Prior to Electronic Arts' purchase of the company in 1991, it had created popular racing games such as Stunts and Test Drive II: The Duel. The Need for Speed series was originally developed by Distinctive Software, a video game studio based in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Due to its strong sales, the franchise has expanded into other forms of media including a film adaptation and licensed Hot Wheels toys. The franchise has been critically well-received and is one of the most successful video game franchises of all time, selling over 150 million copies of games. The series has been overseen and had games developed by multiple notable teams over the years including EA Canada, EA Black Box, Slightly Mad Studios, and Ghost Games. Additionally, a free-to-play mobile installment released in 2015, Need for Speed: No Limits, is actively developed by Firemonkeys Studios, the developers of Real Racing 3.

The most recent game, Need for Speed Unbound, was released on December 2, 2022. The series released its first title, The Need for Speed, in 1994.

The series is one of EA's oldest franchises not published under their EA Sports brand. The series generally centers around illegal street racing and tasks players to complete various types of races while evading the local law enforcement in police pursuits. Need for Speed ( NFS) is a racing game franchise published by Electronic Arts and currently developed by Criterion Games, the developers of Burnout.

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