With the rumors of EA’s shelving of the Need For Speed IP, I wanted to reflect on the racing franchise that I grew up on. This article is part of an ongoing retrospective on the racing franchise, done per developer.
Criterion’s (Early) NFS Era in Focus
Criterion’s time with Need for Speed pushed the series toward clear arcade handling, a sharper cops-vs-racers loop, and social features that made leaderboards feel personal. I wanted to tackle Criterion first as I recently purchased and completed all their Need for Speed titles, and I spent a chunk of my teens 100-percenting 2012’s Most Wanted.
If the shelving rumors pan out, the franchise may end with Criterion’s Unbound. I’m starting here and stopping at the hand-off with Rivals (2013). I’m leaving Unbound (2022) for its own send-off once I’ve properly dug into its mechanics and story.
Hot Pursuit (2010): The Return of the Chase
Coming from the Black Box era of Need For Speed, Hot Pursuit’s handling does take a lot of getting used to. While earlier games were generally grip-racing focused, Hot Pursuit brought Brake-to-Drift (B2D) to modern Need For Speed. This handling model remains divisive to this day, and I am personally one of those who loves its simplicity and cool factor. However, handling is, of course, only as good as the tracks on which you do it, and Hot Pursuit does not disappoint.
The game centered on the fantasy of high-speed pursuit on scenic highways. The Autolog feature is a standout, as it made score-chasing core to the experience: every event and camera was a chance to reclaim a leaderboard from my friends.
Multiplayer events are exhilarating on both sides, whether that be as a cop or a racer. The equipment suite (Spikes, EMPs, etc.) added simple, readable tactics that raised the tension and the stakes. Car combat was a new direction for the franchise, and it was a gamble that paid off well.
I played the 2020 remaster, as the original is no longer available on storefronts. The environments are undoubtedly beautiful, but the lack of exploration and emergent gameplay was disappointing. Events are launched from menus, and I feel like there was so much more that could be done with the setting. The racing fundamentals are still amazing, though, with a strong sense of speed and a well-curated set of tracks to feel that on.
Most Wanted (2012): Big Shoes to Fill
Out of all the Need For Speed games, I know this was the one I spent the most time on. B2D mechanics took a lot of getting used to, especially coming from a childhood of Black Box-developed titles. This was a completely different take on the franchise, both for better and for worse.
You can definitely feel Criterion’s Burnout roots in MW2012. Chaos is at the forefront of the game, and I believe that this is the most car-crash-dense entry in the entire franchise. Racers are actively encouraged to crash into each other as a means of gaining positions, and the cop chases are frenetic and violent in the best possible way. The multiplayer is just as chaotic and engaging, and the Autolog feature returns as I try to beat my friends’ times, jumps, speeds, and scores.
I do have to criticize some of the track design, as Fairhaven is intentionally full of sharp turns and objects you can crash into. Sometimes, however, the AI struggles with these and otherwise intimidating races against a Bugatti or a Pagani become much easier due to their penchant for crashing into walls on tight corners. The result is races that keep you on your toes, but not always for the right reasons.
The Most Wanted legacy is really shared only in name, as the story, car customization, and sense of progression in the 2005 game are absent here. Early previews of the game had the player being referred to as the “Rockport fugitive,” indicating a stronger connection to the 2005 original.
I do not want to dwell on what games could have been, as the cutting room floor is always vast for any game. MW2012’s soundtrack, however, is one of the franchise’s best, and it really does help to listen to killer tunes while racing around Fairhaven.
Rivals (2013): Transition and AllDrive Ambition
Rivals arrived during a handoff - Ghost Games led development (and would do so from that point forward) with Criterion providing support and tech. The foundations are Hot Pursuit’s: cops vs. racers, pursuit tech on both sides, and crisp, readable handling. The difference is how Redview County ties it together. The map is a patchwork of coast, forest, desert, and snowy highlands that leads to emergent gameplay. Each part of the world is crafted beautifully, and most importantly, it drives beautifully too.
AllDrive sits at the center. Instead of traditional lobbies, the game treats the entire world as shared space, and that simple shift changes everything. This invites both teamwork and rivalry. On the cop side, my favorite loop was pairing an EMP with an ESF strike - one player tags the shot, the other slams home the takedown. On the racer side, a dedicated friend acting as a blocker can transform an Interceptor run from barely survivable to surgical.
Risk versus reward is the real hook. This would be a feature for the entire franchise from this point forward, so it’s interesting to see its origins. The more you drive without banking, the more Speed Points you carry and the higher your heat climbs. The roads are narrow and busy, which raises the ceiling on route knowledge. Free drive also has a purpose here - you can initiate events in the emergent open world, and the end of a race does not mean the end of a pursuit.
The caveats are hard to ignore. On PC, the 30fps cap is difficult (but not impossible, with mods) to get around, and networking issues are prevalent. By October of this year, EA will also be shutting down servers, which I believe shuts down a feature key to Rivals’ identity - the loss of AllDrive means no more co-op fun with my friends. The balancing also left a lot to be desired.
Closing the Loop
Across Hot Pursuit, Most Wanted 2012, and Rivals, Criterion’s early NFS run defines a clear arc: sharpened B2D handling and Autolog rivalry, a chaotic open-world playground that clashed with its name’s legacy, and a smart synthesis in Rivals with risk banking and AllDrive - tempered by technical limits and soon-to-vanish servers.
If EA shelves the series, this era still leaves a workable blueprint: make the world matter moment to moment, keep handling expressive and fast, and treat social play as the default. I’ll save Unbound for its own send-off, but Criterion’s imprint is already unmistakable.
Stay tuned to racinggames.gg: the best website for Need for Speed coverage.