Braked in the rear-view mirror – the state of Need for Speed
For many gamers, Need for Speed was once the epitome of digital freedom: Roaring the engines after school, sinking into the tuning menu or racing away from the police – iconic moments that shaped the genre. But these memories now have a bitter aftertaste. Because internally at EA everything indicates that the racing game franchise is on an indefinite hiatus – and may never return.
The trigger is apparently a change in strategy:Speedhunters, the car platform closely linked to NfS, is about to be discontinued. At the same time, EA is pulling the ripcord on old offshoots such as Rivals, whose servers will go offline in October. Developer Criterion, actually responsible for the series, is now concentrating almost exclusively on Battlefield. A clear sign that Need for Speed no longer plays a role in EA’s future plans for the time being.
Between hope and idling – what is still possible
Rumour: EA has shelved Need for Speed and with it, funding for the Speedhunters site. pic.twitter.com/8DP4ehRUp8
— HazzadorGamin, Dragon of Dojima (@HazzadorGamin) July 12, 2025
In fact, all resources are currently going towards Battlefield 6 – even the rest of the NfS team is now working on the shooter series. This means that a new episode is not realistic until after the BF6 launch at the earliest. What sounds like a step backwards could, however, turn out to be an advantage in the long term: In Battlefield EA tests new gameplay ideas via so-called “labs” – including with reference back to community requests from other genres.
A look at the sales figures also shows that Unbound, the last NfS spin-off, was not only disappointing financially – the look and the open world concept also seemed outdated. A reboot would have to be much bolder. Industry analysts believe it is conceivable that EA will reposition the racing game brand in the medium term – with a stronger focus on simulation, as successfully demonstrated by GT7 and Forza, for example.