I don't have to get to know you to guess that you have played at least one Need for Speed title in your life. Who hasn't? It's one of the biggest, if not the biggest franchise in the racing genre of video games as well as one of the longest standing. A plethora of titles and spin-offs on countless gaming devices and consoles that span across almost two decades were made; all of which contribute to the series being one of the few ever to have a collective sales record of 100,000,000+ copies. Being a long time fan of Need for Speed, I believe it deserves almost every accolade received and accomplishment achieved. Every game contains the fast-paced white-knuckle racing action that I believe has set the standard for the term "arcade racer". And they'd be right to use it when describing NFS. It has the same pick-up and play style that warrants on just having a good gaming experience like Mario Kart and Diddy Kong Racing, but with an added challenge of putting a semblance of realism to make every vehicle available to drive feel unique and reward players more on patience and driving skill than the luck of the draw. Audiences loved it, critics loved it, I loved it, and I wouldn't be surprised if there are any of you folks on here had a fondness for it at some point or another.
And considering that the next generation of gaming is just around the corner, I felt that it would be appropriate to look back at each individual title to find out what I feel best represents the franchise, what didn't, and give my personal opinions on each game I played. Because there is a lot titles to go over, i'll try not to make a full-on essay about each one. Who knows; you might end up finding the lost title that you wish you could relive.
So without further ado, let's start our engines and take a trip down memory lane! (.......)
Released August 31st, 1994
I know what you're thinking, "What in the hell is Road & Track? I thought EA made the NFS games!" Road & Track is an automotive magazine similar to others in every way (think Motor Trend and Car & Driver) in which automotive journalists report, test, andreview everything to do with cars, trucks, SUVs, everything in between and not.
But how did they get to be involved in the development of the first NFS game? Well here's the dealy-o. Back then, Electronics Arts wasn't the big, bad, money-grubbing, IP-destroying publisher we know today; They were just about as financially successful as any big-named developer that wasn't Nintendo or Sega. Because of this, the biggest investment they could make without bankrupting themselves was to strike a deal with R&T in which during the development process the magazine brand would provide relevant and actual data and specs of each car that would be put into the game.
Gameplay of the MS-DOS version
Because of the very limited range of consoles that could support the amount of detail and physics that go with the game at the time, EA only released this title for the Panasonic 3DO and MS-DOS in '94; eventually releasing the official PC Windows version in '95, and the PS1 and Sega Saturn versions in '96. When first launched, it was well received, but as gaming systems became more advanced with each passing year, every new version released was not as much praised as the version that came before. It would be obvious to EA that they can't keep re-releasing the same product if they want to keep this title alive; They would have to release a full-blooded sequel.
Released March 30th, 1997
This is the first Need for Speed game I have ever owned (I still have the PC disk for it in fact) so this holds wads of nostalgia for me. At this point, the gameplay was gearing more towards the arcade feel in which everything had huge acceleration, high top speeds, sensitively responsive controls, and wacky courses to race on.
General gaomeplay
This NFS title began the little streak of being released only for the PC Windows format and PS1 (former in the above date and the latter the following year). While still enjoyed by fans, a few felt that it didn't live up to the potential. Some complained that it's basically more of the first game but with the controls tweaked to a more arcade style of racing; thus taking out what made the first game so great and this one not worthy of harboring the number two in its logo. I for one still enjoyed it during my N64 days (even if I could only run it once in a blue moon) when I had this or Mario Kart 64 for racing games. Obviously this game hasn't aged well, but I don't regret the fun moments i've had with my McLaren in the jungle. Unfortunately, this would be the last NFS game I touch until Underground.
Released March 25th, 1998
As the name would imply, Hot Pursuit marks the first in the series where the po-po plays a big part in the gameplay. Aside from evading cops, sometimes you yourself would actually be the cop trying to take the racer down! It's as boring as it sounds since it's a basic "cat-and-mouse chase" through and through.
Footage of the PS1 version
Aside from the few tweaks to the handling model that make it more like the first game in the sense of realism and the addition of pursuits, it's once again more of the same. While most viewed it as a step in the right direction, they also think it would not hold a candle to the original, and I can see why. While its presentation isn't exactly all that boring, it's so copy-pasted that if I didn't tell you were looking at the third installment, you'd be none the wiser. But surely they must have done something right considering that people were still buying these games after a while. Hats of to EA I suppose. All I can say is that it's more Need for Speed, no more and no less.
