• Welcome to TechPowerUp Forums, Guest! Please check out our forum guidelines for info related to our community.

EA Celebrates "Need for Speed" 30th Anniversary with Y2 "NFS: Unbound" Roadmap

T0@st

News Editor
Joined
Mar 7, 2023
Messages
2,077 (3.17/day)
Location
South East, UK
Surprise! We're still here, and not just here - we have a whole year's worth of content coming to you! NFS turns 30 this year, and with that huge legacy, we couldn't stand idle. However, this year will be a bit different from the previous one. Because here's the thing—the NFS legacy signifies different things to each and every one of you. Some of you were there at the start of it all on Road and Track. Some of you will remember taking on the Eastsiders in Olympic City or smashing your way through the Blacklist in Rockport. Or you might have started playing more recently. Hustling by day and risking it all by night in Palm City. No matter your memory, we all have a shared love of NFS, and we want to build new memories over the next 12 months.

But, we'll be honest and admit we can't build everything everyone wants right now, but we can decide together what NFS should be in the future. Our vision is that through our second year of live service, you can, for the first time, begin to play the ultimate NFS experience in one place. Your feedback and gameplay will help shape the future of this iconic franchise. As you play, we will be listening, observing and reacting to the things you want to see and those you don't. It's an approach that we're calling Kaizen.




Kaizen is a Japanese term that means change for better or continuous improvement. We feel this really encapsulates what we want to do with NFS, and we want to make you, our players and fans, a key part of it too. So how are we doing this?:

Evolving Volumes
We're committing to adding four new volumes of content in the next year, each launching every few months. We aim to deliver some exciting themed updates, with at least one new major mode added to each volume. We will also continue to build on and evolve with each time. Adding more events, more challenges, new content, Ranks to earn, and new progression to chase. We will deliver at least two new fully customizable cars as part of the Speed Pass. And when we say cars, we mean cars in the NFS sense, like no one else creates. We aren't just talking base models here and stock paint there; we are talking cars that come with fully customizable body kits with a myriad of interchangeable parts so you can tweak your ride just the way you want it.

Most Requested Bug Fixes and Improvements
We really want to be fixing and focusing on the things that you all care about most (like adding realistic driving effects last December), but as a small team, we need to prioritize where we spend our time, and it will always focus on what we feel is best for you all. Every improvement we try to make is a trade-off between something new and something different. So we'll be closely monitoring your comments and feedback and coming to you with regular communications about what we're learning along the way.

Premium Speed Pass
Starting with Volume 6, we are introducing an all-new premium track to the Speed Pass that will grant you instant access to one of our hot new vehicles and unlock the ability to earn all its deep customisation content. It also includes custom versions of the vehicle, and it's where you can find our hottest new customisation options each season. Refining our Speed Pass this way is how we can keep delivering unique new content and gameplay to you through a more simplified approach. If that's not your thing, though, we will still be offering a free track of the Speed Pass with new vehicles and customizations for you to enjoy.

Always Be Learning
We see this as a year to test and learn and understand what works best for you. Committing to an extended Unbound live service allows us to really build on feedback, which we'll be gathering in a few ways. We're working closely with a dedicated Player Council - a great bunch of NFS influencers, core community members, and players to understand what's important to them and their communities. We'll be increasing the amount of telemetry we track from the games to better understand through gameplay data what's working for you. And we'll look to close the feedback loop by being as transparent as possible with you, letting you know what we've heard and what we can and can't do.

Ok, you made it! Closing time. We hope more than ever that all fans of NFS can come join us as we continue to deliver updates to NFS Unbound. We might just have some nice surprises along the way as we take a tongue-in-cheek look back in the rearview before we drop a gear and power forward into the future together, testing, refining and constantly improving along the way!

This announcement may change as we listen to community feedback and continue developing and evolving our Live Service & Content. We will always strive to keep our community as informed as possible. For more information, please refer to EA's Online Service Updates at https://www.ea.com/service-updates.

