History Main / NeedForSpeed

** The first game in the series, ''The Need for Speed''.
** [[Film/NeedForSpeed The film based on the games]].
** The 2015 reboot of the series, simply titled ''Need for Speed''.
** Alternately, you may be searching for the following entries:
*** The ''VideoGame/NeedForSpeedUnderground'' games.
*** The ''VideoGame/NeedForSpeedMostWanted'' games.
*** ''VideoGame/NeedForSpeedCarbon''.
*** ''VideoGame/NeedForSpeedPayback''.
*** ''VideoGame/NeedForSpeedHeat''.

*** ''VideoGame/NeedForSpeedHeat''.

** Alternately, you may be searching for the ''VideoGame/NeedForSpeedMostWanted'' or ''VideoGame/NeedForSpeedUnderground'' games.

** Alternately, you may be searching for the ''VideoGame/NeedForSpeedMostWanted'' games.

** [[Film/NeedForSpeed The film based on the games]].

[[redirect:VideoGame/NeedForSpeed]]

[[quoteright:333:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/nfs.jpg]]

Long running series of racing games focusing on street racing, initially with exotic supercars and then moving to tuner car racing, probably as a result of the latter coming into fashion with the release of the ''TheFastAndTheFurious'' in 2001. Notable for being available for PC as well as consoles throughout its run. Published by Electronic Arts.

Games in the series include:

* '''''Road & Track Presents: The Need for Speed'' (1994):''' Contained point-to-point open road tracks and several closed racetracks. The open roads featured AI traffic and police cars that chased the player. Was originally released on the 3DO console, and was later ported to the PlayStation, Saturn and DOS PC in 1996 when the 3DO flopped. The PC version of the game, ''Need for Speed SE'' (the "SE" meaning Special Edition), added a few new cars and tracks as well. Developed by EA Canada who would develop all of the ensuing games till Motor City.
* '''''Need For Speed II'' (1997):''' Expanded on the car selection of the original with several contemporary concept cars, like the Ford Indigo and Ford [=GT90=]. The game abandoned open road courses for arcade circuits. PC Gamer magazine criticized many of the tracks extravagant and unrealistic scenery -- comparing many of them to being akin to driving on magic mushrooms. ''NFS II'' also had a special edition release for the PC, which added some new cars, a new track and 3Dfx Glide support.
* '''''Need For Speed V-Rally'' (1997) & ''Need For Speed V-Rally II'' (1999):''' The [[MarketBasedTitle American market branding]] of ''V-Rally'', an unrelated rally racing title made by the French developer Eden Studios and published overseas by Infogrames. ''V-Rally 3'' would be published without the NFS branding in 2002. Eden Studios would also develop the Playstation version of ''Porsche Unleashed'' and the very old-school-NFS-like ''VideoGame/TestDrive Unlimited''.
* '''''Need For Speed III: Hot Pursuit'' (1998):''' Re-introduced the police chases from the first game, and improved the AI system, with each racer having different driving habits. The PC version provided the option to play as the police and catch speeders. Also the first NFS that was easily modded with add-on cars. One of the highlights of the series, according to fans.
* '''''Need For Speed: High Stakes'' (1999):''' Similar to Hot Pursuit, but with a career mode. The High Stakes name referred to sudden death races where the winner wins the losers car. The PC version is basically an MissionPackSequel to ''Hot Pursuit'', because it also included all the tracks from the previous game. The Playstation version didn't have the ''Hot Pursuit'' tracks. Known as ''[[MarketBasedTitle Need For Speed: Road Challenge]]'' in Europe.
* '''''Need For Speed: Porsche Unleashed'' (2000):''' ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin. Consisted purely of Porsche road cars, from 1948 to 2000. Featured more realistic physics than previous games. Another shining moment from the series. Notable for being the last game in the series developed by EA Canada.
* '''''Motor City Online'' (2001):''' An attempt at a driving [[{{MMORPG}} MMOG]], developed in house by EA, and first game not developed by EA Canada. This game focused entirely on American cars, particularly muscle cars, from TheThirties through TheSeventies (until the very end, when the Toyota Supra and the Mitsubishi Eclipse were added, presumably to broaden appeal). Despite not having the NFS branding, it is considered to be a NFS game by EA and fans of the series, and was even originally planned as ''Need For Speed: Motor City''. It was largely unsuccessful, and was shut down in 2004.
