Why not Forza?
Dear endorphin suppliers (developers of the games we loved),
I’ve been with the NFS series for a long time. Thus, I believe I am in the position of expressing my opinion about the game I grew up with.
My apologies in advance for the emotional part of the letter.
The purpose of the letter is not to criticize or praise the game nor in any other way to offend the developers or the project itself. It is more of a way to take a deeper look at game and try to see why is the gap between NFS and FORZA series getting bigger.
F*ck Forza.
Here I listed some pros and * of the game as a player (from a perspective of a fan of the series; although I also tried to look at the game as a new player).
Things that make me want to dive into the world of NFS:
+Loading screens are really nicely done (the part where you admire your creation).
+Car customization is all there needs to be.
+If I sell a car, the parts I bought stay.
+If I replace a part, I can sell that part
+Engine swap option is something that the game needed badly.
+Garage environment looks good (a few people doing sth around the cars would be even nicer)
+The world is full of various Events/activities.
+Day/Night cycle is really entertaining. The Night mode is lovely. I love it that you are not switched to a cut-scene once I finish the race and I have to think what my next move is instead of safely collecting my rewards.
+The cars are all in once list at the dealers’ and once bought, it is up to you to make race, drift or an off-road car. As if you have a certain amount of freedom here.
+I love it that you really need to work on your skill as the tracks have no ‘frames’ that actually protected you from sliding down the hill and simply helped to stay on the track
Things that make me want to try other games:
-Pre-race animations are all the same all the time with the same character and character actions and the same camera angles. Even the sentence isn’t as attractive grammatically as it could be without the word ‘same’.
-Day race finish 1st animations are all the same all the time. It could be much better If (room for improvement)…
-The city is DEAD. It badly needs to be more dynamic. I’d love to see some human/racer activity the moment I finish the sprint race at night. Show me that what I do matters and has an impact on the NFS world. ‘Yeah, you win…you’re the badass and most wanted in the city..blahblah‘ – I did not feel that. The game just told me that but I did NOT feel that at all.
What’s the best racing game today?
-The physics of the car reminds a sliding brick. (Room for improvement?)
-Driving mechanics needs to be adjusted or should be reworked from the scratch.
-Traffic during the mission parts where you follow someone or just have to get from point A to point B needs to be upgraded with more cars (I mean where you don’t have to race).
How many cars does NFS heat have?
-For some reason the world in the intro movie (once you run the game) looks so bright colorful and alive while the real world looks grey, dark and dead.
-I would definitely think over the checkpoint system. That was something painful and at the same time made my heart pounding and blood boil during each race in the Midnight Club LA. There were none! The arrows directing you especially in the turns are just fine, but why can’t I simply race from point A to point B however I want? It definitely gives the feel of real street racing. Or, it could be one of the race types: there’s sprint, circuit (…) and the could also be sth like smart sprint/A to B/Run or sth similar.
-Having said that, I’d really love to see shortcuts back. I want to be a smart racer. I want to be in control. So far, if I miss the checkpoint, I am stupid because I can’t finish the race. What?Why?... Thus, give us freedom. Give us choice. That what makes people love the GTA series. My world-my rules. (An illusion, I know. I love the illusion.)
-Why kill drag racing? More racing types/modes-more options. Variety is good.
Eclipse, Supra. Legends. Wait, there’re not here. Bu they have tons of Lamborghinis! F*ck lambkgshaguaGHINIS. Give me an old Audi Quattro ’90 or VW Golf Mk2 with the engine swap option and your ghini will … finish second.
-Powerful cars are powerful cars. Bravo. What’s there else to do with them?.. Is that the point of street racing? Or rather taking and oldie and putting some love into it to make it a bad * speed demon that leaves Bugatti owner regret his choice. (Supra vs Ferrari FnF scene explains it better)
-I do not need to know the position of the cars that are in front of me! All I care is to chase down each and every a**hole that is in front of me. That’s it. Why would I even care to check the positions of the racers that are behind me? The bottom line, the positions that are shown above the vehicles should be removed.
-I am a lame racer, I really am. Although I have managed to reach level 50 in ‘Heat’. But the cops at night are really unforgiving. If not for some glitches it would be impossible to run away no matter how fast my car is. I know cops have to be able to chase you. Fine, certain cars should. But once I have a supercar that cops’ cars can hardly compete-I want to feel that. Going 400 km/h with no ability to lose the cops is sad. At times it feels that the escape depend more on my luck rather than my skill (Rep 50 car 400+!) Lower the pace?...
How about The Crew 2?
-Day races are sort of legal races that should have spectators. The city is prepared for those races, I mean, the tracks are marked with the edges lined up with the red/white black/yellow protections. Clearly, people would love to come and watch the race. Where are they?! Are they sleeping or working?
-Show me that the world around me is changing, developing; my actions, my success should be reflected in the game in a certain way. Quality, not quantity. Each mission in Red Dead Redemption makes an annoying journey from one end of the map to the other a glorious journey that you will remember. How did they do that? Did I just spend 9 minutes riding my horse to start the mission and I DID enjoy it?! Room for improvement? But wait, this is a racing game! Yeah, right. Keep looking for excuses.
The cooking recipe:
First off, kill the current formula. You are better than this. The recipe is quite simple I think. For the next release:
- Minor changes to the current formula/gameplay/physics and the whole structure (will save time and money). Further milking?...Fine with that as long as you step up.
- Put everything you have got into the STORY. Check some of the best story driven games and put it all out here in the street racing game series. Gamers will digest everything you’ll tell them to. But please, do not make fool of us. When did it all start? With the FNF series and you know it. Watch the 1st movie and freakin’ copy it (in a ‘wise’ way of course).
Second, while people are enjoying the last ‘old’ NFS, a new project can be started. Need for Speed: Back to Glory. (sorry, really wanted to say it, You need to step up)I am far from the position of telling You what to do, but the game needs changes.
Sure. That’s only one option out of dozens. DOZENS. Moving in any direction instead of walking around in circles and trying to invent a bike and add Nano technology into a process of milking a cow is a dead end sooner or later.
A linear plot game?
Did I mention that Forza is a really good game?
All in all, it is a good formula especially with all the advantages mentioned above. However, I doubt it’s going to last for a long time. It feels like the game needs a sort of reboot. Take what has be learnt and build a new formula from scratch in order to be able to complete with FORZA. I personally love the NFS: Series. It has something that despite all the drawbacks makes me want to buy it. Or maybe I am just sentimental as I grew up with the game. I do not want to see the series lose its ability to compete on the market. That’s what has happened to NBA LIVE series. 2k series has held the crown for many years now. It was painful. Knowing how much fun we actually had back in those modding years (national teams, eurolegue, Olympics etc). Those were the days. Those were the days for the NFS series as well. It was the one and only. Unfortunately, times are changing. So should the game.
I wish You all the best, patience, devotion, passion that will definitely help the series rise above all the other games again.
Much love,
Eduard
Need for Speed: Back to Glory – they stepped up and gave what we did not deserve. Amen.