View at TechPowerUp Main Site | Source
 
Joined
Nov 29, 2022
Messages
834 (1.11/day)
Processor Intel i7 77OOK
Motherboard Gigabyte Aorus something
Cooling Noctua NH-U12S dual fan
Memory Ballistix 32 Go
Video Card(s) MSI 3060 Gaming X
Storage Mixed bag of M2 SSD and SATA SSD
Display(s) MSI 34" 3440x1440 Artimys 343CQR
Case Old Corsair Obsidian something
Audio Device(s) Integrated
Power Supply Old Antec HCG 620 still running good
Mouse Steelseries something
Keyboard Steelseries someting too
Benchmark Scores bench ? no time to lose with bench ! :)
Getting old ...
I was already there for the 1st one !

This announcement may change as we listen to community feedback and continue developing and evolving our Live Service & Content. We will always strive to keep our community as informed as possible.
Ok ... but what if the community is packed with a big bunch of stupids ?
 
Joined
Feb 20, 2020
Messages
9,340 (5.29/day)
Location
Louisiana
System Name Ghetto Rigs z490|x99|Acer 17 Nitro 7840hs/ 5600c40-2x16/ 4060/ 1tb acer stock m.2/ 4tb sn850x
Processor 10900k w/Optimus Foundation | 5930k w/Black Noctua D15
Motherboard z490 Maximus XII Apex | x99 Sabertooth
Cooling oCool D5 res-combo/280 GTX/ Optimus Foundation/ gpu water block | Blk D15
Memory Trident-Z Royal 4000c16 2x16gb | Trident-Z 3200c14 4x8gb
Video Card(s) Titan Xp-water | evga 980ti gaming-w/ air
Storage 970evo+500gb & sn850x 4tb | 860 pro 256gb | Acer m.2 1tb/ sn850x 4tb| Many2.5" sata's ssd 3.5hdd's
Display(s) 1-AOC G2460PG 24"G-Sync 144Hz/ 2nd 1-ASUS VG248QE 24"/ 3rd LG 43" series
Case D450 | Cherry Entertainment center on Test bench
Audio Device(s) Built in Realtek x2 with 2-Insignia 2.0 sound bars & 1-LG sound bar
Power Supply EVGA 1000P2 with APC AX1500 | 850P2 with CyberPower-GX1325U
Mouse Redragon 901 Perdition x3
Keyboard G710+x3
Software Win-7 pro x3 and win-10 & 11pro x3
Benchmark Scores Are in the benchmark section
Hi,
30 years, really wow time flies.
 
Joined
Feb 3, 2012
Messages
141 (0.03/day)
Location
Medina, Ohio
System Name Daily driver
Processor i9 13900k
Motherboard Z690 Aorus Master
Cooling Custom loop
Memory 2x16 GB GSkill DDR5 @ 6000
Video Card(s) RTX4090 FE
Storage 2x 2TB 990 Pro SSD 1x 2TB 970 evo SSD, 1x 4TB HDD
Display(s) LG 32" 2560x1440
Case Fractal Design Meshify 2 XL
Audio Device(s) onboard
Power Supply beQuiet Dark Power 12 1000W
Mouse Razer Death adder
Keyboard Razer blackwidow v3
VR HMD n/a
Software Windows 11 pro
Benchmark Scores Heaven 4.0 @ 2560x1440 270.5 FPS
I started with NFS2SE. That brings back memories.
High stakes and porsche unleashed is where most of my nostalgia lies running a Voodoo 3 based system.
Logged a lot of hours in NFSU2 in the mid- win Xp days too. Rocked that game with a mobile Barton 3200+
 
Joined
Apr 14, 2018
Messages
699 (0.29/day)
I started with NFS2SE. That brings back memories.
High stakes and porsche unleashed is where most of my nostalgia lies running a Voodoo 3 based system.
Logged a lot of hours in NFSU2 in the mid- win Xp days too. Rocked that game with a mobile Barton 3200+

Porsche unleashed up until blacklist was a great time for arcade style racing games. It’s a shame where things have ended up.
 
