Need for Speed: The Run

Need for Speed: The Run is a racing video game, the 18th title in the Need for Speed franchise, and developed by EA Black Box and published by Electronic Arts. The Wii and 3DS versions were developed by Firebrand Games, the team behind Undercover and Nitro (both DS versions). It was released in North America on November 15, 2011 and November 18, 2011 in Europe.

The game is described as an "illicit, high-stakes race across the country. The only way to get your life back is to be the first from San Francisco to New York. No speed limits. No rules. No allies. All you have are your driving skills and sheer determination".

Producers Jason DeLong and Steve Anthony have stated during an interview that Black Box is aiming to obtain critical acclaim after their last game received universally poor ratings.The Run was in production for three years even though previous Black Box titles have had much shorter development periods.

Gameplay

In The Run, players are participating in an "underground world of illicit, high stakes racing," in a race from San Francisco to New York, with stops through Las Vegas, Denver, Detroit, and many other locations, making it the first title in the series to use real locations. The cops aren't the only ones after the player though, as the player "blows across borders, weaves through dense urban traffic, rockets down icy mountain passes and navigates narrow canyons at breakneck speeds." There are over 300 km of track, three times more than Hot Pursuit, making it the biggest Need For Speed game.

The Run is powered by DICE's Frostbite 2 engine, making the game the first non-shooter and one of the first console titles to use the engine, which provides visuals and car physics that "hug the road even at top speeds all built around a gripping storyline." Additionally, Need for Speed Autolog, the Need for Speed franchise's social competition functionality, which was introduced in Hot Pursuit and was previously used in Shift 2: Unleashed, is also back as it will continue to track career progression and compare game stats.

The game features quick time events, with the player for the first time in Need for Speed history, exiting their car and traveling on foot. These events won't always be about harsh success or failure states. In some sections there are branching outcomes, so if the player mangles a certain button press, they'll get another chance to pull through.

The driving model of the game is described as "sit somewhere between Shift and Hot Pursuit", not as arcade-styled as Hot Pursuit, but neither as simulator-styled as Shift. The Run employs a large range of real-world vehicles, seemingly taking in the usual mix of muscle cars, street racers and refined exotics, described as "each car presents a different driving challenge for the player." Exclusively digitized for the game is the 2012 Porsche 911 Carrera S and the Pagani Huayra. The damage system will be similar to that seen in Hot Pursuit. The cars can be altered with performance upgrades and visual upgrades, such as paint colors and body kits. There will be cosmetic body kits known as Style Pack kits and Aero Pack kits, which will affect aerodynamics as well as performance.

An XP (Expirience points) system is used for unlocking cars and events. The game also feature a Rewind option to allows the player to restart an event to their last checkpoint if they wreck their vehicle or rewind their vehicle from a collision or missed opportunity. Rewinds will only be available in limited quantities as their amount will dependent on the difficulty level that the player has selected; Easy will have unlimited Rewinds, Normal will have five Rewinds, Hard will have fewer Rewinds and Impossible will have no Rewinds as well as the most difficult AI opponents.

Modes

A trailer was released on July 26, 2011 and entitled as "Run for the Hills", which shows the player racing along a barren desert highway which followed a series of hills as well as containing a large jump. The player had the task of overtaking ten opponents before reaching the end of the course event. GameSpot released a gameplay video on November 2, 2011 that portrayed a race consisting of 14 checkpoints that the player has to drive through before their time runs out. Time was added for each checkpoint that the player drove through.^{[citation needed]} Pursuits can also occur during races. The police in the game will utilize roadblocks and perform ramming tactics. Police cars will have a health bar displayed above their vehicles.

Multiplayer

Up to 16 players can participate in a single online match. Players will be able to party with friends, pick a playlist of their favorite challenges and compete for supremacy across every stage of game. In addition to this, players will never have to wait in a lobby again even if they are joining a race in progress. The multiplayer matches are split into differing game type playlists, such as Supercar Challenge, NFS Edition Racing, The Underground, Mixed Competition, Exotic Sprint, and Muscle Car Battles. Most of these modes pertain to different car varieties for each race, but the Supercar Challenge is meant entirely for the fastest cars on the fastest tracks. The player can select an event and vote towards the race course that the multiplayer game will be taking place on. Players will also take part in a reward system known as "The Bonus Wheel", which randomly selects a reward and required goal criteria for it.

Wii/3DS versions

The game is similar to Need For Speed Hot Pursuit. Players race down freeways until they meet a police car. The police will then try to chase them down and wreck their car. They will also encounter other objectives such as a straight-up race. There is another mode where players 'duel' a rival. They can also race to toll booths that double as checkpoints.

The 3DS version also features Autolog, which is integrated throughout the career mode and uses 40 in-game challenges scattered throughout the campaign. The game also takes advantage of StreetPass, letting players upload their best Autolog scores to other Nintendo 3DS devices. In multiplayer, the game will feature a straight race mode where eight people compete. There is also a four-on-four Cops vs. Racers mode. The game will support Wi-Fi and local wireless connections.

However, the Wii version lacks online play, yet it has split-screen multiplayer.

Plot

Need for Speed: The Run features a linear story mode, which places the player in the shoes of Jackson "Jack" Rourke. After an incident leaves him in bad standing with a mysterious crime organization, Jack becomes a marked man and must flee for his survival. The consequence of his situation leaves him owing large sums of money, which he cannot pay on his own. He is directed to a massive illegal street racing event called "The Run" by an associate, Sam Harper. The Run is a 3000 mile journey across the continental United States, starting in San Francisco and ending in New York City. She informs him the prize money, $25,000,000, is enough to secure his freedom from the organisation but he will have to beat over 200 other drivers to the finish line to win. Complicating things, he is in debt to both the police and the criminal organization, and both want to make sure that he never finishes the race.

Characters

Several characters in the game are digital likeness of real world actors. The cast also lends their voices to the game. Actor Sean Faris portrays protagonist Jack Rourke while actress Christina Hendricks plays Sam Harper. Two Sports Illustrated models, Irina Shayk and Christine Teigen also have roles in the game.

Wii/3DS storyline

The Nintendo 3DS and Wii versions feature a different storyline than its contemporaries. The plot will unfold through graphic novel-esque cutscenes that also contain minigames, though they are not the same as the quick-time event gameplay of the console version. The story is divided into five acts (which is further divided into 26 "episodes").The protagonist of the 3DS/Wii version is not Jack, but rather a down-on-his-luck stock car racer named "Matt". The premise remains mostly unchanged (a coast-to-coast race with a large pot at stake) but will introduce a mysterious female character who will take the story in a different direction.