Need For Speed III Producer Talks

Videogames.com caught up with Hanno Lemke, senior producer on Electronic Arts' Need For Speed III. Here's what he had to say on the upcoming racer.

GameSpot News: Why did you pull the Ferrari from chase mode? What was Ferrari's reasoning?Hanno Lemke: Basically, Ferrari opted not to be part of pursuit mode, however its cars are prominently featured in the other four game modes.

GSN: Did you make a final decision on whether or not you can "high beam" other cars or have them high beam you?HL: The initial design was to have on-coming traffic cars high beam the player to warn of police. We decided it would be more of a surprise and challenge not to give additional warning of the police up ahead. The player can high beam other cars, but it does not evoke a reaction from them. Most drivers will drive with the high beams on all the time, and having the other cars reacting continuously to the high beams became predictable and didn't add much to the gameplay.

GSN: What was the philosophy behind the game? What aspect of gameplay did you focus on most heavily on during development? Realistic physics? Lighting effects? Cop car AI? Frame rate?HL: The philosophy was to make the best racing game ever, by including the most exciting line up of cars, more speed, better looking cars, tracks and special effects, and a series of race modes and options which give the player the most diverse and different ways to play the game than any other title on the market.

The heaviest focus was on the rendering engine, which is tasked with displaying higher poly cars, environment dependent reflection maps, an extensive lighting system, weather and night effects, and 30 frames per second.

GSN: Why did you cut the number of tracks from ten to eight? How many different ways can you race the eight tracks?HL: There are actually nine tracks in the game: eight, plus one bonus track. We decided to put more time and effort into making nine perfectly tuned tracks, rather than sacrificing the level of polish to get one more track in the game.

Each track can be raced forward, backward, mirrored, at night, with weather, or any combination of these elements. We also have a random setting that randomly picks a configuration so that each race is different every time.

The tracks can be raced in Simulation or Arcade settings, in any of the five race modes (Single Race, Hot Pursuit, Tournament, Knockout, and Practice) either in Beginner or Expert skill levels.

GSN: What are the biggest differences between this game and NFS II?HL: There are several major differences.

1. The car and track graphics and special effects (night driving, weather, lighting model, reflection maps, and so on) are either all new or much superior to those in NFS2, and the frame rate is significantly higher in both single and two player modes.

2. The addition of two new game modes: Hot Pursuit, which adds multiple levels of police chases to the game, and Practice mode, which adds practice options such as ghost car, best line, braking and traction assist, and a tutor mode that provides on-screen graphics and a navigator's speech advising of upcoming corners and obstacles.

3. The track layouts are better designed. The courses have a natural progression of difficulty, are fast and challenging, but don't have some of the cheap or punishing corners that were present in NFS2 tracks. You also have to earn the expert level tracks and cars in a tournament race mode.

4. There is a more noticeable difference between Arcade and Simulation settings. Arcade mode is faster than ever, with lots of smooth and controllable powerslides. Simulation is very realistic and it really brings out the subtleties of each car's personality. Extensive car setup options are available in Simulation (engine tuning, gear ratios, brake settings, tire selection, suspension, and aerodynamic settings).

5. The computer opponents and police have more distinctive personalities, reactions, and strategies for winning the races or chases.

GSN: What are the biggest differences between this game and other anticipated titles like Gran Turismo? HL: The biggest difference is the breadth of game play and the variety of special effects.

In NFS3, you have five game modes, each which provide a totally unique type of game play, with different rewards. For example, being pursued by the police and avoiding roadblocks and spike belts is totally different than running a perfect race line to take the tournament championship. Listening to a racing tutor and following a best line to shave seconds off your lap times is different than competing in a knockout competition, which is about not finishing last, amongst a grid of very aggressive and motivated opponents.

NFS3 also provides the fastest white knuckle, sweaty palm racing rush of any game out there in Arcade mode. In Simulation mode it provides a very realistic dynamics model that requires some investment to learn the subtleties of each car, with the reward of improving lap times the better you get at driving and setting up your car.

The game also features a quality of night driving and weather technology that hasn't yet been included or seen in any racing title. And all this excitement can be relived with a replay mode that let's you pick the view, from one of 14 camera positions.