Update For Need For Speed Adds Manual Transmission, Drag Races

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Ghost Games has another free update available on March 3 for Need for Speed that includes the much-requested manual transmission feature, in addition to new cars, cosmetic items and more events.

Going To Manual

Manual transmission was heavily requested by the game’s fans, and the developers revealed it as a new feature alongside their announcement of game’s release date on PC. Even though the update comes out on March 3, it seems that the manual transmission might take some time to implement across all platforms. Ghost Games said it will be ready “as early as this week.”

More Cars, More Room, More Customization

The latest addition to the ever-growing car roster are two hot rods — the 1932 Hot Rod and the BeckKustoms F132. The 1932 variant will have four unique body kits (soft top, coupe, sedan and pickup), but both cars will include a set of visual customization items such as grilles, hoods, lights and exhausts.

As the developers add more cars to the game, you’ll eventually run out of space in your Warehouse to store your custom rides. However, the update will also increase your Warehouse slots, so you will have space for five more cars in your collection.

The visual Wrap Editor was also improved in multiple ways. You can place decals on your car with even more accuracy, thanks to a new coordinates system. Writing on the car is also simpler. All you have to do is choose a desired font, type in your word or phrase in the pop-up screen, and it will appear in the specified font.

A Drag Race

It’s back. In some previous Need for Speed games, you could participate in drag race events, and Ghost Games brought the feature back for this version. Specifically, you’ll be able to join five drag race events: Neck to Neck, The Perfect Shifts, Drag the Town, Pedal to the Metal and Speed Tunnel.

On The Same Page

The PC version of the game is coming on March 17, and rest assured, PC gamers will get all of the same updates as their console counterparts.

In the months since the release of the base game, Ghost Games has continued to add more content to Need for Speed. However, the most appealing aspect of these updates is that they’re free. In an age where you have to have to pay for post-launch content, Ghost Games seems to be going against the grain with multiple injections of free cars, events and customization items to enhance the Need for Speed experience.

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Rexly Peñaflorida
18 Comments Comment from the forums
  • turkey3_scratch
    When I played Need For Speed Hot Pursuit 2 over a decade ago I recall it having manual transmission.
    Reply
  • mortsmi7
    I guess they figured most people now days can't drive manual transmission. Most new vehicles don't come with it.
    Reply
  • dstarr3
    It launched without manual transmissions? Seriously?
    Reply
  • arielmansur
    I guess they figured most people now days can't drive manual transmission. Most new vehicles don't come with it.
    That might be true over there.. but here in argentina, all mainstream cars have manual.. which sucks btw.. but whatever.. and only like 5% of vehicles come full auto..
    Reply
  • dstarr3
    17598248 said:
    I guess they figured most people now days can't drive manual transmission. Most new vehicles don't come with it.

    I'll admit, I'll probably never own a manual car, just because having to do all my shifting in rush hour traffic would drive me bonkers. If I had the disposable income to buy a whole car just for joyriding, yeah, I'd go manual, but I don't have that kind of money to buy a whole car just for fun.

    But I do have the money to buy a CAR GAME for fun. So why would a car game not have a manual setting? Just stupid. But why am I acting surprised that EA made a AAA game that missed the point. Just another in a long line of bloated-budget games that just aren't good enough.
    Reply
  • LaurieErick
    I am wondering that what more new feature will introduce for this need for speed game. It is really an amazing game. A drag race is also something different and unique on “need for speed” games.

    Laurie Erick – Marketing Manager at http://jogosdecarros3d.com/
    Reply
  • rigurat
    Is it really simulating a manual transmission?
    Reply
  • rigurat
    I wonder how the simulation works. Is it really simulating a manual transmission compared to an automatic transmission? Or is the game still simulating whatever transmission the car has (simulated auto or manual) and letting the player shift the gears manually.
    Reply
  • FITCamaro
    That doesn't make any sense. A manual, from a game perspective, only differs in that the players shifts instead of the computer. What is there to simulate differently from the manual other than that in the real world, most cars with both a manual and automatic option have different gear ratios for each gear between the two. No you can't miss shifts in a video game, its doubtful they implemented different gear ratios, and it's doubtful they adjust the performance of the car to account for the lower weight from a manual transmission that a real car would have.

    But as others said, can't believe they would release a car game without a manual option for the transmission.
    Reply
  • hang-the-9
    NFS Underground had manual transmission, bit too hard to race with though, for some reason was much harder than an actual car with a manual. Maybe because the setup was not as stable so you had to be careful how you pressed the pedal and sifter or the setup would slide. One of those full cage racing seat setups would likely be more suitable for manual shifting than just a wheel clipped to a desk.

    I even got a racing wheel with a clutch to use with the game but after 10 minutes of playing with it I went with auto mode. Even shifting manually with the wheel pedals was not as much fun as just setting it to automatic.
    Reply