Why EA's new Need For Speed will be always online

EA revealed earlier this year that its Need For Speed reboot will require a constant internet connection. Its producer explains why...


When it was unveiled at E3 earlier in the summer, Need For Speed certainly looked the part with its shiny supercars hurtling enthusiastically around an eternally benighted city. This is Ghost Games' reboot of the long-running series, and a clear attempt to reinvent its street-level racing for a new hardware generation.

But one piece of news stuck out: that the new Need For Speed would require a permanent internet connection - a controversial announcement for some, and one that revived memories of EA's botched launch of SimCity. Initially, the game's spokespeople would only say that the always-connected rule would have some "nice" benefits for its players, though it wasn't clear what those benefits might be.

In a new interview with Official Xbox Magazine, however, Need For Speed executive producer Marcus Nilsson has explained why the game will need the power of the web to exist. For one thing, there's an overhauled version of Autolog, the online tracking system we last encountered in Need For Speed Hot Pursuit.

"This time around we're going to give it more of a human voice," Nillson says. "It will treat your friend's play as if it is part of the narrative experience."

There's also a new system where players are actively encouraged to share photos of their racing exploits online. The more likes those photos get, the more in-game currency the player will be awarded with.

"We also have a new snapshot system as well, which is taking pictures of a lot of different moments – [they go] out to the Need for Speed network where people can 'like' them, and those likes are being pushed back into the game as currency. So you get progression from sharing your photos."

Sharing pictures for currency sounds like a bit of a gimmick if we're being honest, but we're intrigued to see how Need For Speed will integrate online multiplayer with an ongoing story.

Need For Speed is out on the 3rd November for PC, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One.