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'Need For Speed Hot Pursuit Remastered' arrives on November 6th
The game will land on Switch a week after it hits PC, PS4 and Xbox One.
'Need For Speed Heat' is the first EA title to offer cross-play
PC, PS4 and Xbox One players can race each other starting tomorrow.
'Need for Speed: Payback' to add online free roaming mode
EA and Ghost Games know Need for Speed: Payback got a rather cold reception on launch, and they're continuing to rehabilitate its image -- in this case, by bringing back a feature from the previous game. The creators have revealed that they're adding an online free roaming mode to the game sometime in 2018, echoing a feature from the 2015 Need for Speed release. You can technically roam around now while waiting for a lobby to fill up, but this should let you drive to your heart's content.
EA is addressing the loot boxes in 'Need for Speed: Payback,' too
Most of the headlines surrounding Electronic Arts this fall have been about the loot box situation in Star Wars: Battlefront II. But Need for Speed: Payback has been dealing with the same pay-to-win progression issues since it launched a few weeks ago too. More than that, the game is an unstable mess and barely functions on Xbox hardware. Developer Ghost Games is addressing both of those with Payback's first big updates.
'Need for Speed: Payback' and the business of car crashes
Need for Speed and Burnout are completely different franchises. Both are arcade racers, sure, but the former kind of starts and stops with outrunning the cops in Lamborghinis and other supercars at extremely high speeds. The latter used unlicensed knock-offs for its races because its main dynamic was portraying car accidents with near-pornographic detail. Something you just can't do when a game developer is essentially "borrowing" cars from their real-world owners. Enter the just-debuted Need for Speed: Payback which blurs the lines between the two divergent franchises in its depiction of vehicular mayhem, pushing the boundaries of how much carnage is possible with a real-world car.
Watch EA's E3 2017 event live right here at 3PM ET
The big names aren't waiting until next week to reveal what they have for us at E3 2017. EA is kicking things off today with its event at 3PM ET/12PM PT. We're expecting details on games like Star Wars: Battlefront II, FIFA 18, Madden 18, NBA Live 18, Need for Speed: Payback and much more. We'll be there to bring you all of the breaking news as it happens, but if you want to following along live you can do so via Twitch and YouTube streams. Being the kind folks that we are, we've embedded the stream down below so you can watch right here when the time comes. Follow all the latest news from E3 2017 here!
‘Need for Speed Payback’ adds higher stakes and familiar ideas
On paper, Need for Speed Payback sounds a lot like Grand Theft Auto V crossed with a modern Fast and the Furious movie. Tale of revenge? Check. Three distinct protagonists with differing skillsets? Check. Heist missions? You see where we're going with this. There aren't a ton of other details to go on, but Electronic Arts says that the arcade racer will once again be open world and will feature "jaw-dropping set pieces." Like a submarine surfacing in an ice floe?
'Need for Speed' hits PC in March with steering wheel support
When the latest Need for Speed drifted onto consoles, racers noticed that a few features were missing. No manual transmission option? No racing wheel support? Admittedly, the game isn't a sim racer like Gran Turismo or Forza Motorsport, but both of these omissions still felt a little odd. It's taken a while, but soon Electronic Arts will be righting a few of those wrongs. First of all, the game is coming to PC on March 17th. More notably, it'll have manual transmission and support for "a selection" of wheels by Logitech, Thrustmaster and Fanatec. Oh, and it'll also run with "an unlocked framerate" and up to 4K resolution. Sounds promising.
'Need for Speed' becomes a little more social next week
Need for Speed's next Living Game update, dubbed "Showcase," arrives next week, and with it comes a handful of improvements both paint-level and a bit deeper. Taking screenshots has always been pretty easy in the game (click the right stick), but developer Ghost Games is going one step further and adding something that should've been in the game at the outset: A real photo mode with focus, depth of field and other effects that've become all the rage since Infamous: Second Son busted the feature wide open in 2014.