* '''''Need For Speed: Hot Pursuit II'' (2002):''' Similar to the original ''Hot Pursuit'', but with more and bigger tracks, more cars, and more race types. Was the last game in the series to focus on exotic cars for nearly a decade. Also, until a 2010 content download (see CoolCar, below), it was the last game in the series to have cars from Ferrari. Most of the other games up to this point, except for ''MCO'' and ''Porsche Unleashed'', had at least one Ferrari. It was also the first game by EA Black Box, who would become the new Need for Speed Developer for the next several years.
* '''''Need For Speed: Underground'' (2003):''' Changed the format of the series from exotic cars on open road tracks to street racing with tuner cars. It also introduced a storyline and car customization.
* '''''Need For Speed: Underground II'' (2004):''' Similar to the original ''Underground'', but with a [[WideOpenSandbox free roaming city]], as in ''GrandTheftAuto''.
* '''''Need For Speed: Underground Rivals'' (2005):''' A version of ''Underground II'' for PSP. Introduced muscle cars to the vehicle lineup.
* '''''Need For Speed: Most Wanted'' (2005):''' Similar to ''Underground II'', re-introducing police chases and featuring muscle cars and exotics in addition to tuner cars.
* '''''Need For Speed: Carbon'' (2006):''' A more story-driven street racing game, with the player recruiting drivers to their 'crew'. The highlight feature was the canyon races, which wound down narrow, twisting mountain roads, and the greatest danger was often driving off a cliff.
* '''''Need For Speed: [=ProStreet=]'' (2007):''' Themed around organized race days with no illegal street racing. Switched to a more realistic handling model, and was widely criticised for it - [[CreatorBacklash even EA admitted that this one is "not good".]]
* '''''Need For Speed: Undercover'' (2008):''' Returned to the ''Most Wanted'' model of focusing on illegal street racing, with a ''TheFastAndTheFurious''-style storyline. Was trashed by critics for its bad framerate, its cheesy storyline, and for being not as good as Rockstar Games' ''MidnightClub: Los Angeles'' and EA's other arcade-style racing game from 2008, ''{{Burnout}} Paradise''. Pretty much sullied EA Black Box's reputation with the series.
* '''''Need For Speed: Shift'' (2009):''' Another crack at realistic racing, from [[http://www.slightlymadstudios.com/ Slightly Mad Studios]] (an independent development team composed of people who worked on GTR, [=GTR2=], and GT Legends, a trio of well-received PC sim racers), with help from EA Black Box. Much better received than Undercover.
* '''''Need For Speed: Nitro'' (2009):''' An arcade-like racer for the Wii and DS. Developed by EA Montreal.
* '''''Need For Speed: World'' (2010):''' Another attempt at a NFS MMO, this one is free-to-play, featuring microtransactions for the 'premium' version of in-game currency. Features the cityscapes from ''Most Wanted'' and ''Carbon'' in a persistent MMO environment, not unlike ''Test Drive Unlimited''. Developed by EA Black Box and EA Singapore. Has received middle of road reviews. Players start off with $35,000 to buy a starter car and begin racing against other players and the game's AI. Borrowing from the leveling mechanics found in ''Hot Pursuit 2010'', You earn money and reputation for winning, which you can use to buy upgrades in the form of after-market parts to adjust your stats. As you level up, you unlock new tiers of cars and events you can participate in. Other features include Pursuit mode, where the player must outrun the local police, and Team Pursuit, where you and your team must beat the clock to avoid getting arrested.
* '''''Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit'' (2010):''' [[http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showpost.php?p=21783538&postcount=24 Was accidentally revealed]] by [=GameTrailers=] TV in a quick look at EA's [=E3=] 2010 booth, [[http://kotaku.com/5563332/need-for-speed-is-in-hot-pursuit-of-a-new-game and was confirmed at EA's press conference a few days later.]] This is the first game in the series [[http://www.giantbomb.com/news/criterion-has-a-need-for-speed/1404/ developed by Criterion Games]], the EA studio behind the ''{{Burnout}}'' franchise, is a SpiritualSuccessor to ''Hot Pursuit 2'' ([[CaptainObvious of course]]), and features some online-centric "race and chase" gameplay, either through multiplayer or the "Autolog" system that continuously compares your best times to those of your friends and challenges you to beat your friends' times.
* '''''Shift 2: Unleashed'' (2011):''' After the success of ''Need for Speed: Shift'', it's not too surprising to learn that EA gave Slightly Mad Studios another go-around and green-lit ''Shift 2'' this time without input from Black Box. The handling model is massively improved from ''Shift'', and the Autolog feature from ''Hot Pursuit'' returns, as well.
