Need for Speed World

Do you feel a need to get behind the wheel of a car and race through the city streets? Would you prefer to do so without being arrested or the risk of crashing into a building at 100 MPH? Need for Speed World fulfills that requirement, and as of today, Aeria Games is bringing the game to a worldwide audience. It's the second game that the publisher has handled from Electronic Arts following the work done on Battlefield Heroes earlier this year.

Like many other releases from Aeria Games, Need for Speed World's global release comes with several different localizations. The client is available in English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and Polish, letting players of several different nationalities face off against one another on the mean streets of several fictional cities. And of course, the core racing mechanics of the game have remained intact so that players can enjoy the whole free-to-play racing game in whatever tongue is most comfortable.

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Thus far, Community Detective has stayed on the straight and narrow course of fantasy MMORPGs during its brief existence. Sure, I've taken the occasional detour into sci-fi, superhero, and quasi-historical territory, but the majority of the column's first 23 issues were -- like the genre itself -- largely concerned with sorcerers, scantily-clad he-men, and sword-related violence.

This week I'd like to break out of that mold for a bit and examine a title based in the real world (or more accurately, Electronic Arts' approximation of the real world). To borrow a quote from dear old '80s cinema: I feel the need, the Need for Speed World.

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Another day, another creatively defined user record shattered. This time around, Need for Speed World does the honors by surpassing five million registered users. The free-to-play racing MMO from Electronic Arts most recently made metrics-related headlines last December when it topped three million registered users.

Gamasutra has the details on the latest milestone and also notes that NFSW is offering motorsport fans a chance to check out virtual versions of actual automobiles from Audi, including the new A1 ClubSport Quattro that was unveiled yesterday.

Need for Speed World is the 15th iteration of EA's venerable racing franchise and the first to feature MMORPG stylings. You can read all about it and download the free client at the game's official web destination.

Why get chased by the cops alone when you can do it with friends? Need For Speed World has opened the freeways with six new Epic Escapes. This time you're not running from the cops alone; you and your friends can high-tail it away from smokey together. Not only is NFSW stepping it up a notch with team pursuits, but it's also upped the danger by giving the cops all-new tactics for catching you lawbreakers. And just to make things more interesting, the times for these runs have been extended to up to eight minutes, so you'd best slap on those high-endurance tires.

Of course, the game doesn't give something to the cops without giving something to you. Because this is a team effort, the devs have given the racer two new team abilities: Team Emergency Evade, which saves your team from getting arrested when you need its help, and Team Slingshot, which provides a powerful boost of speed to your team when it needs it the most.

Check out the full details on the Need For Speed World website. If this gets your adrenaline pumping, then keep watching Massively; we have some special Team Escape events coming up soon!

Need for Speed World launched at the end of July with a business model that many MMO fans like to call "free-to-try." Players could zoom around for as long as they wanted at no cost, but with a level cap of 10. Paid players could reach level 50.

The NFSW team members have had some time to settle in, watch player reaction, and discuss where they want the game to go from here, and today they announced their decision: the level cap is off and Need for Speed World is free-to-play! We chatted with Producer Jean-Charles Gaudechon about the change shortly before it happened, and he had some exciting things to tell us.

Follow along after the jump for all the details and a first look at some of the new content.

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When it comes to adrenaline junkies, there's no challenge that seems too crazy -- especially when it's in a video game and you won't really suffer any broken bones from those insane stunts! Today's One Shots contributor, Jeroen V., is not content to simply zoom around in Need For Speed World at high rates of speed, racing against other players. Instead, he's dreamed up a crazy driving stunt he wants to pull off... somehow. He writes in:

"I was just cruising the streets of whatever they called this town when I came across a roller coaster. Who doesnt want to race his car down a roller coaster track? I'm still searching for a way in!"

There are tons of interesting sights out there in the MMOGverse, but we need you to help make One Shots happen. If you'd like to contribute, grab a screenshot of something interesting from your favorite game for us! Then all you have to do is email it to us here at oneshots@massively.com along with your name, the name of the game, and a description of what we're seeing. We'll post it out here for everyone to enjoy and give you the credit.

Fast cars. Expensive gas. Gaudy spinners. Fuzzy dice. A lead foot. Radar detectors. EA is set to provide all of these and more when Need for Speed World launches next week. A release date of July 27 has been announced, and will be available via digital download for all hot rod enthusiasts.

