NFSU2 Q&A

Do you remember that [url=http://forum.nfsunlimited.net/viewtopic.php?p=23342#23342]list of questions[/url] we had the opportunity to send to EA to get answered a few months ago? They finally got answered!

[quote][b]1. Car List[/b]
Sorry, can't talk about it yet.

[b]2. Will the game add variable environments such as weather effects and time-of-day variations?[/b]
This year will feature an enhanced time of day/weather system. When players are driving around the open world they will be able to experience the time changing, skies growing darker, wind picking up and eventually the downpour will begin. Rain will change the reflections on the roads as well as impact the cars performance, making it harder to grip around corners and increasing tire slippage during quick acceleration bursts.


[b]3. Will there be a replay mode? Will we be able to have ghosts and the ability to save them?[/b]
Replay mode is one of the big areas we wanted to concentrate on this year, we’ve got some really great camera angles in the game, which makes it incredibly fun to watch as the action unfolds. Players are free to switch camera angles on the fly as well as jump to specific points in the replay. Camera angles will also switch in free view mode based on how fast the cars are going, as they have some built in logic to detect “special gameplay moments” and enhance those scenes.


[b]4. Will there be a visible/performance affecting damage model?[/b]
This game is built on having a fun and entertaining racing experience, the production staff felt that by introducing gameplay elements like physical damage impacting the players ability to control the car could result in an overall negative racing experience. This is especially true for the online environment where collisions are generally frowned upon by many players in our online community. To that end the cars will show signs of damage, but this will in no way take away from the player’s enjoyment of racing. Online mode will also feature the ability to turn collision detection off on cars so players can enjoy racing each other without the risk of being hit or hitting other cars if they so choose.


[b]5. Will there be new game elements, eg cops, added?[/b]
This year we’ve introduced a slew of new game modes that will introduce a whole new style of racing. Some modes focus on small closed tracks where players need to compete for the inside lane around every corner, while other modes focus more towards skill based driving. We’ve also introduced the open world into this years game, players now have an entire city to drive around in where they’ll be able to encounter everything from on the fly races to locating new tuner shops carrying different performance, visual and specialty parts.


[b]6. How will career mode be extended/enhanced?[/b]
Well the most obvious and coolest aspect to the game this year is ditching the linear career tree and moving to an entirely new and fresh open world tuner experience. We are essentially dropping the player in a new city “Bayview”, throwing them a loaner car from a friend and letting them build their own reputation. A heavy emphasis is on freedom of choice this year, players are now free to choose which races they want to participate in. A garage will be provided to the player which is where they will store all unused parts, extra cars as well as the various rewards they’ve won throughout their career.


[b]7. Will dedicated server packages be released?[/b]
We’re still looking into the possibility of releasing dedicated sever packages, still TBD at this time.


[b]8. What additional modes added besides drift, drag, circuit, sprint, lap knockout?[/b]
Apart from enhancing last years game modes there are several new modes we’re really excited about this year. Outrun racing for starters, is an exceptional mode, where players can encounter other tuner cars racing around the open world. If a player decides to engage the one of these opponent cars they simply have to drive up to the car, issue a challenge and the race starts. Outrun races are very unique as there are no start/finish lines, it’s based more on a “lose your opponent” system where the only goal is to grab first place and then lose your opponent any way you can. Street X is another new and quite different mode this year, where players compete on a very small tight cornered track where cars are constantly battling for the inside lane around each corner. Street X really set’s itself apart due to the new strategies and driving styles that need to be adopted if a player is going to be successful. There are also several other new game modes I don’t want to give away at present.


[b]9. Will the mulitplayer experience be extended to other areas, such as LAN play, direct cable connection, split screen, multitap?[/b]
The multiplayer experience has been enhanced with some new game modes and features. One of the nicest additions is the ability to play split-screen outrun races, which is basically lose your opponent using the open world to your advantage. We’ve also beefed up our multiplayer featureset with the addition of LAN play. This year a computer can be designated a LAN server to which all computers can then connect to and challenge each other using a very similar system to how online is handled. There’s so much going into Online Mode this year I’m going to answer this in more detail at a later date.


[b]10. Will there be a career mode with customizable character and a story to follow?[/b]
The career mode will have a built in story where the player will meet new tuners, some will be friends and some will turn out to be rivals. Although the characters won’t be customizable the cars sure are.


[b]11. Will visual upgrades like spoilers and bumpers change the car's performance and handling?[/b]
Bumpers, spoilers, sideskirts, and wide-body kits give your car more aerodynamic downforce this year, resulting in more grip and better handling. This year will in fact feature over 20 tunable performance settings; the higher quality aftermarket parts will allow ultimate tuning freedom, while the cheaper parts will offer a limited tuning abilities. Players will also be provided with their own Dyno and tuning tracks where they can set the car up for each race type. I can see people in the tuning tracks for hours trying to shave valuable seconds off their times.


[b]12. Can you tune engine sounds, like exhaust notes?[/b]
Players will be able to purchase various aftermarket parts which will drastically alter the sound of the vehicle. Our audio engineers have recorded every car in the game with an assortment of aftermarket parts installed and uninstalled to help recreate real life sounds in-game. I don’t think I’ve ever heard a racing game sound as incredible as Underground 2, it is absolutely mind blowing….


[b]13. Will the performance customization model be enhanced to allow finer car tuning, such as selection of spring rates, gear ratios and the like?[/b]
Performance customization is a huge feature this year. First, you can put your car on a dyno to view its horsepower and torque curves. Once you’ve ‘baselined’ your car, you can then tune over 20 different components of your car. These include spring rates, shock dampening, sway bar strength, ECU programming, gear ratios, etc. You can then re-run the dyno test and compare your results. Even better, you can take your car out on one of 5 test tracks and custom tune your settings *while you are driving*! If you’re in the middle of a corner, you can pause, change your spring rates, then unpause the game and feel the change in your car immediately! And you can save out these custom tunings for each game modes. So you can have a custom Circuit race setup, as well as a different custom Drift race setup. It’s pretty awesome. The tuning system we’ve build should interest both the hard core tuners as well as novices with helpful tips and suggestions.


[b]14. What changes and improvements will be made to the AI model?[/b]
This year the AI is more consistent and more competitive. They’re smarter about when to use NOS and they are more aggressive in general. Certain game modes, like Street X, have very unique AI – they really like to bump your car and fight hard to beat you to the inside of each corner. And this year you won’t be drift racing alone – there will be 3 other AI cars on the track with you, so you have to try to slide but simultaneously avoid hitting them in the corners. Overall, the AI is much more fun and competitive.


[b]15. Will all cars be lumped together in the one class as in NFSU. or will they be split into several performance classes?[/b]
We don’t use the concept of car classes, but we do unlock some of the higher performing stock cars later in the game. But we still allow you to take any car and upgrade it to the point that it is competitive with any other car in the game. So if you love the Focus or Corolla (AE86), you don’t have to trade it in for the 350Z or Skyline – you can just buy enough performance upgrades to make it competitive with the other cars. And speaking of trading in cars, this year you don’t have to trade-in your car anymore – you can own up to 5 cars in your career garage.[/quote]