The famous Need for Speed series had a pretty tumultuous recent history, NFS titles in recent years were divided between three production studios. Thus, Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit in 2010 was made by studio Criterion Games, Burnout series parents.
Oriented titles for simulation (Need for Speed: SHIFT; Need for Speed: SHIFT 2 Unleashed) fell into the task of Slightly Mad Studios. Finally, EA Black Box, veterans of the series (authors NFS Underground games, ProStreet, Carbon and Most Wanted) continued last year with NFS: The Run.
Unfortunately, the only title Need for Speed from the recent years enjoyed really successful (both commercially and critically) was NFS: Hot Pursuit, reimagining the old NFS III: Hot Pursuit (1998), launched in autumn 2010. Given this, further enhanced by encouraging feedback that was not received NFS: The Run, publisher Electronic Arts was determined to make a serious decision.
Thus, in a recent interview with GameInformer, Alex Ward, vice president of the Criterion Games, said that she decided that the destinies of Need for Speed series to be attributed exclusively to British studio from now on. So, those from Criterion Games become “masters” in two of the most important series of games with cars from Electronic Arts: Burnout and Need for Speed. Need for Speed: Most Wanted, the future title of the series also made by Criterion Games, will be released in Europe on November 2, 2012, for PC, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and PlayStation Vita.
