Need For Speed Unbound got some cool new stuff yesterday with its free Volume 7 update. I spent a few hours playing and I love the new modes!
Volume 7 introduces drag racing and a new style of drift racing along with new challenges for the freeroam portion of the game.
The new Drag racing events are super fun. In these races your car is steered for you but it won’t avoid collisions. So you only need to worry about shifting at the right time to get a boost and slightly tapping the analog stick to avoid crashing into traffic.
It’s unlike any of the other races in Unbound and reminds me of how drag racing in NFS Payback worked. The events can be joined directly from the PvP playlists or you can start them organically in Free Roam with other drivers.
The other new race type is Drift Pro events. Unbound has had drifting in the game obviously but this is an entirely new drift mechanic that (thanks to my efforts to play old NFS titles) I would compare to NFS Carbons drift events. You’ll need to equip a special new type of drift tire to participate in these events. The tires actually completely change the way cars handle and add a meter to the bottom of your car that lets you gauge your drift angle.
For me, drifting had previously been tricky because I sometimes have difficulty getting the drift started when I want to. That is not the case anymore! Just turning the car starts a fucking drift! The entire race becomes about carefully managing your gas/brake pressure to maintain the drift and navigate the track without crashing. I currently suck at it but I’m getting better and I’m having fun learning.
There’s also a new set of challenges for freeroam that pit you against a group of underground racers. You’ll need to complete challenges in the open world to earn the ability to challenge these AI drivers.
There’s also a new premium Speed Pass that includes a bunch of new vanity items as well as a new Mustang. This is $10 and gives you a sort of battle pass to complete.
Overall I’m super impressed with Volume 7! It’s great that two years after its release Unbound is still getting awesome updates!
-Gabe out
