THE NEED

Need For Speed (NFS) is a series of racing video games developed by Canadian based company EA Black Box and published by Electronic Arts. The series was originally developed by the Canadian based company Distinctive Software, which became known as EA Canada. The series debuted with The Need for Speed in North America, Japan, and Europe in 1994. Initially, the series was exclusive to the fifth generation consoles and was featured in all of the seventh generation video game consoles by 2008. The games consist mainly of racing with various cars on various tracks, and to some extent, include police pursuits in races. In Japan, the series was released as Over Drivin. After the release of Need for Speed: High Stakes, it adopted the western name. Since Need for Speed: Underground, the series has integrated car body customization into gameplay.

Development
The Need for Speed series was originally developed by Distinctive Software, a video game studio based in Vancouver, Canada. Prior to Electronic Arts' purchase of the company in 1991, it had already created popular racing games such as Stunts and Test Drive II: The Duel. After the purchase was made, the company was renamed Electronic Arts (EA) Canada. The company capitalized on its experience in the domain when it began developing the Need For Speed series in late 1992.[8] EA Canada continued to develop and expand the Need For Speed franchise up to 2002, when another Vancouver-based gaming company, named Black Box, was contracted to continue the series with the title Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit 2. Black Box Games was acquired by Electronic Arts shortly before the game's publication and the company was renamed Electronic Arts (EA) Black Box and became a subsidiary of EA Canada.[9] Since its renaming, EA Black Box has been the series primary developer.

When V-Rally was released in 1997, it was developed by the European based company, Eden Studios, and had nothing in common with the preceding Need for Speed games. EA however, bought the rights to title of the game and produced it in North America as Need for Speed: V-Rally.[10] Eden Studios would develop V-Rally 2 in Europe, while EA would publish it in North America under the Need for Speed title. V-Rally 2 however, followed the same formula as the other Need for Speed titles.[11] In 1999, EA announced plans to make a spin-off of the Need for Speed series with the release of Motor City Online. The game however, was later confirmed that it would be included into the Need for Speed franchise and the spin-off series was never produced.[12]