In its earnings call for the December quarter of 2016, Electronic Arts announced that a new Need for Speed game will be released within the publisher's next financial year.
The next financial year for Electronic Arts will end on March 31, 2018, so fans of the franchise should expect to get their hands on the next Need for Speed game before that date.
Next Need For Speed Game In The Works
The announcement of an upcoming Need for Speed game, which would be the 23rd installment in the franchise, was made by Electronic Arts CEO Andrew Wilson during the company's earnings call.
According to Wilson, the new Need for Speed game was given an extended development cycle so that the team behind it can focus on innovation. Wilson added that the team "is pushing the boundaries of action driving" in what the publisher thinks is so far "the most exciting and best-looking" among all the titles that Electronic Arts has produced in the long-running racing franchise.
Wilson said that the next Need for Speed game will launch in the company's 2018 financial year, which will run from April 1, 2017, to March 31, 2018. Gamers should then expect the title to release by March 2018 at the latest, though there is the possibility that it will be launched within the year.
What We Know So Far On New Need For Speed Title
Aside from the year-long range for the game's possible release date, not much else is known about the upcoming Need for Speed title.
Wilson said that the "ambitious" game will have a focus on online competitive matches, though there was no explanation on what this means and how it will be implemented in the title. Other details on the game, however, remain unknown, including its title.
The new game, however, is a different project from Need for Speed: Edge, which is being developed by the South Korean studio of Electronic Arts, EA Spearhead. The free-to-play online title will be based on Need for Speed Rivals, which was released for consoles back in 2013. There is no release date set yet for Need for Speed: Edge, though Wilson stated that it will be following a similar direction that FIFA Online took before it was shut down in 2011.
The Last Need For Speed Game
The last entry in the franchise was simply titled Need for Speed, a reboot developed by Ghost Games that focused on street racing culture which was released on Nov. 3, 2015, for the Xbox One and PlayStation 4 and a few months later on March 15, 2016, for the PC. However, the title received mixed reviews, which prompted the franchise to take a rest for 2016 as it searched for the right direction to take.
While Electronic Arts continues to work on the next Need for Speed game, the publisher is busy preparing its next big-name launch on March 21 for Mass Effect: Andromeda, gameplay footage for which was shown off at CES 2017. The events in the new game will take place in the timeline between Mass Effect 2 and Mass Effect 3.