Joined
Feb 11, 2009
Messages
5,570 (0.96/day)
System Name Cyberline
Processor Intel Core i7 2600k -> 12600k
Motherboard Asus P8P67 LE Rev 3.0 -> Gigabyte Z690 Auros Elite DDR4
Cooling Tuniq Tower 120 -> Custom Watercoolingloop
Memory Corsair (4x2) 8gb 1600mhz -> Crucial (8x2) 16gb 3600mhz
Video Card(s) AMD RX480 -> RX7800XT
Storage Samsung 750 Evo 250gb SSD + WD 1tb x 2 + WD 2tb -> 2tb MVMe SSD
Display(s) Philips 32inch LPF5605H (television) -> Dell S3220DGF
Case antec 600 -> Thermaltake Tenor HTCP case
Audio Device(s) Focusrite 2i4 (USB)
Power Supply Seasonic 620watt 80+ Platinum
Mouse Elecom EX-G
Keyboard Rapoo V700
Software Windows 10 Pro 64bit
ill get unbound when it's (including dlc) max 7.50
 

Easy Rhino

Linux Advocate
Staff member
Joined
Nov 13, 2006
Messages
15,599 (2.36/day)
Location
Mid-Atlantic
System Name Desktop
Processor i5 13600KF
Motherboard AsRock B760M Steel Legend Wifi
Cooling Noctua NH-U9S
Memory 4x 16 Gb Gskill S5 DDR5 @6000
Video Card(s) Gigabyte Gaming OC 6750 XT 12GB
Storage WD_BLACK 4TB SN850x
Display(s) Gigabye M32U
Case Corsair Carbide 400C
Audio Device(s) On Board
Power Supply EVGA Supernova 650 P2
Mouse MX Master 3s
Keyboard Logitech G915 Wireless Clicky
Software The Matrix
NFSHP3 was the game that started it all for me on the PS1. Sooooo many awesome evenings playing split screen with my friends.
 
Joined
Mar 21, 2005
Messages
1,672 (0.23/day)
Location
Maribor, Slovenia, EU
System Name Core i9 rig / Lenovo laptop
Processor Core i9 10900X / Core i5 8350U
Motherboard Asus Prime X299 Edition 30 / Lenovo motherboard
Cooling Corsair H115i PRO RGB / stock cooler
Memory Gskill 4x8GB 3600mhz / 16GB 2400mhz
Video Card(s) Asus ROG Strix RTX 2080 Super / UHD 620
Storage Samsung SSD 970 PRO 1TB / Samsung OEM 256GB NVMe
Display(s) Dell UltraSharp UP3017 / Full HD IPS touch
Case Coolermaster mastercase H500M
Audio Device(s) Onboard sound
Power Supply Enermax Platimax 1700 watt / Lenovo 65watt power adapter
Mouse Logitech M500s
Keyboard Cherry
Software Windows 11 Pro / Windows 11 Pro
My favorite NFS is nfs road challenge or high stakes. Love that game. I still play nfs 3 on my my windows 11 pc.
 
Joined
Nov 27, 2023
Messages
2,500 (6.39/day)
System Name The Workhorse
Processor AMD Ryzen R9 5900X
Motherboard Gigabyte Aorus B550 Pro
Cooling CPU - Noctua NH-D15S Case - 3 Noctua NF-A14 PWM at the bottom, 2 Fractal Design 180mm at the front
Memory GSkill Trident Z 3200CL14
Video Card(s) NVidia GTX 1070 MSI QuickSilver
Storage Adata SX8200Pro
Display(s) LG 32GK850G
Case Fractal Design Torrent (Solid)
Audio Device(s) FiiO E-10K DAC/Amp, Samson Meteorite USB Microphone
Power Supply Corsair RMx850 (2018)
Mouse Razer Viper (Original) on a X-Raypad Equate Plus V2
Keyboard Cooler Master QuickFire Rapid TKL keyboard (Cherry MX Black)
Software Windows 11 Pro (24H2)
Cool shout outs to the classic games there, EA. Games that you no longer can obtain anywhere legally (except for scouring Ebay for old disks, I guess) since you decided that you don’t want to pony up the cash for extending the licenses, I guess. But you did spend money to remaster the 2010 Hot Pursuit… for some reason that to this day I cannot comprehend. Not Underground. Not Most Wanted. Not remake some of the older games from scratch, like a new and modernized with newer cars and eras Porsche Unleashed. No. Hot Pursuit 2010. One of the most “eh, ‘salright I suppose” games in the series.
EA. Truly, challenging everything, even reason.
 
