More than a year after Electronic Arts delayed the racing sim to work on Battlefield 2042, EA is doubling down on its efforts - literally. In addition to Criterion Games, Codemasters’ Cheshire studio will also lend a helping hand for future Need for Speed projects, as per GamesIndustry.biz. The merge will result in a larger team that will hopefully result in a resurgence of the fan-favorite franchise. In the meantime, Codemasters will continue to operate its other offices that will work on other upcoming games like F1 22, among others. While the Cheshire studio isn’t Codemasters’ main studio, it has led the development of a handful of notable games over the years. The former Sony Evolution Studios worked on Dirt 5 in 2020, which many consider one of the best games on the PS5 and Xbox Series S/X.
— Codemasters (@Codemasters) May 12, 2022 Whereas Microsoft’s Forza and Sony’s Gran Turismo games always hog the headlines, Need for Speed has crafted a little niche in the racing sim market with a hardcore fanbase. Many fans agree that, save perhaps for 2012’s Need for Speed: Most Wanted and 2019’s Need for Speed: Heat, the recent outings have diverged too much from the series’ roots. The return of Criterion as the lead studio and the help of Codemasters Cheshire should help fix this problem. TLDR; if the next Need for Speed game lives up to the talented studios behind it, it might end up being something special. The merging of Codemasters Cheshire with Criterion Games is one of the best things to come out following EA’s acquisition of Codemasters last year. Hopefully, it doesn’t end up being a case of having too many chefs in one kitchen. The last we heard, EA plans to launch the next Need for Speed in October.
