'Most Wanted' on Vita is a 30-frames-per-second wonder (Pics/video)

[Nitey]

Criterion's plan was to develop the PlayStation Vita version of Need for Speed: Most Wanted in-house and make it nearly identical to the console version of the EA racer.

And with few exceptions, that appears to be what the developers have done.

"Everything is the same," said executive producer Matt Webster. "It's the same size, open world, has the same cars, same features. That's why we wanted to make this version internally."

While the game's frame rate is floating at just under 30 frames a second, the same as the console version, Webster is sure they'll nail the rate and eliminate any slow down issues before the game hits.

The two major differences on the Vita are the 4-person mulitplayer cap, and the game's graphics, which required some "shortcuts" to land at the frame rate they were shooting for, Webster said.

"The (Vita) isn't quite as powerful as we were led to believe, but you only get to know that when you get down and dirty with it," he said.

An early build of the game I tried showed an impressive range of options, the same sizable world, and tight controls, the latter helped a great deal by the Vita's dual thumbsticks.

The game did chug a few times when the speeds increased and the screen started to fill with vehicles and buildings, but Webster said those issues were set to be fixed pre launch.

The game's Autolog is also identical, allowing players to rack up high scores on everything from high speeds to races to jump distances. Those scores will then be shared out among a player's friend list on the Vita.

The game's Most Wanted high score list is the only Autolog feature that jumps across platforms to find the best scores on any platform.

As with the home console versions, all 40 or so cars will be unlocked when the game starts, though players will still have to find them to drive around in them. The one exception, both for home console and Vita, are the ten additional cars driven by the game's Most Wanted. Those cars can only be unlocked by winning a challenge race.

Webster says the plan is for Need for Speed: Most Wanted for Vita to hit around the same time as the other versions, which come out on October 30th.

Source

Whoa. This is how you do it, and I'm definitely getting this game now. If it somehow manages to become cross-buy then Christmas will have come early . Criterion <3.

Just look at that last pic! Open world, those graphics, on the vita.. damn

[Ghost-Rhayne]

Wow it's open world? Yeah if this gets cross buy then I'll pick it up.

[Thorzilla]

Holy SHIT in a bottle. Now that's some graphics right there. iPhone who?

[radgamer420]

Wow it's open world? Yeah if this gets cross buy then I'll pick it up.

I'm getting this even if it isnt cross buy. Looks awesome.

[Nitey]

Yeah Ghosty, think of it like a licensed cars version of Burnout Paradise . Gonna be SO good.

If 3rd partys are not interetsed in making games for the Vita, then I hope this at least encourages them to develop/port in-house instead (assuming it is a straightforward process), as this as well as Virtua Tennis and others have shown that they can get fantastic looking and performing games on the system. I can see cross-buy really kicking off if this were to happen

[mynd]

PlayStation Vita version of Need for Speed: Most Wanted in-house and make it nearly identical to the console version of the EA racer.

And with few exceptions, that appears to be what the developers have done.

....

and the game's graphics, which required some "shortcuts" to land at the frame rate they were shooting for, Webster said.

Ooookayyyy.
Im sure they coudl have done an "identical" Wii verison as well then.

[Nitey]

Well the whole point is that it looks fantastic on that little screen and has all the content from the console versions @ 30 fps. Awesome stuff!

[Rapture]

Ooookayyyy.
Im sure they coudl have done an "identical" Wii verison as well then.

If you're looking for a contradiction, there isn't one.

[SupraGaz]

Absolutely awesome thanks for posting the info!

If its almost identical and Autolog times etc are cross play I wonder if the progression and trophy system will be similar to motorstorm RC how progress you make on the vita transfers to your PS3 save once synced. Would be awesome to progress on the move and for it to be updated on the PS3 when back home to carry on.

Can't wait to get my hands on it

[YoungMullah88]

buddy is desperate

[F34R]

Holy SHIT in a bottle. Now that's some graphics right there. iPhone who?

Playing some of the pretty damn good games, for 40x less the price... yeah.

Anyways... hopefully this game will be as good as BP is. Looks like it might be just that. Praying.

[Ariakace]

not really big into racing games, so ill probably ignore this one at launch. however, if it gets a price cut after about a year and enshrines itself in that Cross-Buy niche, youll probably see me checking it out.

[XSpike]

"The (Vita) isn't quite as powerful as we were led to believe, but you only get to know that when you get down and dirty with it,"

Well they have proven to me with this game that the Vita is AS powerful as I was lead to believe. Well ok, it would of been awesome if the Vita could handle the same number of players online, but I forgive that since it is an open world game designed for PS3 and to get that running on the Vita with hardly any cut backs. That's amazing.

