Criterion has announced three new DLC packs for their award winning racing game Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit, with launch beginning from next week.

The first pack, known as Armed and Dangerous, is going to be launched on 22nd Feb and will feature two new game modes: Most Wanted and Arms Race. Most Wanted sees the cops chase down a specific racer, while the rest of the racer group protects the target, while Arms Race is free-for-all racing with weapons enabled. There’ll be three new trophies/achievements with the pack. Armed and Dangerous will set you back €6.99/560 MS points.

The second pack is called Lamborghini Untamed and includes Cop and Racer versions of the Lamborghini Diablo, Countach and Sesto Elemento. It releases on March 1 and will cost €6.99/560 MS points. The pack includes ten new events and four new trophies/achievements.

The third and final DLC, Porsche Unleashed (Force Unleashed? ) , sees 82 Porsche 911 Turbo, Porsche 959 and 911 Speedster as well as ten new events and four new trophies/achievements. It’ll release on March 8 for €6.99/560 MS points.

The three DLC packs will be releasing for the PS3 and Xbox 360. EA currently has no plans to bring it to the PC.

Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit was first announced at this year’s E3 and since the previous NFS: Hot Pursuit was arguably the best NFS game, and coupled with the fact that Criterion was developing this one ensured that this particular installment of NFS has the potential to be a game changer for the franchise.

We have seen Criterion’s expertise with this genre from the Burnout series. They have a huge pedigree and if there was someone who could rejuvenate this flagging franchise, it had to be them. Do they manage to revive NFS to its previous glory? Read on.

The game starts burdening your visual sensors and it brings back the nostalgic memories of the last Hot Pursuit game which was so much memorable. The game gives you the ability to play as a Racer (Suspect) or as a Cop, or you can have both the careers progressing in parallel to each other. This helps greatly in maintaining your interest in the game and giving you the choice to be on either side of the law.

The setting this time is Seacrest County, with a very diverse and distinctive look and design. The map clearly shows this and you’ll find yourself driving on dust-filled deserts as well as through the snow-filled mountains. Great work has been done on creating the best of the environments and the scenes just look stunning. You drive through green valleys, multi-lane highways, and even get to see waterfalls. It’s a solid example of classic Criterion design.

The place is under the control of the Seacrest County Police Department (SCPD) who are fully dedicated to their jobs and keeping rash drivers at bay. The SCPD is the most glamorous and technologically adept police department of the world (in the game). They have the expensive cars, latest equipment (SpikeStrip, EMP and Helicopters) and good drivers to give any punk, hell. Although, you get the Ford Crown Victoria, when you start off as a Cadet. You’ll find yourself spoilt for choice when you get to drive the latest Lamborghini, Aston Martin, Alpha Romeo, and Bentley among others. They don’t feature any cockpit view but it’s an arcade game, get it? There are 20 levels to blast through and it takes a while to complete your career.

Well, anyone would love to get selected in the SCPD but racers are not far behind. To tackle every move of the cops, they have an agreement with Hudsen Tech who are fully committed to provide the best aftermarket items available to the racers. Be it the SpikeStrip or the EMP, you’ve got it all. They even provide jammers to be installed in the cars to crash the SCPD network for a small time, but enough for the suspects to break through. Racers compete to get the most bounty which increases their wanted level and also takes you a step closer to level 20.

Hot Pursuit 2010 has basically three types of racing events, the Normal Finish-point races, single lap tests, and the Hot Pursuits (the best of the lot). The races are available in racer career and you can’t participate in these while playing as a cop. You get the gold if you finish first and nothing if you are the last one. Even if you can’t finish on the podium, you’ll be having the chance to earn bounty with your driving skills. Drifting, speeding, and driving on the wrong side helps you collect the bounty but make sure you don’t crash. Then there are the single lap events where you drive alone. Every time the SCPD gets a brand new very-expensive four wheeler, as obvious as it sounds, you’ll be required to test the vehicle. But since you are in the law enforcement, you can’t afford rash driving or hitting other innocent drivers on the roads, doing so will cost your lap time and makes the game more difficult.

The best part of the game are the Hot Pursuit events. There are speeding racers, cops, the modern equipment to wreck the cars and the long roads. Imagine the setting, everybody in their Lamborghini’s and Pagani’s racing, tackling each other, sending choppers to track others and transmitting Electro-Magnetic waves to burst the cars. All this is present in this NFS title. There are jammers too which hacks the system at the most crucial times. Though you can takedown the racers but there isn’t any elimination process. Turbo mode proves to be the big brother of Nitrous and can overtake leading cars at the last of the mile. This game is certainly the best in terms of graphics and looks good whether you’re on the road at daytime or between the Jungle at night.

The gameplay is smooth and even the cinematics implemented between the on-going races gels well but I encountered a very annoying glitch in the game which is worth discussing. While the suspect’s car gets blocked in the Roadblock, you’ll try to turn back there but the very next second, the camera changes and that car goes away right in front of you. Though, this was frustrating but the other pros overweight this camera glitch. Even, when the race is going on in full throttle, and a takedown or a cop enters the race, the camera shows you this and when you get back, you keep riding comfortably. All this transition has been done flawlessly and is appreciated.