* '''''Need for Speed: The Run'' (2011):''' Judging from [[http://kotaku.com/5796785/eas-next-need-for-speed-leaks-early-goes-on-the-run-in-november this trailer]], expect a CannonballRun-style romp across America with a heavy emphasis on story and cinematic action. The plot's kind of [[ExcusePlot Excuse-y]] but just know Sean Faris gets some advice from ChristinaHendricks about a 3000 mile race that he can use to win $25 million, enough to pay back a crime syndicate he had a bad run-in with. Was meant to be EA Black Box's redemption after losing control over the series post ''Undercover'', but with less than stellar reviews, this looks to not be the case.

The Need for Speed page now features [[WMG/NeedforSpeed WMG]], [[YMMV/NeedForSpeed YMMV]] and [[AwesomeMusic/NeedForSpeed Crowning Music]] pages.
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The game features examples of these tropes:

* ATasteOfPower: ''Underground'' starts InMediasRes with a Bonus Car with nitrous, ''Underground 2'' starts with a borrowed tuned car, ''Most Wanted'' starts with a powerful BMW [=M3=] that is sabotaged and lost in a bet, and ''Carbon'' starts with you thrashing that same BMW.
** Defied in ''Hot Pursuit 2k10''. A starter cop mission gives you Lamborghini Reventon, and things ''don't'' get worse from there. Mind you, ''[=NFS:HP2010=]'' absolutely ''loves'' this trope, heck, fairly early in the game (whichever side of the law you are on), you're gonna get a preview of a handful of cars you won't be driving for a while. The best examples include the [=McLaren=] F1, Pagani Zonda Cinque, Corvette [=ZR1=] and the Bugatti Veyron 16.4. All of which can be unlocked after a few hours of playing.
*** [[spoiler: And yes, the Veyron and the Konigsegg CCXR are the last two cars you'll unlock]].
* AdamSmithHatesYourGuts: Inverted in ''Porsche Unleashed''. If you bought a used car, repaired it, and sold it, you would make a profit every single time. There was also an infinite supply of used Porsches as well, meaning that [[GameBreaker you could have all the money you wanted for the price of grinding the menus]].
* AluminumChristmasTrees: Sure that light blue police Gallardo 560-4 in [=HP2010=] is cool and all but that car ''actually exists in Italy as an interceptor unit''.
* AnachronismStew: A subtle but noticeable one in ''Hot Pursuit 2010'' is an F-14 [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/F-14_Tomcat Tomcat]] that likes to fly-by every now and then near Memorial Highway. [[RuleOfCool Though not a particular source of frustration,]] it's still has some of the fans that are well-versed in aviation crying afoul because the game more or less takes place TwentyMinutesIntoTheFuture and that the [[JustPlaneWrong plane in question has been out of service since 2006]].
* AnnouncerChatter: And police chatter in the games that have them. Very much a necessity in ''Most Wanted'' where you can keep track of their movements.
* AntiFrustrationFeatures: In ''The Run'', you can restart from the latest checkpoint if/[[GoddamnedBats when]] you either wreck your car, or you've lost that particular segment of the race. You can do this at will, too, up to certain times depending on the difficulty. Insert jokes about certain [[GroundhogDay groundhog-day-looper-that-signed-an-unfair-contract here.]]
* {{Beat}}: In ''Hot Pursuit 2010'', the police dialogue on screen literally says {BEAT} whenever there's a pause between sentences during the same dialogue clip.
* BenevolentArchitecture: some of those cities look like racetracks with houses.
* BilingualBonus: ''Road Challenge'' Hot Pursuit mode (the police chase mode) had an option to use 'local police'. This gave full localised voices for the dispatch and driver voice-overs. On the British circuit, the British Police talk with English accents. The French and German circuits go one step further - they even talk in the right language, not just a faux accent.
** Averted for the english police, driving a Victoria police Holden has the police sound more like they're from {{Heartbeat}} than BlueHeelers.
* BraggingRightsReward: ''Underground'' had the Bonus Cars, untuned cars with awesome vinyls.
* BribingYourWayToVictory: Some versions of ''Carbon, [=ProStreet=]'' and ''Undercover'' all let you unlock cars and parts early by paying real money.
* BrokenBridge: All the boroughs start out locked by an InvisibleWall.
** Construction equipment and fortified barricades block off the road [[spoiler:which leads to (coincidentally) the broken bridge used in the final pursuit of Most Wanted.]]