[mynd]

Well they have proven to me with this game that the Vita is AS powerful as I was lead to believe. Well ok, it would of been awesome if the Vita could handle the same number of players online, but I forgive that since it is an open world game designed for PS3 and to get that running on the Vita with hardly any cut backs. That's amazing.

Except the graphics. Which to be fair, as long as you have enough memory, you were always going to fit the game in the vita, thats not power, that's simply having enough memory to fit the game code.
This is identical? No.

[XSpike]

Except the graphics. Which to be fair, as long as you have enough memory, you were always going to fit the game in the vita, thats not power, that's simply having enough memory to fit the game code.
This is identical? No.

Whats wrong with the graphics? We can't fully judge at the moment what the game will be like, going from one screen shot. But it seems like the game looks great, very similar to that of the consoles. The short cuts most likely being stuff like.. Less motion blur, less online players, a shorter distance before models get the full amount of polygons (forgot the term used for that), shorter view distance, shorter view distances on dynamic and static lights them type of stuff...

Of course that is all effecting the graphics, but the game seems to be using all the same assets and just using short cuts to get the frame rate stable. Which is fair enough in my book, the vita is after all less powerful. Which was obvious ever since they announced the Vita.

[mynd]

Whats wrong with the graphics? We can't fully judge at the moment what the game will be like, going from one screen shot. But it seems like the game looks great, very similar to that of the consoles. The short cuts most likely being stuff like.. Less motion blur, less online players, a shorter distance before models get the full amount of polygons (forgot the term used for that), shorter view distance, shorter view distances on dynamic and static lights them type of stuff...

Of course that is all effecting the graphics, but the game seems to be using all the same assets and just using short cuts to get the frame rate stable. Which is fair enough in my book, the vita is after all less powerful. Which was obvious ever since they announced the Vita.

I'm not saying that the graphics suck. But I'm not holding out hope that they will be as identical as the article insinuates and others are hoping.

[Vulgotha]

Do you have just cause for these suspicions? The Vita's hardware is not insubstantial, in addition to rendering at a lower resolution. It is my understanding that memory and GPU wise it is very similar to the PS3. This isn't the case for the CPU, though.

Plus, I'm pretty sure that the game carts stream faster than a DVD or the BD-ROM in the PS3. So that should save some memory here and there.

[mynd]

Do you have just cause for these suspicions? The Vita's hardware is not insubstantial, in addition to rendering at a lower resolution. It is my understanding that memory and GPU wise it is very similar to the PS3. This isn't the case for the CPU, though.

Plus, I'm pretty sure that the game carts stream faster than a DVD or the BD-ROM in the PS3. So that should save some memory here and there.

They are not going to be graphically indentical, you only have to look at the screenshots above and compare them to what they showed for the console at gamescom.



I bet you there is no reflecitons on the level that there is on the consoles for one.

[Vulgotha]

So the gap is that massive?

[mynd]

So the gap is that massive?

Nope I never said it would be massive, but it aint going to be "identical".
You have to remember the CPU is used to do some effects not only on the PS3 in terms of actual rendering, but on every console in terms of rendering certian special effects, any that require multipass, of slightly differing viewpoints.
Those lists of telling what to render where are the CPU's job. Rendering itself, well yeah thats the GPU's job.
Its one thing to say "we can render the same car model as the PS3'.
Its another to say "we can render the same car model", then render it again for refleciton mapping, then render it again for soft shadows.....

I have no doubt that the asstes are identical. How they are presented however....

If I had to guess, I'd say it wil feature a similar effect set to say Paradise.

[Nitey]

Off screen. Got these off another board:






Looks nice.

And since the other thread's was never updated with this information:

UPDATE: EA UK has told VideoGamer.com that there is "no delay" to the Vita version of Need For Speed: Most Wanted, and reconfirmed that the game will launch on November 2 alongside other formats.

Source

Yay

[radgamer420]

Off screen. Got these off another board: Looks nice. And since the other thread's was never updated with this information: Source Yay

Vita version looks nice. Good news on there not being a delay.

[SupraGaz]

Looking forward to picking this up.
Glad the release date has been confirmed because I'd read there was a delay until Q1 2013.

[sainraja]

....




Ooookayyyy.
Im sure they coudl have done an "identical" Wii verison as well then.

PlayStation Vita version of Need for Speed: Most Wanted in-house and make it nearly identical to the console version of the EA racer.

And with few exceptions, that appears to be what the developers have done.

and the game's graphics, which required some "shortcuts" to land at the frame rate they were shooting for, Webster said.

[Nitey]

Oh yes.

If only Activision/Treyarch were doing the Vita version of Blops2

Criterion ftw.