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Game On or Game Over: Need For Speed Rivals

Microsoft versus Sony, Battlefield versus Call of Duty, and Forza versus Gran Turismo. These are some of the rivalries that can get people talking about console wars. To promote solidarity, Stevivor.com and StickyTrigger.com have donated two stunningly brilliant (and good looking) writers to tackle some of gaming’s most controversial subjects. Game On or Game Over is your place to get inside the minds of Nicholas and Andy as they seek to find the true meaning of gaming. Both are award winning authors – although the awards haven’t been mailed yet, or created yet, they have won many! Trust us, we wouldn’t lie!

Ferrari

Nicholas: Given that we are both fans of the franchise, I figured, what better place to start than by discussing Need For Speed Rivals? Now that we’ve seen some of the gameplay, what are your thoughts? Watching the battle between racers and cops, it really reminds me of Criterion’s Hot Pursuit. Yourself?

Andy: It’s funny you mention Criterion’s Hot Pursuit, after all, that was the title that made racing games fun for me again. Hot Pursuit was so much fun for me, the whole cops versus racers idea was amazing. Coming up from behind a friend and putting them into a wall is hard to do. Visually Rivals looks great, weather and light effects look nice, and it should add for some cool visuals. Let’s talk about the elephant in the room though. Rivals isn’t being done by Criterion this time around. Ghost Games has the helm this year, are you least a little apprehensive about the developer change?

Nicholas: To be perfectly honest, no, not really. Just in the last decade, the Need For Speed franchise has been handled by a number of different developers– Blackbox, Slightly Mad Studios, and Criterion, and each one has brought something new to the table. Like with anything, new developers means new ideas, and while some games have been a little hit and miss (The Run for example), I think it’s kept Need For Speed from becoming stale. I expect nothing less from Ghost Games. Besides, from the gameplay shown-off so far, you can tell there’s a heavy Criterion influence. They should be working from a pretty solid foundation anyway. Moving on, EA also seem to be talking up customisation in this game. What do you think of this? Anything worthwhile?

McLaren

Andy: Maybe it’s a fear of change. I have loved both of Criterions latest Need for Speed games (Hot Pursuit 2010, and Most Wanted 2012) and while I enjoyed Black Box’s The Run, there admittedly were some flaws. So, it’s a fear of the unknown, but like you said – new developers mean new ideas, so fingers crossed. Customization, I think I am in the minority based on internet chatter – but I don’t see it as being overly important. I’ve never been a big tuner guy, I want to pick up a controller, pick a car, and then take off. Asking me to tweak a car’s settings turns me off actually – it’s a big reason I have never been a Forza/Gran Turismo fan. I don’t mind paint jobs or body kits, but beyond that, it’s lost on me. Being that you and I are both racing game fans, put your developer hat on for a moment, what feature/mode would you make sure is in Rivals?

Nicholas: I know some might disagree with me here, but I think there has to be a story. One of the major gripes I had with the last game was the fact it felt lifeless, like there was never a purpose for me to play, or a goal to keep me playing. I’m not suggesting it has to be something elaborate or special, there doesn’t even need to be cut-scenes, but I just want to get the impression like I’m not alone in the world. More variety in the race modes is also a must. I always think back to the days of Underground 2 and remember the different types of races in that game. Speedtrap, sprint, circuit, drift, drag, and pursuits, bring them all back and make sure there’s a healthy mix of each. What about yourself?

Andy: I with you on this one, Game Modes. I think any gamer would agree variety is where it’s at. You pretty much listed all the modes I’d like to see maybe the addition of Interceptor from Most Wanted as well. I’m partial to the drift events though and I’ll maybe surprise you here a little, fell in love with that mode during Need for Speed Carbon – still think I am one of the few that liked that game. From the videos and recaps I have read, it seems like there is more integration of friends, drop-in and drop-out, and the ability to play single player as a cop versus your friend who is playing single player as a racer – sounds like an interesting idea if done well. In regards to story, are you talking the “story” from Most Wanted, where there is a sliver of a story as you progress through the game as both cop and racer, or are you looking for more of a story like The Run?

Pagani

Nicholas: While I wouldn’t mind a story like The Run with cut-scenes and whatnot, realistically, I just don’t see it happening. Having played Hot Pursuit and Most Wanted when Criterion was at the helm, such a story wouldn’t have worked – and I sort of expect the same thing with Rivals too. I’d be happy with just a team engineer/narrator like we had with SHIFT 2 really, as I said, just something that makes me feel like I’m not alone, and that I’m not simply going from race to race with nothing to motivate me, or nothing to work towards. I’ll be honest (and this is probably one of those situations where I’ll be in the minority), but the whole drop-in/drop-out co-op thing isn’t such a big deal for me. I mean, I’ll respect that it’s a cool feature that would be nice if pulled off properly, but I’ve always been very much a SP-only sort of player, so I’ll most likely never see it’s true potential. All that said though, Rivals is shaping up to be an awesome racer, and it’s certainly one I’m excited for. Any final thoughts or concerns?

Andy: I’m the opposite of you, I love the multiplayer aspect of racing games, but I really like the AutoLog idea in the last couple of Need for Speed titles. Knowing where my times rank with those of people on my friends list adds an amazing amount of replay value, so I hope some iteration of that is included in Rivals. We talked about Ghost Games, I hope they can take the helm and continue on with Criterion’s solid foundation. As you said, new developer should bring some new and exciting ideas. From what I have seen thus far, I agree, Need for Speed Rivals looks like it’s shaping up to be another solid addition to the franchise.

Tune in next time for the next instalment of Game On or Game Over. If you have any ideas for our next time, feel free to contact Andy or Nicholas on Twitter!


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About the author

Nicholas Simonovski

Events and Racing Editor at Stevivor.com. Proud RX8 owner, Strange Music fan and Joe Rogan follower. Living life one cheat meal at a time.