TheNeed for Speedfranchise is back in the hands of Criterion Games with its newest entry,Need for Speed Unbound, however, it appears the game’s roster of vehicles is missing some notable brand names for the 2022 title.Car brands such as Nissan, BMW, and Lamborghini are no stranger to the series, using it alongside similar games to show off some of their newest, high-performance vehicles without having to put anyone behind the wheel and are set to return for the latest entry. It appears, though, other major brands are passing on this latest entry, resulting in some notable omissions from the game’s list of 143 cars.
EA and Criterion surprised players withNeed for Speed Unbound’s announcement, giving a first look at the city of Lakeshore and the city’s illegal street racing scene at the heart of the game. The game appears to pulling from the series' more popular titles, includingNeed for Speed UndergroundandHot Pursuit, to give players a more arcade-style, over-the-top racing game. It will also feature famed hip hop artist A$AP Rocky as a key character in the player’s quest to become the best street racer in Lakeshore.
To accomplish this, players will need to unlock the game’s 143 total cars to customize for the streets, ranging from a number of Porsche 911 models toone of Lamborghini’s newest supercars, the Countach LPI 800-4. Other brands such as Honda, Ferrari, Mazda, McLaren, and Mercedez-Benz are also back in the game with plenty of cars to choose from, but what mat catch players by surprise this time around are the omissions. Toyota, Audi, Hyundai, and Maserati are four of the notable brands which will not have any vehicles features in the game at launch.
Toyota’s absence makes it the third-straightNeed for Speedgame the brand has skipped out on having its cars features, the last one being 2015’sNeed for Speed. The reason it has previously given is it doesn’t want to be involved in “promoting illegal street-racing” according to a 2019 Twitter post. It hasn’t been completely absent from gaming, though, as Toyota’s cars have been featured in the more recententries in theForzaandGran Turismoseries.
It would not be surprising to see some players disappointed by the news of these omissions, namely due to the cars that will be absent from the game at launch. The 1998 Toyota Supra, for example, has been a car long associated with street racing in entertainment thanks to its association withThe Fast and The Furiousfilm series and its late co-lead,Paul Walker. It also means just fewer cars for players to speed around the city with, though this could easily change with post-launch content if Criterion decides to add more cars to the game.
Need for Speed Unbound Car List
Need for Speed Unboundis scheduled to release Jun 05, 2025, on PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X/S.
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