“Hey Ding Dongs!….kept you waiting huh, well strap in! I'm taking over this crap show …wait, what the hell is a Volume 9,?! screw that, this is Lockdown!”...easy there Racer X (if that even IS in fact your real name)…WE will handle this….

Ahem...Hey yo first things first, it's time to shake ground, in the ninth round, yeah this is the Lockdown. Yep! It’s time to put a bow on this year of Kaizen and celebrate 30 years of NFS all in one crazy package. Call it an early festive season gift from your new (old?) pal Racer X!? 

It's time to Ride or Die with your crew in Vol. 9* inspired by one of the G.O.A.T s, NFS Most Wanted. 

Over this year, we have been on a mission to bring you the ultimate NFS destination in one place for the first time. We have been adding things that were clearly missing from Unbound, but now, we bring you something completely new. 

This is Lockdown, a PvPvE round-based extraction mode where you can put it all on the line in our most high-stakes mode to date. Lakeshore PD has had enough of you and your pal Racer X’s antics and are locking the city down. Confiscating cars and cash as they do and placing them in Lockups that have popped up around the City. You can bust into them of course, and take out one of the sick Hot Rides inside and IF, you can extract with it…you keep it! 

Getting into the Lockups is easy, just pay Racer X and he will unlock them, or better for your wallet, use one of the Superbikes scattered around Lakeshore to sneak into the Lockups through the side gates…oh yeah….bikes!…..NFS has bikes now! and you thought the Evija was fast?! but, with great gifts, comes great risks….fail to extract, get Busted, wrecked or your ride jacked, you can say goodbye to your beautiful loot and potentially your ride for 24 hours while it's Impounded or someone else drives around in it instead. 

Of course, it wouldn't be a Most Wanted inspired Vol without a Rap sheet, the difference now, Racer X is your own personal, very unapproachable, Santa, dishing out gifts for those who have been putting in the work each week! The higher your Rap, the better the prize, including some sweet custom rides for reaching platinum. As always see below for all the full details and don't miss our new "How to Play" guide coming to our website when the volume launches! 

Lockdown is our big new way to play in NFS but that's not all that's on offer for Vol 9. As always, there is a new Speed Pass** packed with 30th Anniversary and Most Wanted themed customizations and two beasts from the East in the form of the Honda Integra and the SUBARU Impreza, new body kits, new customizations, new challenges, 14 new PVP playlists! (including Bike only, new Drift Pro and Legends playlists), max rank up to 300! …. a pretty tidy holiday gift all in all I think you will agree! 

With the holiday season in mind, it's time for reflection, giving, loving, caring, sharing “and smashing the ever lovin crap out of each other, while trying to extract with some of the hottest rides this Temu ass Rockport has ever seen, all for my amusement!” wait…TEMU ass Rockport….you can go f…*whoosa* … what WE mean to say is, truly, from the bottom of our hearts, thank you for this second year of Unbound, for coming on this journey with us, for continuing to support us with all of your feedback and helping us shape what NFS is and where it will go. We couldn't have done it without you so thank you from the whole of Team Kai…. “Yeah yeah….enough with the love in!….Now…go take back what's yours….Sugarplum!”

    -Team Kaizen, Criterion Games  RACER X!

Wait, you thought those Racer X challenges were for nothing?! It was all part of the plan - Racer X has pushed the Need for Speed risk vs. reward formula to even greater heights. Team Kaizen has been cooking and we’re ending 2024 with the most ambitious update yet! 

Added Lockdown as a stand alone mode in Lakeshore Online

Taking a pinch of nostalgia, adding some contemporary multiplayer flavors, Lockdown introduces an exciting new mode to Lakeshore Online. 

• Extraction/PvPvE inspired mode
• Up to 15 players, split across 5 crews
• Race against the clock, as the Lockdown zone gradually consumes Lakeshore and the heat rises
• Pick up cash and jack rides found on the streets (and from downed rival crew members!)
• Enter Lockups to find the most valuable loot, including Hot Rides that get permanently unlocked for use across Lakeshore Online if extracted
• Pursuit Tech (Spike Strips, EMP, Electrostatic Field) available for racers to use throughout Lakeshore in Lockdown
• The highest stakes street races yet, featuring Pursuit Tech, mixed vehicle Tiers and routes through the Lockdown Zone
• Complete Contracts for Racer X, with the help of crew members to earn cash, XP and reward vehicles
• The Downed State allows for another chance to get back into the action when wrecked or busted (so long as you have crew members to recover you!)
• Extract using Racer X’s Extraction Truck when ready to leave the Lockdown, but only a single crew can claim each truck. Play it safe and leave on the first truck? Or hold back, grab some loot and risk it all?
• Fail to extract and your ride becomes impounded for 24 hours in Lockdown! If you manage to jack a ride and extract, it becomes available to use for 24 hours in Lockdown
• Jack the BMW S 1000 RR 2019 Superbike, the only vehicle impervious to the damaging Lockdown Zone, and with the ability to squeeze into partially opened Lockups 
• Earn Rap by performing illicit actions inside Lockdown, tracked on your personal Rap sheet. Rewards are offered each week by Racer X for beating weekly Rap milestones

