Need for Speed is reportedly making its triumphant return later this year. This follows earlier reports from insider Tom Henderson that Need for Speed would return either September or October 2022.
Speaking on his Giant Bomb premium show Grubbsnax (and transcribed by VGC), Jeff Grubb said EA’s racing franchise would make its return in November.
"Need for Speed is still coming this year… that’s true, that game should be coming in November," Grubb said. "If you are a Need for Speed fan who has bought a next-gen console, here’s some news; it’s next-gen only. They are shifting to next-gen only."
.jpg?q=50&fit=crop&w=740&dpr=1.5)
Grubb made no mention of any plans for a PC release, although recent Need for Speed games have been released on PC alongside consoles. He also mentioned that the new Need for Speed might be set in Miami, but he couldn’t say for sure.
The next installment of the Need for Speed franchise was originally intended to release in 2021 but was delayed to 2022 after Criterion Games was tapped to help ensure Battlefield 2042 was released that year. Criterion has since taken over Need for Speed development from Ghost Games after that studio was dissolved following the failure of Need for Speed: Heat.
Criterion Games previously worked on the Need for Speed series in Hot Pursuit in 2010 and Most Wanted in 2012, with some support offered on 2013’s Need for Speed: Rivals. EA has previously announced that the next Need for Speed game will release on previous-gen consoles with full crossplay, although it is now unclear if that’s still the case.
In other EA news, Skate 4 might soon be unveiled after news it has entered internal playtesting. This comes after years of sporadic and uninformative updates to confirm that Skate 4 is still in active development and after EA canceled its annual EA Play Live showcase.