Released March 1st, 1999
High Stakes is a bit of a blend of past games, mixing the semi-realistic handling models of the first game with the faster race pace seen the third game. Among the few changes in gameplay include some firsts. Cars now take damage, both in appearance and in performance, when colliding with anything, which include other racers. Another addition which always seem to make fan happy is the more extensive customization in which you can improve the cars performance, change the appearance with body kits and spoilers, and have custom paint schemes beyond the factory colors for that specific vehicle.
Best possible graphics obtained on the PC
To this day, Hot Pursuit is regarded as the best in the classic era as it established the racing fundamentals that are still used in modern titles. Personally, I can't see anything truly timeless outside of the nostalgia factor. Like most yearly titles, it's more or less an update/expansion on the previous game that doesn't take risks to branch out gameplay wise; And by not letting your game to be in development for more than a year, you never give yourself the time to come up with fresh ideas and figure out how to execute them in a proper manner that stays true to the core personality of the franchise. Now I'm all for not fixing what isn't broken (to an extent), but you should at least try adding a unique element or twist to the gameplay instead of giving us the same game but with the ability to run in pink body paint.
Maybe I'm just grumpy...
Released January 22, 2000
Yeah, it seems that EA's fondness for Porsche extends farther back than their modern games suggest. The last Need for Speed on the PS1 and the only one focused on a single manufacturer (I guarantee that you'll never figure out what it is), It's more of a Porsche DLC for High Stakes -- except not really. Taking a break from the high-adrenaline cop chases, Porsche Unleashed (PU for short, heh) focused more on the car culture and driving experience aspect of racing. So much so that there is a mode dedicated to living the life of an official Porsche test driver where you do daily slaloms, figure eights, and 360 degree spins on whatever Porsche you are assigned to test and calibrate (actual Porsche test drivers in real life do this on a daily basis).
In my humble opinion, This is the most Forza/Gran Turismo of the NFS classic era. The way everything is presented in a neat and mature fashion that doesn't try to make things bigger than what they actually are makes the game look and feel more thought out and refined. Just the sheer volume (for its time) of cars to drive, view, learn, and collect are enough to make me acknowledge it as a legit contender in the racing sim genre.
I just wish EA could let others have a chance to have a stocked library of Porsches.
Fun fact: PU is the last title until Shift to feature modeled interiors and performance affecting damage (unless if you consider traded body paint and cracked windshields as damage).
Released October 1st (Gamecube, PS2 and Xbox) and October 21st (PC), 2001
What better way to ring in the next generation with a sequel to one of the more beloved titles -- Hot Pursuit? Well that's pretty much what happened.
Despite it being so, many relatively new features were removed from this title found in previous game, including performance and body customization, weather, day and night cycles, and cockpit views. This was probably done to save space for improving the graphics of the game itself as it was close to being a launch title. Soon after the PC release, a company called Global VR, known for making traditional arcade style tv games, went to EA Seattle (the producers of the PC port) to reformat it for the arcade. The result was Need for Speed GT (insert inane Dragonball GT joke here).
The PS2 version shown here is more sought after as it features more track to race on
The way I see it, it's just the first Hot Pursuit for a new generation, which certainly isn't a bad thing. New technologies found in the latest consoles can inspire developers and designers to create new gameplay elements that many thought were never possible. Too bad there isn't a whole lot of that here (then again, not much can be expected from a numerical sequel of a franchise that shits annually). Still, it has become one of the more beloved installments in the series, probably because this is the last game (with the exception of DLC in the Xbox 360 version of Shift which we'll get to later) to include any cars from the Ferrari manufacturer. I don't need to explain why people love Ferraris as it practically goes without saying. In a way, I support the removal because I can't really seem to enjoy a Ferrari when I'm blasting around in Crazy Taxi physics against the entire US S.W.A.T. team behind my ass. A Ferrari is best enjoyed when you just have one, to "own the right" to pilot an exclusive piece a machinery and become part of an elite group of drivers that appreciate the experience only as much as someone like you and they can. But that's just me.
My guesses are that they believe a Ferrari deserves a better experience, nobody wanted then at the time, Ferrari was in bed with someone else, or that Ferrari gets heart attacks when they see one of their "moving pieces of art" gets damaged in any way, even if its just in a video game. Whatever the reason, I'm sure they did what they thought was best for them. I consider that to be an act of honor, especially when you consider how absurdly arcady the series got later on.
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Well that's it for the Classic Era. The next six titles we'll run through will be of the second era, which include benchmarks in racing video games, new set standards for the series, cult classics, and some of the higher and lower points of the series.
Stay tuned.