* BulletTime: the Speedbreaker from ''Most Wanted'' and ''Carbon''. Also counts as GameBreaker.
* CallBack: ''The Run'' allows players to access challenges which would unlock cars from ''Underground'' (Eddie's Skyline GTR from the first ''Underground'' and Rachel's 350Z from ''Underground 2''), ''Most Wanted'' (the player's M3 GTR and Razor's Mustang), and ''Carbon'' (Cross' Corvette Z06 C6 and Darius' Le Mans Quattro). (Note that the challenges are inspired by the games themselves.)
* CaptainObvious: In the opening pursuit of The Run captions pop up helpfully telling you to avoid gunfire and explosions.
* CharacterTiers:[[invoked]] Car-based example: The series as a whole tends to divide cars into "Classes," putting similar cars into different classes (for example, putting high-performance sports cars like the Lamborghini Diablo VT and the Ferrari [=512TR=] in their own Class) based on performance. Each game has it's own system of organization.
* TheComputerIsACheatingBastard
** On many occasions, you'll be surprised to discover that the police SUV, is in fact ''much'' faster than your tricked out [=McLaren=] F1 running at top speed.
*** Those police [=SUVs=] are especially annoying in ''World''; after an update was added to the game to make pursuits in higher Heat Levels tougher, it seems that in every Heat Level 5 pursuit there are always two more Rhinos coming at you ''every ten seconds''.
*** Ironically, in the original Hot Pursuit, the Police AI was a lot dumber, making the very hook of the game much easier than its singleplayer!
* CoolCar: Koenigsegg CCX with modifications. [[RuleOfCool You can't get any more awesome than that!]]
** The early NFS games lived on this trope. Ferraris, Lamborghinis and Porsches aplenty.
*** ''Need for Speed: Shift'' trumps 'em all by having the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maserati_MC12_Corsa Maserati MC12 Corsa]] and the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lamborghini_Reventón Lamborghini Reventón]], along with the [=McLaren=] F1, Bugatti EB 16.4 Veyron, the aforementioned Koeingsegg, and the Ford Mustang Shelby [=GT500=]. Still no Ferraris, but the Maserati [=MC12=] Corsa uses the engine, chassis, and other internals of the Enzo Ferrari, so it'll be good enough.
*** If you have the Xbox 360 version of ''Shift'', then you have the option of downloading a content pack [[http://kotaku.com/5467211/need-for-speed-shift-welcomes-back-ferrari-next-week/gallery/ that brings back the Ferraris for the first time since Hot Pursuit II.]]
*** ''Shift 2: Unleashed'' has the exclusive rights to the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pagani_Huayra Pagani Huayra]], a 235 MPH Italian supercar. It's so awesome, [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MOyMxfxUct8 the car's reveal trailer needs no music aside from the exhaust note.]]
* CowboyCop: This is how you get ''anything'' done in the ''Hot Pursuit 2k10''. Road Blocks, Spike Strips, EMP, and Helicopter at your disposal, officer. Justified in that the racers are ''really'' dangerous.
** The original Hot Pursuit was somewhat more sedate, in that you only got spike strips. The rest you had to do yourself, via takedowns.
* CrazyAwesome: In-universe, ''You'' (well, Ryan Cooper) are considered to be this by the [=DJs=] if you perform good enough. They insist a ''lot'' on this at the beginning of drag races.
-->'''DJ:''' "Did you see this guy? He's completely '''bananas'''!"
* CurbStompBattle: ''A lot'' of the Duel Events in ''Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit 2010'' can fall into this, particularly the ''Power Trip'', ''Twin Turbo'', ''Racing Stripes'' and ''Title Fight'' Duels.
* DamnYouMuscleMemory
* DangerousForbiddenTechnique: Turbo in ''Hot Pursuit 2k10''. [[LampshadeHanging Like the game says]], "it's hard to evade spike strips when you're going at 200mph". Especially when you're out of Jammers and can't prevent the cops from dropping spike strips in front of you...
* DeathFromAbove: One of the levels in ''The Run'' has Jack avoiding an attacking helicopter as he attempts to escape Chicago. Appropriately enough, the trailer it's featured in is called "[[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin Death From Above]]".
* DifficultButAwesome: Mastering the Bugatti Veyron and it's [[UpToEleven faster version, the Super Sport]] definitely qualifies, these are 2 of the fastest cars in the world but they're very difficult to handle, but with some skill and a bit of practice you can makes these cars almost [[GameBreaker game-breaking]].
