EA set to unveil 25th anniversary Need for Speed

EA will unveil its next Need for Speed title on Wednesday, August 14, according to a countdown on its official site.

The unnamed series instalment is due for release at the end of the calendar year, with EA stating in May that it will “revitalise the street racing versus cops fantasy at the core of the franchise”.

Providing an update on the title during EA’s first quarter earnings call in July, CEO Andrew Wilson said: “We’ll take the wraps off our new Need for Speed game heading into Gamescom in a few weeks.”

Gamescom 2019 will launch with a new livestreamed event on Monday August 19, ahead of the trade fair running from August 20-24.

Need for Speed skipped E3 in June. Explaining the decision before the show, EA community lead Ben Walke said the goal was to create a “truly memorable” game to mark the franchise’s 25th anniversary this year “rather than a series of promotional events”.

Walke didn’t reveal any further details on the project, other than to say it will focus on the series’ foundations of cars and customisation.

EA expects Need for Speed to ship four million units in the current fiscal year ending March 31, 2020.

During its earnings call, Wilson also explained EA’s lack of support for Nintendo Switch and teased Apex Legends season 3, while chief financial officer Blake Jorgensen said EA has been working on games for next-gen consoles like Xbox Scarlett and PlayStation 5 “for some time”.