Joined
Nov 27, 2023
Messages
2,500 (6.39/day)
System Name The Workhorse
Processor AMD Ryzen R9 5900X
Motherboard Gigabyte Aorus B550 Pro
Cooling CPU - Noctua NH-D15S Case - 3 Noctua NF-A14 PWM at the bottom, 2 Fractal Design 180mm at the front
Memory GSkill Trident Z 3200CL14
Video Card(s) NVidia GTX 1070 MSI QuickSilver
Storage Adata SX8200Pro
Display(s) LG 32GK850G
Case Fractal Design Torrent (Solid)
Audio Device(s) FiiO E-10K DAC/Amp, Samson Meteorite USB Microphone
Power Supply Corsair RMx850 (2018)
Mouse Razer Viper (Original) on a X-Raypad Equate Plus V2
Keyboard Cooler Master QuickFire Rapid TKL keyboard (Cherry MX Black)
Software Windows 11 Pro (24H2)
I still have the NFS-underground soundtrack in rotation.

Any good music in the new one?
I mean, music is very much a matter of taste, but Unbounds OST is so… uh, let’s say “modern youth oriented” that it spawned countless memes.
 

wolf

Better Than Native
Joined
May 7, 2007
Messages
8,246 (1.28/day)
System Name MightyX
Processor Ryzen 9800X3D
Motherboard Gigabyte X650I AX
Cooling Scythe Fuma 2
Memory 32GB DDR5 6000 CL30
Video Card(s) Asus TUF RTX3080 Deshrouded
Storage WD Black SN850X 2TB
Display(s) LG 42C2 4K OLED
Case Coolermaster NR200P
Audio Device(s) LG SN5Y / Focal Clear
Power Supply Corsair SF750 Platinum
Mouse Corsair Dark Core RBG Pro SE
Keyboard Glorious GMMK Compact w/pudding
VR HMD Meta Quest 3
Software case populated with Artic P12's
Benchmark Scores 4k120 OLED Gsync bliss
Currently replaying Underground 2 on my XP retro rig, man that game still plays so well.
 
Joined
Jun 25, 2020
Messages
164 (0.10/day)
System Name The New, Improved, Vicious, Stable, Silent Gaming Space Heater
Processor Ryzen 7 5800X3D
Motherboard MSI B450 Tomahawk Max
Cooling be quiet! DRP4 (w/ added SilentWings3 120mm), 4x Noctua A14x25G2 (3 @ front, 1 @ back)
Memory Teamgroup DDR4 3600 16GBx2 @18-22-22-22-42 -> 18-20-20-20-40
Video Card(s) PowerColor RX7900XTX HellHound
Storage ADATA SX8200Pro 1TB, Crucial P3+ 4TB (w/riser, @Gen2x4), Seagate 3+1TB HDD, Micron 5300 7.68TB SATA
Display(s) Gigabyte M27U @4K150Hz, AOC 24G2 @1080p100Hz(Max144Hz) vertical, ASUS VP228H@1080p60Hz vertical
Case Phanteks P600S
Audio Device(s) Creative Katana V2X gaming soundbar
Power Supply Seasonic Vertex GX-1200 (ATX3.0 compliant)
Mouse Razer Deathadder V3 wired
Keyboard Keychron Q6Max w/ Gateron G Pro 3.0 Black linear switches
I know, car license issues, but if you dare to challenge everything, and if you bother to shoutout to that era, a UG/MW2005/Carbon remaster, please? Prostreet is also fine too. (provided you fix the horrible input lag / numb steering.) Yes, I finished Prostreet on a Xbox360 recently, and it was very flawed, but much better than what I remembered.

For soundtracks, I have all these (alongside Unbound, minus Carbon) that I sometimes will use. Unbound soundtrack is ... meh, with one horribly memetic, and two very serious techno tracks that I would love them to death.
 
Joined
Jan 29, 2012
Messages
6,881 (1.46/day)
Location
Florida
System Name natr0n-PC
Processor Ryzen 5950x-5600x | 9600k
Motherboard B450 AORUS M | Z390 UD
Cooling EK AIO 360 - 6 fan action | AIO
Memory Patriot - Viper Steel DDR4 (B-Die)(4x8GB) | Samsung DDR4 (4x8GB)
Video Card(s) EVGA 3070ti FTW
Storage Various
Display(s) Pixio PX279 Prime
Case Thermaltake Level 20 VT | Black bench
Audio Device(s) LOXJIE D10 + Kinter Amp + 6 Bookshelf Speakers Sony+JVC+Sony
Power Supply Super Flower Leadex III ARGB 80+ Gold 650W | EVGA 700 Gold
Software XP/7/8.1/10
Benchmark Scores http://valid.x86.fr/79kuh6
Kind of amazing how the nfs games on psx were when you take a look back. The winxp era of nfs games were good times.
 

