14 DAY TRIAL // Criterion Games, one of the most impressive racing game studios out there, has confirmed that it wants to work on some of its older franchises, like Burnout or Road Rash, but only after it’s done with the upcoming Need for Speed: Most Wanted.
While there are plenty of great studios who make racing games in the industry, Criterion is one of the most influential, setting standards for open worlds and DLC with Burnout Paradise and revamping the NFS franchise with 2010’s Hot Pursuit.
Currently, the studio is putting the finishing touches on NFS: Most Wanted, a reimagining of the 2005 cult classic. According to its Creative Director, Craig Sullivan, once Most Wanted is done, Criterion might start working on some of its older franchises, including Burnout or even Road Rash.
"There's still a lot of stuff we want to do with driving," he told The Guardian. "We will make another Burnout game at some point. Obviously, as we're working on NFS we're thinking of really good ideas that aren't right for this series; there are ideas that we're going to explore with Burnout."
While a Burnout game would certainly please gamers, lots of Criterion fans still fondly remember Road Rash, a motorcycle simulator series that delivered some intense experiences back in the 1990s, which might be revisited in the future.
"When we did Burnout Paradise we did some motorbike DLC and now everyone thinks that we're going to do Road Rash at some point," Sullivan added. "I had a lot of fun playing that game, we think bikes are fun. We might make a Road Rash game."
The designer, however, doesn’t exclude the possibility of Criterion making a non-racing game altogether, like it did with Black many years ago, although Road Rash still sounds better.
"But then we might make a game without vehicles in it. I mean, we made Black, I was the lead designer – we might make a game about blowing the [expletive] out of each other. But Road Rash seems like a good fit for Criterion."
As of yet, however, the studio is focusing on Need for Speed: Most Wanted, which is out at the end of the month.