, there are a few games that attempt to capture its spirit. There are no equals to the franchise, but there are still some fun racing games.  

Forza Horizon 6 is one such series that puts car customization and open-world exploration into a gorgeous package. The game transports players to locales around the world, setting up unique racing challenges, but it lacks the police pursuits that make the NFS franchise what it is.  

The Crew Motorfest is another open-world arcade racer, but it adds planes and boats to the mix. It has over 700 vehicles and now includes a Chase Squad mode that integrates police pursuits in the game.  

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Motor1’s Take: While Criterion might not have the time and resources for another Need for Speed game, that doesn’t mean the franchise is completely dead. There is always a chance that another studio will be allowed to create a new Need for Speed game, as has happened in the past.  

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