* DifficultySpike: quite common since ''Underground''.
* DisproportionateRetribution: The premise of Hot Pursuit. "Hey, that guy is speeding! Quickly, lets lay down spike strips, use electromagnetic pulses, call in the helicopters, and ram them off the road! Hopefully off the side of a cliff! That'll teach them a lesson about speeding!"
* DolledUpInstallment: ''V-Rally'' and ''V-Rally 2''.
* DramaticLandfallShot: The opening of ''Undercover''.
* DrivesLikeCrazy: You in almost all Need for Speed games. Of note are the beautiful, treacherous tracks in Hot Pursuit 2K10. When you get to, or have to, drive a Corvette ZR1 through hairpins at 200mph, you have to learn to drift well fast.
* DudeWheresMyRespect: Played straight in Underground 1&2, where almost all race givers will treat your car as a wreck, and expect you to be [[EpicFail lapped five times by the end of the race.]] Averted in ProStreet where, if you perform good enough, the DJs will ''constantly'' praise you.
* DynamicDifficulty
* EveryCarIsRearWheelDrive: In earlier installments, the only options for vehicles were rear-wheel drive and four-wheel drive, which made this almost literally true. ''Hot Pursuit 2K10'' has only two types: Rear Wheel Drive and All Wheel Drive.
* EverythingsBetterWithDinosaurs: ''NFS II'' had an unlockable Hollywood track, with movie sets and dinosaurs (indeed, a cheat code allowed you to turn your car ''into'' a dinosaur, as well as other silly things like a log).
* EveryEpisodeEnding
* [[DeathIsASlapOnTheWrist Getting Arrested Is A Slap On The Wrist]]: The ultimate goal of the Pursuit races in ''Need For Speed World'' is to keep going for as long as you possible can (or want) while causing hundreds of thousands of dollars in damage to the state. It's up to you to keep the event going if you lose the police, by actively seeking them back out again. If you happen to get arrested though, all you suffer is a loss of a couple hundred dollars.
* HammerspacePoliceForce
* HeyItsThatGuy: Sean Faris (TheVampireDiaries) is the voice of [[PlayerCharacter Jack Rourke]] in ''The Run''. Christina Hendricks (MadMen) provides the role of the player's handler Sam.
** In ''Carbon'', your racing crew includes [[TwoAndAHalfMen Mia]], [[{{Eureka}} Vincent]], and [[PainkillerJane Connor King]]. Meanwhile, your opponents are led by [[{{Dollhouse}} Paul Ballard]].
* HollywoodCalifornia
* HoodOrnamentHottie: Brooke Burke and Kelly Brook in ''Underground II'', Josie Maran in ''Most Wanted'', Emmanuelle Vaugier in ''Carbon'', Krystal Forscutt in ''[=ProStreet=]'', and Maggie Q in ''Undercover''. None of them were hired for their acting ability, as the in-game cutscenes show quite clearly.
* ImprobablyCoolCar: Too many kids with Lamborghini Gallardos (especially the 550-4 Valvetino Balboni)!
** '''COPS WITH REVENTONS!'''
** The Pagani Zonda Cinque's (Technically: there are ten, just five coupes and five roadster versions)
*** Similar to that, the [=McLaren=] F1 LM in Hot Pursuit 2
** The Koenigsegg CCXR which there are ''only four of them made''! Yet there is a police version with ''blue carbon fiber''.
** NFS II was even worse with Ford [=GT90=]'s, Indigos, Mustang Mach III's, Italdesign (BMW) Nazca C2's and (Lamborghini) Calas (all of which, for those who are confused, never went into production)!
*** NFS III then had the Italdesign (Alfa Romeo) Scighera (which had only been available in the PC version, the PSX version had the aforementioned Nazca C2).
* [[InfinityMinusOneSword Infinity Minus One Car]]: In ''Most Wanted'', if you win Blacklist #6 Ming's Lamborghini Gallardo, it comes with most of all of the final performance upgrades available for cars that aren't supposed to be unlocked until after you beat #3 Ronnie. The car unmodified from its initial setup is enough to get you through the next few Blacklist targets easy, and it saves you money so you can buy one of the final cars when you need to. You will definitely want to [[SaveScumming Save Scum]] for this one.
* InMediasRes: ''Underground'', ''Most Wanted'' and ''Carbon'' start like this.
* InVehicleInvulnerability: If you knock out a car in Hot Pursuit 2k10, the most you might see the driver do inside is just shake his head in disappointment. No fear. This happens even if the racer in question uses a Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren Stirling Moss edition, which has '''''no windshield or roof.'''''
