Interview with Larry LaPierre

Interview with the game's lead producer Larry LaPierre

The Need for Speed series has been on the gaming market for over ten years, giving people
all over the planet the chance to be in the shoes of a reckless racer without risking
getting a ruinous fine. The latest installments took a somewhat different direction,
focusing on illegal street racing, which was the absolute
opposite for fans who love running from the cops in gorgeous
sports cars in broad daylight in Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit 2. Fortunately, in the latest
installment of the NfS series, Most Wanted, the "electronics" folks took a more balanced approach to
things. They brought back the cop chases and kept, albeit in a slightly trimmed-down form,
tuning in the Underground style. And so Most Wanted comes out, having received from Talk
Xbox (a site about games for the 360 box) the second-highest rating – 94%.
So what will NFS series games be like now? What did the developers want to say
with the game's title? How does EA Trax affect the gameplay of the series' games? We had the
opportunity to ask all these questions to the lead producer of Most Wanted,
Larry LaPierre.


1) When you started developing Most Wanted, what were the most important goals you pursued? In your opinion, did you achieve them?

LP – The main task when developing Most Wanted was to reinforce the successful solutions of the Underground series and add some new ideas. And at this stage, I believe we have achieved what we wanted.


2) How did you balance the world that is open to the player? When you need to redo a track, how do you do it without reconstructing the other components of the game?

LP – The game world is built from racing splines, and when reworking them we simply reduced them a little. The result is a marvelous combination of first-class design and gameplay.


3) Which feature do you like most in Most Wanted? What do you think could be improved when creating the next installment?

LP – Great question! In Most Wanted, what I liked most of all were the hot cop chases. I spent many hours running from the law. At the same time, when you work on a game like this, or any other, there will always be places that could be even better. I think the cops' intelligence could be taken a step forward.


4) Based on the feedback accumulated since the game's release and the opinions of team members, what are the most important improvements and features we should see in the next game of the NFS series?

LP - You'll be able to single out a couple of special features. The next installment will have several new juicy ways to go for a ride (most likely meaning some thing like speedbreaker. - alan's note) and what in Most Wanted, in your opinion, was implemented well will become even cooler.


5) Why are there no cops in Most Wanted's multiplayer modes? Can we expect multiplayer modes featuring police pursuit in the next NFS?

LP - When you develop a game, you have limited system requirements that the project must be optimized for. And what we finish developing must be done in accordance with those system requirements, as well as taking into account the specifics of the sales market (in short, he dodged the question – alan's note). Chases involving the police are a very interesting and valuable experience, but sometimes we simply can't add them to some game modes.


6) In EA games, many players are unhappy with the EA Trax system (meaning not the music itself, but the fact that it's licensed rather than created specifically for the game – alan's note). What do you think about this? Does licensing ready-made tracks save the developers' time or does it limit the musical creativity that is individual to each game?

LP – Music is a very individual topic for everyone, especially for people devoted to religion (he's starting to pour it on again! – alan's note). It's impossible to please each and every one! This year our task was to support the overall style of the game, and based on that we made the soundtrack a bit harder and rougher (like rap now with a mix of rock and so on – alan's note). In Most Wanted we used a combination of licensed tracks mixed with orchestral music. Personally, I think orchestral music is very impressive. Such music conveys the emotions of what's happening wonderfully, unlike just licensed music.


7) On which next-generation consoles will we be able to see the graphically perfect NFS series? How much further can you refine the graphics and improve the gameplay on the 360 box and PS3?

LP – We're only just beginning to develop the potential of next-generation consoles. Just look at the first games for the Xbox and the first Sony! And compare them with modern ones... an awesome leap forward!


8) Will there be downloadable content for Most Wanted? If so, should we expect it to appear?

LP – Most likely yes.


9) What do you think about the Xbox 360, from the perspective of players and developers?

LP – I love HD! I can't go back. . . from the position of both a developer and a gamer.


10) Thank you very much for the time you've given us and congratulations on completing an excellent project, Most Wanted! We can't wait to see what your guys will prepare for us in the next game of the Need for Speed series.

LP – Our team, in turn, also thanks you for your attention and recognition!


Translation: Alan