OneMoar

There is Always Moar
Joined
Apr 9, 2010
Messages
8,800 (1.64/day)
Location
Rochester area
System Name RPC MK2.5
Processor Ryzen 5800x
Motherboard Gigabyte Aorus Pro V2
Cooling Thermalright Phantom Spirit SE
Memory CL16 BL2K16G36C16U4RL 3600 1:1 micron e-die
Video Card(s) GIGABYTE RTX 3070 Ti GAMING OC
Storage Nextorage NE1N 2TB ADATA SX8200PRO NVME 512GB, Intel 545s 500GBSSD, ADATA SU800 SSD, 3TB Spinner
Display(s) LG Ultra Gear 32 1440p 165hz Dell 1440p 75hz
Case Phanteks P300 /w 300A front panel conversion
Audio Device(s) onboard
Power Supply SeaSonic Focus+ Platinum 750W
Mouse Kone burst Pro
Keyboard SteelSeries Apex 7
Software Windows 11 +startisallback
bad physics are bad no ammount of `live service` will fix bad gameplay
 
Joined
Nov 20, 2021
Messages
122 (0.11/day)
HEY EA! Happy NFS Anniversary! Why in the hell would you do updates to the most hated game in the NFS series that doesn’t work for people who plays on PC? This would have been a GREAT opportunity to do a remastered NFS Underground 2 or NFS Underground Carbon(my favorite out of the series) ORRRR NFS Most wanted(not that bullshit version you call a remake)
 
Joined
Jun 1, 2010
Messages
392 (0.07/day)
System Name Very old, but all I've got ®
Processor So old, you don't wanna know... Really!
What a load of BS. Another MTX garbage, that will be abandoned and server locked in a couple of years. ElectronicFarts lost the vision, completely. The Shutoko Revival Project for Assetto Corsa is better than this tastless absurd. This is only my opinion, though.

But the best way to celebrate this anniversary, would be return to the roots, and original design started with NFS Road & Tracks. That little magazine promotional "addon" was more of a game, than any late MTX simulator that carries NFS moniker. It was fun, it had exotic cars, with showcases and car data, and authentic cockpits. It was rivaling the GranTurismo, so the result was remarkable. Now EA bought the last decent racing studio, and they no longer challenge other racing games. They don't have to, anymore. Heck they could release all the classic NFS games, might even in one "Remaster Collection", and that would be one of the best decisions and celebration of such big anniversary.

The NFS3 with tons of modding capabilities and fun driving, and glossy models, and great Pursuit Mode. The trend peaked at Porsche Unleashed another promotional product, that appeared the most complete NFS game ever done. It had real 3D car showrooms, history, and car details, decent physics and damage, 360° view angle, the turn/emergency signals, convertable roof, the evolution mode, fine music, and just brilliant FFB. And all of that about 24 years ago. The remaster with better graphics, and with the option to add custom maps and cars would be a dream though.
Some may complain, that NFS PU had atrocious tyre model... but let's be honest, modern NFS games don't have any tyre model at all. They are just dumb tram simulator, Burnout Paradise with license cars and loads of MTX.

The Hot Stakes was seems also fun game, a mix of NFS3 with PU physics. But the one of the most overlooked vintage, is NFS VI: Hot Pursuit 2. Excluding the absence of cockpit, that game had everything the true NFS needs. The sound was great, the physics was fun, it was pleasant to drive and look at. After that, the came the era of stagnation and décadence.

The Underground 1 was fun, but it lacked physics badly. Same goes for U2. The Most Wanted was great game either, but along with Carbon it had the locked content and was bug riddled. The physics was atrocious either, and after some time the game became boring. Even the support for then new G25 and it's H-Shifter didn't help much. The ugly colour filter and the motion blur did the disservice either.
If only EA didn't split the Blackbox on two projects, and let them finish both games, with graphics and physics of Pro Street, the Undercover could be really the masterpiece.
Once, EA was even recoding the authentic car engine sounds, for each game. After Underground series it's all gone.
 
Last edited:
Top