** Averted in that if you wreck a cop, they sometimes request EMS.
* JokeCharacter - The police helicopter in High Stakes.
** LethalJokeCharacter - The Toyota Corolla from Underground II onward. Despite its rather dowdy appearance compared to other cars, it has fantastic handling and, in the right hands, beat much faster cars.
* LandDownunder: Australian tracks that run from Sydney to the outback and back again.
** ''High Stakes'' also gives us Fords and Holdens, as well as a Victoria police unit.
* LimitBreak: the nitrous in ''Underground 2'' is refilled with stunts. This mechanic returns in ''Hot Pursuit 2k10''. In fact, it's about the only way to win in Exotic or Hyper series when you're a Racer. The fact that the cops' cars are ''significantly better'' than yours doesn't help. The nitrous system in ''The Run'' is a combination of the self-regenerating nitrous from Most Wanted, Carbon, and Undercover, with the option to accelerate the regeneration with stunts a la ''Hot Pursuit 2k10''.
* MacGuffin: the BMW M3 GTR in ''Most Wanted''
* MarathonLevel: Event 30 of Championship mode in ''Hot Pursuit 2''. 10 laps on Palm City Island. Takes about half an hour to complete.
* MarketBasedTitle: There's quite a few, so take a seat.
** European versions keep the "Need For Speed" name, but usually had a different subtitle. For example, ''Porsche Unleashed'''s subtitle was simply ''2000'' for the German edition. This practice ended with the release of ''Hot Pursuit 2''.
** The Japanese versions were sold as the ''Over Drivin''' series until the release of ''Porsche Unleashed''. There were also a few Japanese-exclusive editions of the first game, including an all-Nissan edition (Over Drivin': Skyline Memorial). Despite the name, it featured more than the's company Skyline series of sports cars, and it included various Z-cars and the R390 Le Mans racer.
** Hot Pursuit 2 had "both" the Opel Speedster and Vauxhaul VX220 the only difference is the lack of roof on the VX220 while the Speedster had a slightly higher acceleration.
* MoneyForNothing: A problem in any game that lets you customize by using cash. You'll end up with a big bank account from winning races yet none of the higher level part tiers will open up so you can buy new swag with your loot. By the time you have the option of buying new parts, very often they won't dent your funds enough that you'll care.
* MoodLighting
* MultiPlatform
* NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast: 'Wolf' (It'd be more scary squaring up to 'Michael Schumacher').
* NitroBoost
* NoOneCouldSurviveThat: Most of the wrecks, takedowns, busts and crashes in ''Hot Pursuit 2k10'' that involve rolling the car multiple times, launching cars off of cliffs, brutal head-on collisions with traffic and sending supercars into walls while going at speeds climbing over 240+ MPH.
** Especially in a Mercedes-Benz SLR Stirling Moss. The car literally has no roof and no windshield! A roll-over in that car would clearly kill the driver.
* ObviousBeta: ''Undercover'' shipped with severe framerate issues. Absolute death in a high-speed racing game.
** The [=PS3=], PC and Xbox 360 versions of the game at least got a patch that (mostly) fixes the framerate issues.
** ''[=ProStreet=]'' had some framerate issues, too, but it didn't make the game unplayable.
** The XBOX 360 version of ''Shift'' [[http://freakbits.com/xbox-360-crashes-accessing-playstation-store-0927 tries to access the Playstation Store.]]
* OldSaveBonus: Some versions of ''Most Wanted'' gave you an extra $5000 for having an ''Underground 2'' saved game.
** ''Hot Pursuit 2010'' and ''Shift 2 Unleashed'' offer "loyalty bonuses" if you played a previous game in the series, usually in the form of additional experience points. Playing ''Hot Pursuit 2010'' also unlocks two additional cars in ''Shift 2 Unleashed'': a Pagani Zonda Cinque Roadster in "NFS Edition" colors, and a Lamborghini Reventon in a Seacrest County PD livery.
* [=~Ooh Me Accent's Slipping~=]: In ''Hot Pursuit 2010'', listen to the woman who reads off each car's description in the vehicle selection menu. She frequently slips between an American accent and a British one, especially on words like "dollars" and "goggles" (for example: [[{{RuleOfThree}} The SLR Stirling Moss]]).
