The Need for Speed

Revision as of 15:31, 26 May 2007

The Need for Speed Box Art

The Need for Speed (Full title: Road & Track Presents: The Need for Speed) is a 1994 racing computer and video game, developed by Electronic Arts Canada and published by Electronic Arts. It is the first in the Need for Speed series, which would span more than 15 titles to date. The premise of the game involves racing in sport cars, including several exotic models and Japanese imports. The game noted for its attempts in realism, and audio and video commentaries. Electronic Arts teamed up with automotive magazine Road & Track to match vehicle behaviour, including the mimicking of the sounds made by the vehicles' gear control levers.

Quick Links

The Need for Speed Cheats

Fast Facts

• Developer(s) Electronic Arts Canada
• Publisher(s) Electronic Arts
• Release date(s) 1994 (3DO), 1995 (DOS), 1996 (PlayStation, Sega Saturn)
• Genre(s) Racing
• Mode(s) Single player and multiplayer
• Platform(s) 3DO, DOS, PlayStation and Sega Saturn

Features

• Features both closed circuits and three point-to-point tracks, each divided into three stages. For the latter, traffic vehicles would appear in races.
• Includes police pursuits, in which the player could be ticketed or arrested after a police car succeeds in catching up with the player.
• Features detailed specifications, history, audio commentaries and real-life videos of each vehicle.
• Features data and records of each race, during and after the race. These include speed, track records and racer position.
• Replay feature which allows the player to view a saved race. Multiple camera views, playback speed and video navigation are offered.

Cars

Cars included in The Need for Speed are divided into three classes, each representing model within specific performance brackets, such as speed and handling. Cars featured in the game include the following:

• Class A

o Lamborghini Diablo VT o Ferrari 512TR

• Class B

o Chevrolet Corvette ZR-1 (C4) o Dodge Viper (RT/10) o Porsche 911 (964)

• Class C

o Acura NSX o Mazda RX-7 (FD) o Toyota Supra (Mark IV) Turbo

The Need for Speed also features a fictional bonus car named the "Warrior PTO E/2." The car possesses unrealistically high speed and acceleration, sensitive handling, and also produces an unusual horn sound.

The Need For Speed: Special Edition

Released in 1996, a little known edition of The Need for Speed, Special Edition, is sometimes considered as the lost episode of Need for Speed, though it wasn't significantly different from the 1995 PC release.

Available only on PC CD-ROM, it contained both a DOS and Windows 95 versions. The Windows 95 version supported DirectX 2 and TCP/IP networking, included 2 bonus tracks and various enhancements in the game engine. This was the last game in the series to support DOS as subsequent releases for the PC only run on Microsoft Windows 95 or above.