Of course, if you can't wait to settle into the driver's seat, you can get into the game today by pre-ordering the Need for Speed World Starter Pack. Apart from the benefit of early access, pre-orders will get their hands on exclusive cars, be fueled with double XP, and have the ever-so-elite "VIP" tag added to their driver profile from now on. The Starter Pack also includes an allowance of NFSW's in-game currency for a shopping trip if one so desires.

A trial of the game will become available next week as well, offering a free sample of NFSW up through level 10 to any and all who mosey by. EA is obviously crossing its fingers that NFSW will go the distance and not break down on the side of the road like Motor City Online, but so far, things are looking up for this title.

Vroom vroom! I want to tell you to warm up your engines and place your hands at 10 and 2, because Need For Speed World is just about ready to burn some asphalt and squeal some rubber. Too bad I couldn't car-metaphor my way out of a wet paper bag. But I can tell you this: EA's free-to-play racing MMO is awesome fun. And it's almost here.

I sat down Wednesday with Adam King, EA product manager, and a copy of NFSW, which opens July 20 with a pre-order head start before going fully live July 27. King gave me a chance to look under the engine, punch the tires and take the game for a twirl -- car metaphors, agh! -- so follow me past the jump for my impressions of the game, plus some hints about what to expect in the first major content update.

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Need For Speed World is preparing for starting flag! Today and tomorrow, the developers of this highly anticipated action MMO are rounding the final lap with a stress test. And you are invited! This free-to-play action-racing persistent world closed its beta last week with high marks among fans, and, per the norm, developers need to test the server capacity.

The race to stress EA's servers begins July 13th at 10 a.m. PDT (1 p.m. EDT), and the checkered flag flies on July 14th at 5 p.m. PDT (8 p.m. EDT). To celebrate this special event, all rental restrictions have been lifted. That means even at level 1 you can rent any car you would like. This is your chance to test drive that Porsche that you could only ogle during beta testing. As an added bonus, each player will receive 8000 SpeedBoost power-ups. Also, if you are one of the top five racers in the Community Sprint Race Competition for car tiers 1, 2 and 3, the starter pack is yours for free. This packaged upgrade to your account sells for $19.95 in the EA Store and allows you to progress beyond level 10 and obtain a Toyota Corolla AE86.

Drive on over to world.needforspeed.com now for your last chance to feed your Need For Speed before the game's official launch!

Ready to get your race on? We are too, and luckily Electronic Arts is dropping the hammer on the Need For Speed World open beta test beginning tomorrow, July 2nd. The open beta will run through the holiday weekend and conclude on July 5th.

If you haven't signed up for the beta yet, you can do so (and get automatic access) simply by registering on the official website. In addition, veterans of the closed beta test (which powered down last night) will not have their accounts wiped for the open beta period. Finally, Massively readers who have previously received beta keys are eligible to continue participating.

New to the online racing scene? Be sure to check out our Need For Speed World coverage from E3.

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You can always tell when an MMO is getting ready to release -- the information (some will say hype) machines get cranked up to 11. What you don't always see, though, is the developers of the game in question sitting down to not only tell you about their upcoming game, but to soundly kick each other's butts in-game; a treat we get to see from the Need For Speed World team.

In this latest edition of the Need For Speed World video diaries, we're treated to a look at some of the various buffs that players will have a chance to use on their cars during play. The options range from more obvious things like nitrous for speed, to something called "traffic magnet" which is a bit low on specific details, but we gather is quite handy for getting ahead of the pack. With the release coming soon, we're sure more details will continue to pour out in coming weeks -- hopefully with more devs smack-talking each other! Until then, you can check out all the action in the newest video, just behind the break.

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We thought it best to collate our coverage into a complete and concise roundup post for your viewing pleasure, so read along after the cut to make sure you didn't miss anything. You can also check out all of our E3 galleries along the way.

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"This is Need for Speed World. It is a Massively Multiplayer Action Racing Game. This is the first time for the franchise to go on the Massively Multi[player] Online market, so that is really exciting for us," Producer Jean-Charles Gaudechon announces to Massively at E3 as he gives us a tour of this brand new step into the MMO world. He could not wait to show of the innovative and (dare it be said) powerful features of this, yes, free-to-play game.

How does someone transform one of the best-selling console racing franchises into an online living world that players expect from an MMOG? The producers at EA make it seem simple. It actually seems as if this game should have been an online world the whole time. From customizable cars to character leveling and achievements to exportable leaderboards -- this game is any MMO without even thinking. All you need now is a couple thousand friends for you to race against.

"The world is the biggest we've ever done, it's a seamless open world that you can explore." Well, that sounds like an invitation from Mister Gaudechon. Follow the break, and we will explore!

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