* PenultimateWeapon
* PressXToNotDie: ''The Run'' uses this trope for moments where you're out of the car. [[spoiler: In the Xbox version this is literally the case in the opening cutscene where the first button you need to press is X]]
* ProductPlacement: ''Underground 2'' was the winner of Gamespot's "Most Despicable Product Placement" award in 2004. After all, this was the game that had a Burger King and/or a Best Buy every couple of blocks and the Cingular logo ''on the HUD at all times''.
* QuicksandBox
* RareVehicles: ''Carbon'' was released in 2006 and features the concept versions of the ''2008'' Dodge Challenger, ''2010'' Chevrolet Camaro and Audi [=R8=] ("Le Mans"); ''Hot Pursuit 2'' also features the [=McLaren=] F1 LM, of which only 5 were produced. ''NFSII'' also featured one-offs like the Ford [=GT90=], Indigo and Mustang Mach III, Lamborghini Italdesign Cala, BMW Italdesign Nazca C2, and the super-rare [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isdera Isdera Commendatore 112i]].
** The two cover cars for ''Hot Pursuit 2k10 '' title are the Lamborghini Reventon (total production: 20 cars, plus one for display in the Lamborghini Museum.) and the Pagani Zonda Cinque (total production: five cars, all going to an exotic car showroom in Hong Kong. [[DontExplainTheJoke "Cinque" is the Italian term for the number five, hence the production number and name.]]).
* RashomonStyle: this is how the story in ''Carbon'' is told.
* RealIsBrown: ''Most Wanted'' paints the whole scene brown and orange with the Visual Treatment set on full; ''Carbon'' later replaced it with high-tech blue. ''Undercover'' goes back to brown.
* RealSongThemeTune: Thanks to the GrandTheftAutoEffect.
* RoadBlock: used in ''Hot Pursuit, Hot Pursuit 2, Most Wanted'' and ''Carbon''; the usual way to clear them is by either squeezing through or hammering your way through
** They return as a cop-deployable obstacle in Hot Pursuit 2010. The correct way to get through them is to shoot a gap just a little larger than your car (earning a dodged roadblock bonus). The computer regularly aims for them, but they do clip a cop car from time to time, which can lead to an easy takedown or bust.
* RubberBandAI: Infamously used since ''Underground''.
* RuleOfThree: Every 3rd game seems to be centered about cop chases. The 3rd game was ''Hot Pursuit'', the 6th game was ''Hot Pursuit 2'', the 9th game was ''Most Wanted'', the 12th game was ''Undercover'', and the 15th game (after ''Shift'' and ''Nitro'') is ''Hot Pursuit 2k10''.
* SatchelSwitcheroo: happens in the storyline in ''Carbon''.
* ScareChord: Sort of. In the second and third games, crashing your car would cause a short riff (that was part of whatever song was playing, depending on track) to play.
* SceneryPorn: Just about every game in the series, but ''Hot Pursuit 2010'' takes it too the extreme. Think about it, Seacrest County has tall red-woods, a large lake, long rivers, a mountain range up north, long stretches of desert.. all presented in [[{{Crysis}} Crysis]]-matching graphics! And it looks absolutely brilliant!
* SchizoTech: The Atlantica course in ''III: Hot Pursuit'', which looks very futuristic but only features 1990s cars.
* ScoreScreen: used in all the games, though ''Most Wanted'' also tallies up your pursuit score like this.
* SeriousBusiness: Daft street racing with a straight face is what the game is basically about.
** The police in ''Hot Pursuit'' have a dedicated speed enforcement unit with tricked-out cars to match those of racers.
* SharkTunnel: The first ''Hot Pursuit'' has one as a segment in the Aquatica track, which is also available in certain versions of ''High Stakes.'' The PSX version of ''Hot Pursuit'' also has a giant version of it as a secret track.
* ShoutOut: The Coastal course in the original had a half-buried Statue of Liberty on the beach at the finish line. "''[[PlanetOfTheApes You maniacs! You blew it up! Damn you all to hell!]]''"
** If you crashed the Lamborgini in the 3D0 version of the orignal NFS, the guy at the menu would say:
--> "You just wrecked a $500,000 dollar machine. Nice going, [[TheAndyGriffithShow Gomer...]]
** In ''Most Wanted''...
-->Cross: I want everyone on this guy."
-->Partner: Everyone?
-->Cross: '''''[[TheProfessional EVVV-REEE-OOOOONNNNEEE!!!!!]]'''''
** There's quite a few in the new ''Hot Pursuit'''s achievement/trophy list.
*** Just so you know who made the game, there's an achievement/trophy called "{{Burnout}}" that requires the player to fully charge up the NitroBoost and use it all in one go.
