Need for Speed Unbound’s driving effects can be disabled, but why would you want to?
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In fact, it seems that one of Need for Speed Unbound’s most glaring features can be completely ignored if you so choose.
Need for Speed Unbound’s impressive, highly stylized driving effects can even be turned off completely, as confirmed by the game’s official Twitter account. “Yes, you can disable the effects,” the account says in a follow-up tweet to a video showing the flashy driving effects in action.
Launching on December 2 on PS5, Xbox Series X|S and PC, Unbound offers a wide variety of driving effects, including cel-shaded plumes of smoke and pop-out graphics and text that wouldn’t look out of place in a racer from the mid-2000s, which looks like the vibe developer Criterion is going for here.
Why turn off something so beautiful?
Customize your style. Choose your driving effects. To be noticed. Start with nothing and slowly push your style to the limit. #needforspeed pic.twitter.com/wZv7a2B4xxOctober 11, 2022
Need for Speed Unbound is pretty clearly looking to recapture much of the moxie that made the series stand out with entries like Underground and its sequel. Even the subtitles are similar. But I appreciate that Criterion does more than just a smooth reference here.
I really like this new focus on flashy, flamboyant driving effects. Sure, they’re a little over-the-top, maybe even a little edgy, but they’re clearly something that gives the game an identity. A much-needed flavor in a bowl of unseasoned Need for Speed games.
But as much as I’d like to avoid it, I understand why the option to disable them is there. Some players may not like these cartoonish aesthetics, some may want to take them out for competitive purposes, such as getting a better view of the track and other cars in online races. It’s also a perfectly reasonable accessibility feature. I can imagine how visually impaired players could manage without the extra distraction.
Still, I’m excited to see how ridiculous these effects can be. Looking at the short gameplay snippets we’ve seen so far, Criterion has clearly put some work into cleverly integrating the effects, and they don’t seem to obscure the on-screen action to an absurd degree.
To me, they’re no different from the aesthetic flair you can unlock in other multiplayer games, like Halo Infinite’s kill effects or Rocket League’s boost trails. But in the case of Need for Speed Unbound, we hope they aren’t stuck behind a premium progression system.