Need For Speed: Hot Pursuit – Multiplayer Preview
Following on from our Career and Autolog Recommends previews, today we’re going to be taking a look at Need For Speed: Hot Pursuit’s online multiplayer.
Hot Pursuit’s multiplayer options let cops and racers duke it out online, either with their friends or via a matchmaking system, across Hot Pursuit, Interceptor and Race game modes.
When you head into the Hot Pursuit Online menu you’ll be presented with four options: Join Friends, Create Friends Game, Quick Match, and Friend Recommendations.
Join Friends allows you to head straight into a multiplayer game your friends are already in (if there’s a free space, of course), or jump into a game lobby that they’ve created.
Or by selecting Create Friends Game, you can create a private multiplayer game that only your friends can join.
While waiting for your friends to enter the lobby, you can select the mode and event you want to race in, plus switch between being a cop or racer.
Quick Match is Hot Pursuit’s Matchmaking system that lets you head straight into an online game with random players. Because of the nature of the preview stage it’s hard to determine whether Quick Match pitches you against players at your skill/bounty level or whether it’s a random selection.
Before the matchmaking process starts you’re able to select from three game types; Hot Pursuit, Interceptor and Race. We’ll be going into more detail on these game modes in the weeks to come. You can also choose from these modes when creating a private game.
To help with the balancing and stop players from selecting the fastest possible car every time, you won’t be able to select any car you want when heading into an online game. Instead you’ll be restricted to a particular category of car, which includes Sports, Performance, Super, Exotic and Hyper.
One of the coolest features of Hot Pursuit Online is the Friends Recommendation function, which, if you’ve ever used Facebook’s ‘People You May Know’ feature, should be instantly familiar.
Friends Recommendations trawls through the friends lists of your friends to find people it thinks you should be mates with. For example, if two of your buddies are friends with a guy you’re not, he’ll show up here, and with one click of a button you can add him to your Need For Speed friends list. Easy.
Unfortunately, though, there’s no multiplayer split-screen option in Hot Pursuit, so you’ll need to be online-enabled to experience the game’s ace multiplayer modes.
And that’s it for Hot Pursuit’s multiplayer. Is there something we’ve missed or that you’d like to know more about? Leave us a comment and we’ll do our best to answer it, and continue to check back here for more in-depth previews on Need For Speed: Hot Pursuit.
Wow thanks the info i was needing.
In the demo the roads seem to be flat, can you remember in your play test getting any air time? This was something you could do in the last hot pursuit titles
No split screen ! No buy!! How could criterion get this wrong. Serious mistake on EA and Criterion!
“No split screen”
mj, I am 100% with you on that one! What if I just want to race my roommate? In my opinion, nothing beats having someone react in the same room when you’ve smoked them!
C’mon, a least have the option to do online OR local split screen. What if I don’t want to keep paying for a lousy Gold subscription when I can just invite folks over?
Yes, the online crap is cool and all, but shouting at someone from across the room is cooler.
I beat NFS undercover only to find out there was no split screen- and that’s what’s kept me from buying NFS Shift first off.
Local split screen- IT NEEDS TO STAY A STANDARD FEATURE!!!!!!
That is all.
I agree 10000% !!!
I have NFS Undercover, and had a friend over. I just expected us to be able to play together, and I thought I was just missing an option. After I googled it looks like a lot of people were surprised to find out that that option has now been deleted.
In the interceptor mode, will that be an 8-player game mode, and if not, will it be at some point after release?
Is this online multiplayer going to be dedicated or host servers?
NO CUSTOMIZATION!!! NO SLIPT SCREEN !!!WHERES THE GT-R?
When setting up a online game can you pick the time of day and weather, or is it pre-set?
No splitscreen! = no buy!
Pas d’écran partagé.. Non merci..
Okay since when did game designers decide that there is only 1 gamer per household? A company like EA really should know that the split screen multiplayer was one of the staples to EVERY NFS game FOREVER!! FRIENDS OFF EA!!! NO BUY!!!
I bought the game, and even though I love the career mode and online multiplayer, it really sucks not to have the split screen experience. Big mistake EA, but you already got my dollars… x-(
I am extremly disappointed in EA for cutting out the multiplayer split screen. how come everything has to be online? I am seriously debating on going back to nintendo, cause I am extremly upset that I cant play friends racing, its the only game I like and whats the fun playing by yourself, but online? c’mon guys, the next one best have split screen or I am never going to spend another dime on EA or sony ever again…and Im sure there are people who are in the same boat.
Why the hell is there no split screen on this game? They really should have thinked about that twice before completing the game. This is a big issue, at least try to make it downloadable for the Playstation Store while you still can.
Anyone wanna buy this game. $40. Only played once then turned off when I realized there wasn’t split screen. I’m done with this franchise.
TOTALLY AGREE…NO SPLIT SCREEN???!!!!! $40 BUCKS…I’LL SELL MINE FOR $25! I HAVE A LOT OF KIDS COMING OVER ALL THE TIME!…. MANY WITH SIBLINGS…AND THEY WONT BUY THIS GAME CUZ ONLY ONE OF THEM CAN PLAY AT A TIME. BOOOO.
how often do you have to pay to play online because on the pass code description it says that “EA may retire or discontinue online features after 30 days notice”. can someone explain what this all means.
hey
i wan to play this
I can’t even join my friends online join failed friendis play on different
version