Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit

[Cube]

 

If you want the inside scoop live and direct from Criterion Games, you’ve come to the right place. This week, we’re announcing our Need for Speed game for Xbox 360® and PlayStation®3 and it’s out in November. Here’s a trailer to get you in the mood – it’s a glimpse of some of the awesome cars, locations and action you can expect from our take on Need for Speed. As you can see, we’re all about high speed pursuits. You can play as Cop or Racer – shut down the bad guys or escape from the law! But if you look closely at the trailer, you’ll see more than just a great police pursuit! Today, we’ll talk you through what you might have missed....

 

BACK TO ITS ROOTS

 

Our game is inspired by the original Need for Speed on 3DO – we loved the thrill of the driving the open road and shaking off the cops in exotic supercars. The first thing you’ll notice in our trailer is the open, high speed roads of the coastal, forest and desert regions – very reminiscent of our 3DO inspiration.

 

LICENSE TO THRILL

 

With Need for Speed, we’ve got a stack of new toys to play with for the first time – real, licensed cars! The trailer shows what it’s like to run from the cops in the Koenigsegg CCX, McLaren’s incredible new MP4-12C and ultra exclusive Pagani Zonda Cinque. It would be a breeze if the cops weren’t packing equally exclusive hardware – the Ford Shelby GT500, the extraordinary Bugatti Veyron 16.4 and the legendary Lamborghini Murciélago for a start. But don’t get too attached – our pursuits are all about high speed aggressive driving. Don’t expect to finish in a pristine car!

 

ESCALATING THE ACTION

 

Cops are kitted out with a full suite of weapons and gear to help them bring lawbreakers to justice. As the pursuit escalates, so does the equipment available. The trailer shows “Road Blockâ€, “Spike Strip†and “Helicopter Support†in action, but you’ll also make use of many others as a Cop and a Racer!

 

FRIENDS AND ENEMIES

 

We want an online connection to transform the way you play. Big time. You see player IDs in the trailer, because online players are key to this Need for Speed – your friends are at the heart of the experience. All the action can be played online – meet up with friends to play as the cops, work together to escape the law or play against each other. A feature called “Autolog†tracks everything you do and uses that information to compare your performance with your friends and recommend new experiences to try. Autolog is also the perfect place to see news from the team and read or post comments and pictures – think of it as Facebook for the game. That’s all for now...we’ll update soon, so keep checking back for the very latest news straight from the team.

 

Need for Speed Hot Pursuit will be available on November 16, 2010 in North America and on November 18 and 19, 2010 in Europe on the Xbox 360® and PlayStation®3.

 

Criterion Games

 

 

Probably my favourite game form E3 so far. As it's Criterion the handling should be perfect and the gameplay will be spot-on. This is classic Need for Speed mixed with classic Burnout.

[Retro_Link]

Criterion... Veyron's, Zonda's, Reventon's... SWEET!! Looking forward to seeing how this turns out. I haven't played a racer seriously since Burnout 2, but this could well be the one to get me back!!

 

Hasn't there already been a NfS: Hot Pursuit?

[Murr]

WOW!

 

Criterion handling this game will be awesome.

 

so the street racing craze has all but finished now then.

 

i did like Underground 1 & 2 after that though just lost interest.

[Cube]

 

[Cookyman]

I just had a cargasm! hmmmmm GT 5 or this?

 

Probably both!

[martinist]

just pre-ordered the special edition yesterday. Haven't played a hot pustuit game since NFS: Hot Pursuit 2 and I loved that game to death. Should be kick ass with the on-line tracking stuff as well ^__^

[Choze]

Looks great. I am guessing Criterion also are working on a new Burnout. I played that game so much.

[Dan_Dare]

This is looking the business. Can't wait- I only buy Critereon racers apparently...

[Daft]

"Hot Pursuit is Burnout 2 in a Project Gotham party dress."

 

This made me jizz. Sold.

[Cube]

I'm pretty sure that if Criterion wasn't given the Need for Speed franchise, then this game would be exactly the same, but be called Burnout and have made-up cars.

[Goafer]

"Webster confirms it when I ask after Criterion's powersliding inspirations, expecting the usual nods to OutRun and Ridge Racer. "Just Burnout, really," he says with blunt pride."

 

I thought that there might finally be a game to match PGR's epic handling until I read this. Shame. Not that Burnout is particularly bad, it's just PGR is better.

[Daft]

Don't Goafer. It's too painful.

 

...where's my PGR5?

 

WHY GOD?! WWWWWHHHYYY!!!!

[Cube]

"Webster confirms it when I ask after Criterion's powersliding inspirations, expecting the usual nods to OutRun and Ridge Racer. "Just Burnout, really," he says with blunt pride."

 

I thought that there might finally be a game to match PGR's epic handling until I read this. Shame. Not that Burnout is particularly bad, it's just PGR is better.

 

"Better" is the wrong word. They're two completely different styles - I much prefer the arcadey, easy, fun handling of Paradise to the realistic, difficult handling of PGR.

