July 14th 2025.
It seems that EA has decided to put a halt on their plans for the Need For Speed franchise. However, the recent success of Forza Horizon 5 has shown that there is still a strong demand for racing games in the market.
Need For Speed was once a powerhouse franchise for EA, with its most popular title, Need For Speed: Most Wanted, selling over 16 million copies worldwide in 2005. The rise in popularity of the Fast & Furious films around the same time may have contributed to this success, as the games shifted their focus from Hot Pursuit to street racing. Need For Speed Underground, released in 2003, coincided with the first film and was well-received by fans.
However, while the Fast & Furious films continue to dominate the box office, the popularity of the Need For Speed franchise has declined over the past decade. The most recent game, 2022's Need For Speed Unbound, developed by Criterion, was a financial failure. There have been rumors of a new Need For Speed game in the works at Criterion, but it seems that EA has put these plans on hold.
According to photojournalist Matthew Everingham, who has contributed to an EA-backed car culture website called Speedhunters, EA has pulled their funding for the site due to the shelving of Need For Speed. Everingham shared on Instagram, "Speedhunters is on ice. EA shelved Need For Speed, and that means no more funding for the site. I'm grateful for everything - the trips, the stories, the lifelong mates. I'm still shooting, just shifting gears into more video."
As a gaming expert, be sure to sign up for the GameCentral newsletter for unique insights on the week in gaming, along with the latest reviews and more, delivered straight to your inbox every Saturday morning.
The Speedhunters website lists Need For Speed as an "entertainment partner" and describes itself as an "international collective of photographers, writers, and drivers with a shared passion for uncovering the world's most exciting car culture stories." GameCentral has reached out to EA for comment on this matter.
If Need For Speed has indeed been shelved, it may be due to Criterion's involvement in the development of the next Battlefield game. Criterion is one of four studios working on EA's plans for a "connected Battlefield universe," along with DICE, Ripple Effect, and EA Motive. In 2023, EA announced that the majority of Criterion staff would be working on Battlefield, but assured fans that work on the next Need For Speed game would continue. However, with the recent layoffs of up to 400 staff across various studios, it's possible that Need For Speed has been caught in the crossfire as EA prioritizes Battlefield.
It seems that racing games, in general, have taken a backseat on EA's priority list, as evidenced by their decision to end their partnership with the World Rally Championship earlier this year. "For now, we are pausing development plans on future rally titles," EA stated at the time.
However, Microsoft's Forza Horizon franchise has proven that racing games can still be successful, with Forza Horizon 5 selling two million copies in just one month on PlayStation 5. This is especially impressive considering that the original game was released almost four years ago in November 2021 on Xbox Series X/S and PC. On the other hand, the more serious Forza Motorsport was a sales disappointment for Microsoft, and their developer, Turn 10 Studios, was greatly impacted by company-wide layoffs earlier this month.
But unlike Forza, Need For Speed has always been known for its more arcade-style racing gameplay. This suggests that the issue may lie with EA rather than a change in consumer tastes. EA even has a backup franchise in Criterion's Burnout series, but there seems to be little chance of that making a comeback anytime soon.
In the gaming world, Forza Horizon 5 continues to thrive. Don't forget to email us, leave a comment, or follow us on Twitter. And for easier submissions of Inbox letters and Reader's Features, you can use our Submit Stuff page.
[This article has been trending online recently and has been generated with AI. Your feed is customized.]
[Generative AI is experimental.]
