Well that’s awkward. In a new interview with Ulvespill (and noticed by Team VVV), Need for Speed Heat producer John Wikberg has confirmed the upcoming racing game won’t support steering wheel peripherals at launch.
Wikberg and senior game designer Yoni Rabinowitz sat down with Ulvespill to talk all about Heat, which is now barely over a month from launch. The duo cover the basics: the Florida-esque Palm City setting, the 127-strong car list, and more.
Nestled right in the middle of the interview is a short but important tidbit. Ulvespill asks about wheel support and Wikberg flatly responds that “right now we don’t have any wheel support for the launch.”
This isn’t a first for the modern era of NFS titles either. 2017’s Payback showed up with only controller use, though a December update that year added support for the Logitech G29 and G920.
Nonetheless it’s sure to be frustrating news for those that wanted to try the game out with a full driving setup. While nobody expects Heat to be a simulation, it can still be fun to take any arcade racer out for a spin with a wheel. We did just that recently in our GRID preview.
The interview touches on other aspects of the game as well. Arguably most encouraging is the news the handling has changed from Payback. Rabinowitz expands:
“But another big thing is that in Payback specifically since you asked, we had these archetypes when you bought a car you decided whether this is a drift car or if it’s a race car. That sort of thing whereas in Need for Speed Heat it’s all about how you customize and upgrade the car. So you can buy drift tires and suspension set up and that starts to move the car’s characteristics in different directions, so you get a lot more choice for players that way.”
Tuning will once again play a major role in NFS. This time around, players will even be able to fine-tune the sound of their car’s exhaust. They can also get a jump start on building their dream cars thanks to the dedicated Studio companion app.
Need for Speed Heat releases November 8.