[Daft]

PGR isn't realistic. I can't do realistic racing games but I can throw a McLaren F1 around a sharp corner at over 100mph in PGR. No problem.

 

It's beyond easy. Aim, slam A, turn and relax.

[Goafer]

PGR has the best bits from arcade and simulation handling. It takes general drift physics from simulation (like throttle control), but doesn't take annoying things like slowing to a crawl when drifting or being wildly uncontrollable at high speed.

 

Racing games are a favourite of mine and I'm normally not too shabby at them. PGR's handling was perfect for me. I could drift at somewhat rapid speeds within inches of inside barriers. It's great fun.

 

Hopefully NFS:HP will be close to PGR in terms of handling, but I doubt it. It seems most modern "realistic looking, but arcade handling" racing games tend to just feel boring and a bit sluggish. The cars in PGR seem to just dart effortlessly round the tracks. They didn't have the heavy feel that cars in other games have.

 

God damn, now I need to go back to PGR4.

[Daft]

Actually, I'd say PGR's cars do feel heavy but that is perfect because as soon as you have speed and momentum you start using the car's massive throw weight. It's an absolute joy carving out parabolas with such ease.

 

I've been playing PGR4 again over the past week or two. It's such an amazingly tight game, really responsive. One of those rare games (especially racing games) where you are in total control, anything that goes wrong is your fault.

 

I bought a Dreamcast for MSR. An Xbox for PGR and a 360 for PGR3. I can't touch the realistic racing games, I just don't get them. They aren't fun for me, although I will give GT5 a go.

 

One big problem about all these games is the tracks are pretty shit whereas PGR has real world tracks/locations. It's a million times more memorable than these made up tracks - they never manage to cut it.

Edited September 29, 2010 by Daft

[Goafer]

I can't remember the weight of the cars now. Maybe it's because I found controlling them so easy that I thought they felt light.

 

Games like Forza and GT are a bit dull untill I played them with a wheel. Forza 3 with a wheel is like touching God's face: A bit overwhelming and confusing at first, but after a while it just feels right and you wonder how you could ever do anything else.

 

For those non religious gamers out there, it's like snorting cocaine of a hooker's tits. That's what all you atheist heathens spend all your time doing isn't it?

 

 

 

If they could make a game that combined PGR's handling, Forza's customisation and Test Drive Unlimited's open world, millionaire simulator style gameplay (with more house/clothes customisation. Like being able to walk around other people's customised houses) I think I'd just lock myself in the room and shut myself off from the outside world.

[Daft]

While we're wishing, add in GT5's visual detail and I'd be glued to it forever. Forza Gotham Turismo: Unlimited, do want.

[Cube]

Are there different settings on PGR? I personally found it to be easier than Forza 2, but harder than Forza 3. In Burnout Paradise I could do crazy stuff right from the start, while I still struggled at simple things like turning corners after completing a season of PGR4.

 

I just prefer Burnout's style much, much more.

[Daft]

I can't play, and thus hate, Forza. I guess I could learn how to play it but it bores me for the most part. I can do much much faster and tighter turns on PGR than BO:P. Silly to compare really because there is nothing like PGR - It's built on a simulator but with added controls and feel of an arcade game.

 

Not to mention the tracks are awesoe. I think 3 is better than 4.

 

For maximum fun use the front bumper camera. It is INSANE.

Edited September 30, 2010 by Daft

[Choze]

I'm pretty sure that if Criterion wasn't given the Need for Speed franchise, then this game would be exactly the same, but be called Burnout and have made-up cars.

 

Not at all. Burnout is about weaving through traffic. The tracks here are more plain and the map looks empty compared to Burnout Paradise. I hope another burnout is half made already. NFSHP looks promising but a new Burnout it is not.

[Daft]

Does anyone know how much Burnout Paradise sold? I want to know how the DLC affected the sales, if they did.

 

Also, does this Need for Speed have things like gates, jumps and tricks when exploring like BO:P? I can't find any mention and I loved looking for them.

[Choze]

Does anyone know how much Burnout Paradise sold? I want to know how the DLC affected the sales, if they did.

 

Also, does this Need for Speed have things like gates, jumps and tricks when exploring like BO:P? I can't find any mention and I loved looking for them.

 

Cant find much. Random google reveals: 360 Burnout in the UK passed the 200k mark this July. Last US sales were 300k sometime last year and PS3 350k. Its done over a million worldwide according to EA. I am sure the DLC did great though.

 

NFS sales are down but its easily and by far the best selling racing game franchise in existance. Shift one of the weakest selling games sold over 5 million on PS3 and 360 alone with more on other formats. Apparently thats very poor by EA's standards. Previous games sold over 10 million without blinking.

[Cube]

Paradise reached 1 million in April 2008, and the franchise at a whole reached 15 million sales at the same time.

[Daft]

Sweet. I'm glad it did well. I remember I really didn't like it at first. After about three months of ignoring it it kind of just clicked and I couldn't put it down. It really is an excellent game.