Need for Speed's Three-Way Split

Electronic Arts has announced a radical overhaul of the stagnating (but still well-selling) Need for Speed franchise.

When the next round of Need for Speed hits this year, expect three different types of game. Need for Speed Shift will be a racing sim for the PS3, Xbox 360, PC and PSP; Need for Speed: Nitro will be a more arcade-style, casual affair for the Wii and DS; while Need for Speed: World Online will be a free to play PC game initially launched in Asia.

Shift is being handled by Slightly Mad Studios, with a team featuring devs who worked on hardcore racing sims GT Legends and GTR 2 over at SimBin. Working with them will be executive producer Michael Mann of series mainstays Black Box and senior VP at EA Games Europe, Patrick Soderlund.

Of the game, EA tells us, "Need for Speed Shift replicates the true feeling of racing high-end performance cars like never before. Players are thrust into the heart of the action with immersive and exciting features including a stunningly realistic first-person cockpit view camera and an all-new crash mechanic, providing an unrivaled sensation of the speed and feeling of racing a car on the extreme edge of control."

Nitro is being dealt with by EA Montreal. Not a lot of detail has been given, but have a taste of some of the phrases that popped up in the announcement - “drift and drag “, “watch out for the cops!”, “fresh and unique visual style”, “evolutionary take on arcade racing, bringing back the best features found in Need for Speed games”. Get the general picture?

Need for Speed World Online, meanwhile, is being worked on by Black Box and EA's online studio in Singapore. After its initial Asian launch the plan is for it to be rolled out to the West. Presumably the game will follow the likes of Battlefield Heroes and use a micro transaction payment model, but this remains unconfirmed.

The future of the Need for Speed franchise was looking shaky in December, with rumours abounding that the series had been cancelled. Something needed to be done, with the franchise having drifted steadily into mediocrity and the last game, Underground, having been given a lukewarm critical reception at best.

^{Sources:
Slightly Mad Studios
Eurogamer}