Though EA has been known to produce good soundtrack with their games and the tracks aren’t bad in this too but the way the game goes, there will be less chances to listen to these when you’ll be playing. This is Hot Pursuit, and you’ll be happy to listen to the siren of the cop’s car rather than humming a tune.

Now, let’s come to the online capabilities of this game. Criterion has provided us with a feature called as Autolog and it can be considered as the Online Manager which keeps track of your progress and how your other friends are doing. It constantly updates you on where you stand among others and you’ll want to make that leader board yours by beating the time right away. The Hot-Pursuit mode is the highlight of the online mode of this game where you get to compete with fellow human racers making up two teams of 4 players each.

Next Page: Closing Comments and scoring

Close to the release of NFS’s latest iteration, Hot Pursuit, EA have announced that Slightly Mad Studios’ Need for Speed Shift 2 Unleashed is going to be released during the spring of 2011 for PC, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. Shift is EA’s answer to Gran Turismo and Forza, offering an authentic simulation racing experience in contrast to the arcade racing found in Criterion’s Hot Pursuit.

According to EA, Shift 2 brings an “all-new” rendering engine and a “massive” graphics overhaul. “With an innovative helmet camera view simulating the physical experience of driving at 200mph, the thrilling experience of night racing and authentic degradation of tracks and cars, this is tomorrow’s sim for today’s adrenaline fuelled racer,” said EA. Hot Pursuit’s acclaimed Autolog feature, which connects friends and compares stats, returns in Shift 2. Shift 2 “is redefining immersive racing by blending the rush of tearing up the track at unbelievable speeds with the emotional experience of competitive battle” said executive producer Marcus Nilsson. “We are also working closely with real-world performance drivers to ensure that Shift 2 Unleashed captures their experience and becomes the benchmark in authentic racing action.”

The announcement trailer was a no suprise for many, as it’s hints were dropped here and there, with EA executive Patrick Soderlund hoping that the Shift series overtakes Sony’s Gran Turismo series and Microsoft’s Forza franchise as gaming’s leading simulation racer. “We think we can compete and ultimately become market leading in the simulation authentic motorsport segment,” he said. “One of the strongest points we have is, apart from the fact we have a very talented developer working with us and we now have an established brand underneath the NFS umbrella in that segment, we also have the advantage of being a multi-platform offering. “Forza can only be bought on Xbox and Gran Turismo is only available on PlayStation. We’re the only one right now that is of a significant weight that can offer something up on all those platforms.”

With NFS: Shift selling close to five million copies worldwide, we hope Shift 2 stands strong on Patrick’s words of overtaking Forza and Gran Turismo series. The announcement debut trailer of Shift 2 can be found as a bonus content in Criterion’s already out Hot Pursuit.

One of the most anticipated games post-E3, Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit is ready and we’re gonna get our hands on it tomorrow I.e. when its demo releases.

EA really had all the NFS fans excited when they announced about Hot Pursuit at E3 this year.  The excitement and fun went miles high after finding out that Criterion Games were working on it.

“Need for Speed Hot Pursuit is blowing the roof off social competition and bringing excitement back to the racing genre,” said Criterion producer Matt Webster.

The demo will be here tomorrow on the XBOX Live and PSN(US). This demo will have Autolog features for the player and they will get the chance to race on a second track if they invite a friend to play along.

“We’re putting players and their friends at the heart of the gameplay experience by automatically tracking and comparing each person’s performances. This demo will give gamers a snapshot of Need for Speed Autolog and how we’re amping up the energy of intense pursuits, competitive racing and online connected play – nothing is more powerful than beating your friends.”

Criterion Games are the studios that gave us the Burnout series so there’s no doubt about their capabilities. We’re going to see high-end cars with fast-paced action in this game. Let’s see how they fare.

NFS: Hot Pursuit is set to release on November 19 for PS3, 360 and PC.

Hot Pursuit developed by Criterion will race to the store shelves this November, but before that, take a look at all these gorgeous screenshots which really impressed us a lot. Incase you don’t know November is also the month Gran Turismo 5 launches, it  will be pretty interesting to see how Hot Pursuit holds its own against the daddy of all racing games.

We are sure it will. After all you can do takedowns, reach stunning speeds and getaways and you can also take your need for speed online with your friends. You have the option of becoming the county’s top cop or most wanted racer in the game’s career mode.  We will keep you updated about this one.

In an official announcement at EA’s E3 press conference, Criterion Games (the people behind the acclaimed Burnout Series) revealed their latest Need for Speed project, Need for Speed:Hot Pursuit.  It was officially announced to be released on November 16th, 2010.

Described as a “revolutionary” addition to the Need for Speed franchise, the gameplay of Hot Pursuit returns to the roots of the original Need for Speed 3: Hot Pursuit, featuring high speed cop chases and exotic cars! Players can play both as a Racer or as an Cop in the Career. New to Hot Pursuit is a social interaction system called Autolog.  It can allow simultaneous interaction with online pals and also instant updates of your records being beaten or multiplayer challenges.

Criterion Demonstrated the gameplay of Hot Pursuit with a Cop vs Racer match. It turned out to pretty intense with dodging roadblocks and the ramming of the Police Cars. Also a trailer was also shown which featured some of the exotic cars, locales and the high adrenaline police chases.