'Need for Speed' balances opponents and adds neon later this month
Need for Speed is one of this fall's best games (it really does deserve your attention) and it's about to receive some changes. First up are tweaks to the game's computer-controlled opponents. Developer Ghost Games says it's working to make the rubberband AI, what keeps the other racers close by you regardless of how much of a lead you've built, "more balanced." If you're a fan of the current system, hopefully this new addition will be an option rather than a requirement. The game's visual customizations are getting some newfound love as well: a look at neon lighting kits, functional mirrors, more pre-made vinyl sets (additional features for that, too) and a better color picking system. Ghost is increasing the level cap and adding a smattering of new achievements, too.
Playdate: We've got the 'Need for Speed' on PlayStation 4
It's time to kick some tires and light some fires, folks. The new Need for Speed, out this week, is awesome. More importantly, it shows exactly what can happen when a video game publisher (Electronic Arts, in this case) says that a developer can take a year off to work on a game rather than churn out sub-par sequels on an annual basis. Usually when the word "cinematic" is thrown around to describe a game, that means big explosions and scripted events -- not usually the visual style. The team at Ghost Games doesn't subscribe to that theory and rather than focusing on "water-cooler moments" that only happen once, it instead made Need for Speed look as much like a movie shot on film as possible. Need proof? At 6PM Eastern / 3PM Pacific Sean and myself are broadcasting two hours of the game on Twitch.
The new 'Need for Speed' looks like a movie shot on film
The new, simply titled Need for Speed (out this week on PlayStation 4 and Xbox One) is as close as you're going to get to an art-house, video game version of The Fast and the Furious. The series has had players recreating cop chases from movies since 1998's Hot Pursuit, but this is the first time the game actually feels filmic. It isn't going to stand toe-to-toe with Microsoft's Forza series or Sony's ill-fated, but gorgeous Driveclub because it doesn't have to -- visually, they aren't even competing against each other. NfS doesn't run at 60FPS like Forza Motorsport; it doesn't feature those meticulously detailed cockpits either. What's more, car models aren't nearly as detailed as Driveclub's. But whatever NfS lacks in "perfection," it makes up for with killer arcade-like handling and a visual style guided by a clear aesthetic: Make a racing game that looks like a movie shot on film.
'Need for Speed' PC release delayed to spring 2016
Need for Speed is racing to consoles on November 3rd in North America, but it's hit a bump on the way to your desktop: The PC version is now scheduled to launch in spring 2016. Developer Ghost Games says the delay will give the team time to implement an unlocked framerate and improved graphics on PC. Once it launches, the PC version will come with all of the content released on consoles until that point.
These were E3 2015's best games
E3 is (thankfully) over, and that means the press that cover the event have recently cast their votes for what they thought were the best games from the show. You know those blurbs on box art saying "winner of over 90 awards" and the like? This is partly where they come from. Collectively known as The Game Critics Awards, the governing body for them is made up of staff from over 30 editorial outlets, including Engadget, that attended gaming's Paris Fashion Week. For a game to even be up for consideration though, it has to be playable -- a stage demo or non-interactive trailer won't cut it. What's it mean for you? In the end, a better idea about what it's like to actually play the biggest games from E3, because we got to go hands-on with them. Without further ado, the winners are in the gallery below. Spoiler: Fallout 4 was pretty successful.
'Need For Speed' has been rebooted, arrives November 3rd
EA already told us that Need For Speed was taking a... brake, but now it's back. And EA is calling it "the definitive Need For Speed experience." You'll be able to drive around an open-air environment twice the size of its predecessor, Rivals. Customizations have also been cranked up, and there's a suitably Fast And Furious-sounding story mode where you need to build your reputation as well as your car. It lands on PC, PS4 and Xbox One this November 3rd -- and it's looking good enough that you may expect to smell the tires. See for yourself in the trailer, just below. Check here for everything happening at E3 2015!
'Need for Speed' reboot rolls out this fall
When EA's quarterly report dropped earlier in May, it included a few tasty game-related tidbits, including a "holiday 2015" launch window for a new Need for Speed. EA today confirmed that Need for Speed will launch on PS4, Xbox One and PC this fall -- and it's a full-on reboot of the series. "With more than 20 years of history in its rear view mirror, we're bringing Need for Speed back with a reboot that delivers on what Need for Speed stands for -- rich customization, authentic urban car culture, a nocturnal open world, and an immersive narrative," EA Community Manager Ben Walke writes. The first teaser for the game is fairly gorgeous and EA says that all of its footage was captured in-game. Watch the video below, and keep your eyes here on June 15th for the first gameplay trailer and official announcement direct from E3 2015.