**** To drive that point home, one of the routes in game is called ''Point of Impact''.
*** One achievement/trophy requires the player to win a certain event in a "bee yellow" Camaro. The name of the achievement? [[Film/{{Transformers}} "Flight of the Bumblebee".]]
*** There's another achievement/trophy called [[Film/IronMan "Iron Man"]] that requires completing three police events in an Audi R8.
*** And there's one called [[JamesBond "Shaken, Not Stirred"]] that requires completing an event in an Aston Martin vehicle.
*** Speaking of James Bond and Astons, there's another Aston-only event called "Do look after it".
*** Finally, there's one called "{{Godzilla}}" that requires completing a certain police event in a Nissan GT-R Spec V with no weapons used, a reference to the film series and the AffectionateNickname of the car in question.
*** One of the Racer events in the Lamborghini Untamed DownloadableContent pack is called [[TheCannonballRun Cannonball]] and has the player racing against the clock and police in a Lamborghini Countach.
* SillinessSwitch: ''NFS II'' had cheat modes that would turn your car into a box, a dinosaur and a bus stop, among other things.
* SlapOnTheWristNuke: Spike Strips? EMP? Nahh, only a [[strike:flesh]] metal wound in the ''Hot Pursuit 2k10''. Averted in other games though, as [[ThatOneAttack the pursuit is basically over if you hit the Spike Strips]].
* SloMoBigAir
* StealthPun: ''NFS Hot Pursuit 2k10'' used this sentence during the final roadblock upgrade briefing for police. Also note that a cayenne is also a type of chili.
** Porsche Cayenne Turbos are now deployed to add spice to your pursuit.
** Now The Run does recursive shout-outs to previous installment's names on their chapters, remarkably "Underground", "Most Wanted" and the last episode [[spoiler:"Hot Finish"]]
* StoppedNumberingSequels
* StrictlyFormula: A common complaint against ''Carbon'' and ''Undercover''.
* SpinOff: The ''V-Rally'' series (which only bore the ''NFS'' name for branding; was eventually passed to the ''Test Drive'' name later). ''Beetle Adventure Racing'' was envisioned as a ''Need for Speed'' title for the {{Nintendo 64}} but eventually became a VW Beetle-focused racing game. More recently, the ''Shift'' games are trying to draw a divide between themselves and the rest of the franchise, with the second game dropping the name and being called ''Shift 2: Unleashed''.
* SuspectIsHatless: In Hot Pursuit 2k10:
-->Police Dispatcher: Suspect is in the sand, heading toward the rocks!"
* TheOtherDarrin: Bizarrely, within ''Most Wanted'', there is a particular cop who shows up on the radio during Heat Level Five chases at the same time when Cross's car does, who takes control of the pursuit and orders cops around. It's obviously supposed to be Cross, yet it's also very obviously not the actor who plays Cross in the cutscenes and in the few cell phone voice messages the player receives from him. Unfortunate, too, as the actor who plays Cross on the radio is not nearly as good as the actual Cross actor.
** His quality slipping explained by VillainousBreakdown?
* TrialAndErrorGameplay
* VanityLicensePlate: 'NFS' on your plate. Supposedly these were going to be customisable for online play, until somebody realised that YouSuck and would almost certainly use swear words...
** In Need for Speed Undercover and ''Hot Pursuit 2k10'', all the cars have license plates that say "ND 4 SPD".
** For the real life pictures of the cars in NFS III, all of the pictures showing the license plate will have "NFS 3" edited over them to prevent tracking.
* VillainousBreakdown: Slowly happens to Razor and Cross from ''Most Wanted'', as well as Darius from ''Carbon''.
** [[spoiler:Chase Linh]] at the end of ''Undercover'' after [[spoiler:being arrested by the police]].
* WackyRacing: With licensed {{Cool Car}}s, to bout!
* WhamEpisode: Actually a Wham Race in the first ''Underground''. The race known as "Friends Are Easy To Make, And Easier To Lose" has you racing against [[spoiler:Samantha who's been your guide throughout the first two thirds of the game.]] Later, the other racers will [[WhatTheHellHero call you out on this.]]
* WhatDoYouMeanItsNotAwesome: Possible example in ''Hot Pursuit''. Just listen to the Aquatica part of [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KsfzDAfvJoo Rear Flutterblast #19]] (which is about halfway through the video,) especially 5:19 to 5:40. Keep in mind that Aquatica is ''a winding cliff-side road along the ocean at sunset.''
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