So yesterday EA finally let out the trailer for the latest Need For Speed game, Need For Speed Heat, and to be honest, we’re both excited and a little afraid at the prospect of this game. Simply put, this is because the game’s trailer and general style and setting seem amazing, but considering the last few NFS games, we’re as cautious as we are excited about Heat.

Need For Speed is arguably the most popular racing game franchise of all time, and it’s definitely the most popular one back here in Zim. Chances are, when you think of a racing game, a Need For Speed one is the first one that comes to mind and that’s not by coincidence. The series dominated the  late 90’s and 2000’s of racing games , with a new title dropping down to almost every year and with a dedicated fan base that allowed EA to keep milking the NFS cash cow for all it was worth. And this formula worked for a while, especially since EA had multiple different studios working on different Need For Speed games at a time and having them release those games like clockwork. But after 2010, the Need for Speed series started to lose its luster and by 2013 the PS4 generation of games basically had titles like Forza, DriveClub and even The Crew come in and take the racing crown from Need For Speed, turning it into just another racing franchise rather than the top one. This is in large part because of the games themselves, as for many they didn’t really impress anymore and other racing games had more to offer. In fact, my favorite NFS racing game is the 2005 Most Wanted game, which I still play to this day on PC. Now of course this is a subjective choice, but I mostly love that game because it nailed the Need For Speed formula for me, which is a discernable identity, and enjoyable collection of cars, robust customization mechanics and an amazing cops/racer dynamic that leads to heart pounding chases. For me, NFS has ever fully captured those four key aspects all at once since then, and the NFS games that came especially in the mid 2010’s to date where all lacking something. 2012’s Most Wanted reboot was a fun theme park kind of game but lacked any of the challenging depth of the original, rivals felt like a tweaked version of that, the 2015 Need For Speed had character, but for some dumb reason decided to be online only, and NFS Payback is the kind of mess we never speak of at family gatherings. So the ball’s been dropped A LOT as of late, hence our fear, but heat does seem like it might fix most of our grievances.

Need For Speed Heat seems to be aiming for the same character driven feel of the 2015 game and earlier games like the original Most Wanted and Carbon, which is exactly what we want from it. Need for speed games aren’t supposed to be movies, but they should have a narrative, even if it’s only there to justify why you’re driving through buildings with a car you won in an illegal race. The original Most Wanted brought this to life by making the cops a core part of the game and the story too, so if you got caught by the police in a chase, it often felt like the smug police Officer Cross had put you in a jail cell. We hope the new game has a similar feel as well. Another area I’m excited about is customization, though cautiously so. The last two NFS games had this, after Criterion’s Need For Speed games (Rivals, Most wanted 2012, Hot pursuit) had gotten rid of them almost entirely. The 2015 Need for Speed brought it back in its full glory, but Payback warped customization into a loot box slot machine like game where the parts you got where basically given to you based on random luck, which….sucked…to say the least(people literally dropped the game because of that). We hope heat doesn’t do anything remotely like this, as it could again ruin an otherwise amazing game. Cops also seem to be a huge part of what the game will offer, but the first Most Wanted remains the gold standard for this. Cops in nearly every other NFS game afterwards have honesty failed to challenge me, and as such cop events became boring. If Heat can surpass this hurdle for me, I might just completely fall in love with the game. As for cars, well I’ve never been really worried about cars. I’m a huge Ferrari fan  who doesn’t even glimpse the brand in Most Wanted and still plays it. I trust NFS enough to deliver on that front and even love the Polestar in the trailer. It’s the other three key aspects that worry me.

But worry I may all day I’m likely still going to play this game, and I honestly can’t wait until it comes out. Stay tuned for a review of Need For Speed Heat and tell us your thoughts on the trailer in the comments or on our social media.

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