Get a free game on every modern PlayStation console this weekend
PlayStation owners might not be blessed with Electronic Arts' EA Access subscription program, but the outfit's Peter Moore has a consolation prize for you. Sort of. Starting today at 3 p.m. Eastern / 12 p.m. Pacific, you can download Need for Speed: Most Wanted for PlayStation Vita, Mirror's Edge for PlayStation 3 and Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare on PS4, all for free on the PSN Store. Pretty cool, right? But, you can't put this off: when Moore took the stage at today's PlayStation Experience keynote, he said the downloads only last until midnight Pacific tomorrow night -- hopefully you have some free space on your Sony console of choice. If not, well, there's still time to make room. [Image credit: Getty Images]
Need for Speed's Autolog app available now
EA and Activision both have been making a push lately for add-on iOS apps for their biggest console properties: Activision's been pushing a Call of Duty Elite app, and EA's got one related to Medal of Honor Warfare as well. And here comes EA again with another app dedicated to a big console franchise. The Need for Speed series of racing games has a stat-tracking system called Autolog, and there's now a dedicated iOS app to browse and follow up on stats and awards earned with that system. By downloading the free app, you can browse through your friends lists and see what everyone is up to, check out your own profiles and see whatever stats or awards you've earned, hear about Need for Speed news, and even check out a map from the latest game, Need for Speed: Most Wanted, that's been all annotated with stat and other in-game information. It's pretty impressive: EA and the developers at Criterion have been building out the Autolog service quite a bit over the past few years, and this app provides a pretty direct line right into everything that the service is tracking. Very cool indeed. I expect even more tie-in apps like this in the future -- online services like this are a big driver for these big publishers' console games lately, and releasing iOS apps is just one more way for big fans of the series to engage with the games and the franchises.
Galaxy Note II coming to T-Mobile on October 24th, say leaked documents
Samsung's Galaxy Note II is happily filling hands in Korea and the UK without so much as a release date announced stateside. We may now have one, thanks to the folks at TmoNews, who appear to have snagged an internal document which suggests the phablet will arrive at the Magenta carrier on October 24th. Coincidentally (or not), Samsung is holding an event the same day, marrying with our previous speculation that it'll be unveiling the various carrier editions of the 5.5-inch beast there. Our suspicions are flagged, however, at the mention that Need for Speed: Most Wanted will come pre-installed, a game that isn't slated for release until October 30th -- not that we haven't seen similar release partnerships from the Note crew before. Although we can't confirm the legitimacy of this leak, we can suggest you start building up that grip strength just in case.
Android Market's ten-cent promo moves into day 4 with Need for Speed Shift, Shazam Encore and eight more
The Android Market ten-cent promo has moved into Day 4, once again offering up a fresh daily set of apps to celebrate the virtual venue's ten billionth download. As of this writing, yesterday's apps are still on sale (and still featured on the Market's main promo page), but today's sale includes titles like Need for Speed Shift, Shazam Encore, Farm Frenzy, Sentinel 3 and Jelly Defense. Rounding out the lineup: Spirit HD, Toddler Spanish, Game Dev Story, Baseball Superstars 2011 and My Beach HD. Amazon doesn't appear to be matching the sale price this time around (yet), so if any of these titles are striking a chord, you'll need to go through the Market itself to check 'em out. Note: It appears that at the time of this writing most if not all paid apps are experiencing technical difficulties when downloading -- on either the online Market or the phone -- so if you're having trouble getting one of the ten cent apps, we recommend taking a brief hiatus and coming back to try again a little bit later. Update: The promo page has been updated and it looks like all of the apps are downloading just fine now. Head to the source link to get started. Update 2: So it seems that Google Wallet is having issues staying live today, so it's quite possible that you'll continue to have issues purchasing your apps until the service is fully restored. Update 3: If you ran into issues with Google Wallet today, you may be in for some freebies: Android Police is reporting that users who had their orders cancelled are being awarded free apps. Hit their link below for details.
