Game Update: Icons
Welcome back to another edition of Under the Hood (UTH), your access all areas for all things Need for Speed.
Last time out we started to talk about what we are calling the Living Game and today we are going to go into more detail on the first update, Icons.
First up, let’s get the important bit out of the way, the release date. We’re currently putting the final touches together on the update and are aiming for it to be live on November 25th.
So, let’s move onto the content!
AI Catch UP
One of the key things you have told us since launch was in regards to the balance of the AI Catch Up system. We’ve been reading all of your feedback on this, watching your videos and tuning in to your live streams. With all this feedback in mind we have made changes to the AI behavior which should improve your overall experience.
Community Events
When the update arrives one of the first things you may notice is the new tile on the main menu screen. Located in the bottom left hand corner this tile will be giving you information about any community events that are running, or due to run.
So what’s a community event? We’ve got three types of events that we’ll be running throughout the coming months, each one offering something a little different.
- Bonus cash events will grant an increase in money
- Discounts events will offer discounts on various in game items
- Bonus REP events will reward you with more REP
The first event starts Friday, titled Performance Matters and will offer a 15% discount on all performance upgrades. The perfect time to go upgrade your new ride!

Icon Cars
If you've already begun your journey through Ventura Bay, you may have got your hands on Nakai-san’s Porsche or the 277 of Magnus Walker. In the next update Ken Block’s Hoonicorn and Morohoshi's Lamborghini Diablo SV will also be able to be obtained. If you've already completed their respective missions the cars will be waiting in the garage for you to purchase, at no cost.
Neon Lights
With the Lamborghini Diablo SV or Morohoshi-San being included we thought this would be the perfect opportunity for you to take an early, in development look at neons. They will be applied to Morohoshi's car only and here's a taster of what you can expect.
Color Picker 2.0
When coloring your car, your rims, or decals you will now be presented with a new color picker. This will feature recent colors, pre-set colors, recent materials, pre-set materials, and numerical values on the color sliders so you can be much more precise when selecting a color or material. Improved functionality around working with colors was one of the big bits of feedback we received in terms of the wrap editor and we’re pleased to be bringing this improved functionality to you all.

Mirror Decal
There was resounding feedback from the community during the closed beta and through launch that this was important. Which is why we’ve decided to add it in! When accessing the layers screen there will now be a button prompt that allows you to send any layer from the left side of the car to the right (and vice versa). This works on both the side panels of the car, and side windows.
REP Increase
Reputation (REP) is there for the taking and those heading onto the streets of Ventura Bay will now find themselves with even more REP to earn. The REP limit will be increased from 50 to 60.

Daily Challenges
Included in the update will be a host of new Daily Challenges, with an eye on balancing the types of events with less focus on Outlaw. Once the update arrives, you will start to see new challenges appearing.
New Trophies and Achievements
There will be three new trophies and achievements for you to earn:
Fanboi – Put any of the new icon cars in your garage
Iconoclast – Win and event with each of the new icon cars
Mental Unblock – Get 350,000 Drift Score in Mental Block using Ken’s Car
Pre-Set Wraps
We are expanding on the number of off-the-shelf wraps that are ready for you to use. In total we’ll be included thirty new wraps, ready for you to use across a variety of cars.
General bugs, tweaks and improvements
A number of bugs have been fixed. We’ve tweaked things and made adjustments in other areas such as the AI catch-up.

Community Survey
Feedback from our players continues to be important to us, and moving forward surveys are just one way we’ll be looking to utilize to gather your thoughts. The first of which will be sent out in the coming days, so if you have played Need for Speed since launch be sure to keep an eye on your inbox.
Community Spotlight
We’ve been blown away by the creativity and passion for creating some incredible looking cars that many of you have been sharing with us. Here’s a selection of our favorite cars so far!


With the improvements to the Wrap Editor we can’t wait to see what you come up with.
That’s it for this issue of Under the Hood, as always, it’s been a blast. Next time we talk the Icons Update will have been and gone and our eyes will then be focusing on the future, stay tuned.
We’ll see you on the streets of Ventura Bay, try and keep up.
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