Added New PVP Races

• BMW S 1000 RR only Playlists - Get your adrenaline pumping weaving through tight spaces at breakneck speeds on Need For Speed’s first Superbike
• NFS Legends - Routes that will really make you feel the Most Wanted
• Drift Pro Touge - Push your sideways skills to the limit in Drift Pro events featuring JDM cars only
• American Muscle Drag - Drag events exclusively for American Muscle cars
• Honda Integra Type R only Playlists - All racers in the Integra Type R
• SUBARU Impreza WRX STI only Playlists - All racers in the Impreza WRX STI
• 30th Anniversary Legends - Celebrate 30 years of NFS with playlists combining events celebrating installments from across the franchise
• Special Routes Unlocked - A collection of routes added across Kaizen (Volumes 6 - 9)
• Regera Only Playlists - All racers in the Regera 
• A total of 14 new playlists - but over 60 routes and event configurations added for Vol.9

Increased Max Rank

• Max rank will now be increased from 280 to 300. 20 new ranks, themed with Blacklist badges, unlocking along with titles and banner art every 3 ranks (starting from rank 285). 

Added new Cars

• Two new cars are set to bring a modern classic JDM flavor to Lakeshore. The Honda Integra TYPE R and the SUBARU Impreza WRX STI have pedigree both on track and on the streets. The Integra, a favorite for anyone seeking a pure driving experience with its high-revving VTEC power, will be nimble enough to get out of any situation during Lockdown, whilst the SUBARU with its rally pedigree and four-wheel drive is more than equipped to take on whatever is thrown in its path from Lockdown rivals to Lakeshore’s finest!
• ^ SUBARU Impreza WRX STI (1999) w/ 3 bodykits
• *** Honda Integra Type-R (1998) w/ 3 bodykits

Added New Customs

• *** NFS Legends - BRZ Premium '14
• *** Honda Integra Type R (1998) – LOCKDOWN SPEC
• *** SUBARU Impreza WRX STI (1999) - LOCKDOWN SPEC
• *** NFS 30th Anniversary M3 GTR '05

Added Undercover Cop Variants

• ^ Nissan Skyline (1999) – Undercover Cop Edition
• ^ Porsche 911 GTS (2018) – Undercover Cop Edition
• ^ Land Rover Range Rover Sport SVR (2015) – Undercover Cop Edition
• ^ Chevrolet Colorado ZR2 (2017) – Undercover Cop Edition

Blacklist inspired customs

• > 14 Blacklist member-inspired custom cars are up for grabs from playing Lockdown, finding them in the Lockups and successfully extracting with them. Tick them all off to unlock Racer X’s……pride and joy.

Plus

• > Over 45 vehicles found in Lockups in Lockdown - Successfully extract them from Lockdown to unlock them permanently in your multiplayer garage (Cars in the lockups rotate on a weekly basis )

*** Available in Premium Speed Pass
^ Available in Free Speed Pass
> Available in Lockdown

As well as some sweet new rides, the Volume 9 Speed Pass brings a whole load more goodies! 

• “Grafitti” Tags - Throwing out Dubs while you Donut!
• Cop Customization - LED Message bar
• New Rims - Licensed and LED animated rims 30th anniversary and Most Wanted style
• License Plates - With designs to that the Most Wanted will truly appreciate
• Decals
• Character skins 
• Projections - Manufacturer icons
• XP boosts

• Fixed a bug where the "Speech to Text" option does not function as intended.
• Fixed a bug with the Hot Pursuit playlists where no reward sticker is displayed in the Standings screen for the sole survivor.
• Fixed a bug with the Lotus Evija 2023 where the default position for the top side decals is set too low on the Y-axis, resulting in the decal being hidden under the front bumper when selected for application on the vehicle.
• Fixed a bug with the Speed Pass where Rank 29 Bull Bar Light Projectors do not turn on.
• Fixed a bug with the Speed Pass where Infinity Rims from the Volume 6 Catch-up Pack are not being awarded to the user in the Cop Garage, even though the other rim rewards are received in both the Racer and Cop Garages.
• Fixed a bug with the in-game Store where items are not removed from inventory after uninstalling all DLCs from the Need for Speed™ Unbound - Ultimate Collection Upgrade from PS5.
• Fixed a bug with the in-game Store where Palace Upgrade and Keys to the Map tiles are missing from on PS5 for users who don't own it, but it is still visible for users who already own it or have it installed.

• Fixed various crashes.

As we came to the end of this update we realized we had chewed off a little more than we would have liked and so we have already begun work on a patch update. This patch is aimed at improving the clarity of Lockdown, especially when it comes to Contracts and Contracts tracking, amongst a host of other things that make the play inside Lockdown a little closer to our vision and easier to understand what’s happening in this fast-paced mode.

We got you. Hit up Answers HQ, where you can report bugs or issues for a member of the team to check out.

Be sure to follow Need for Speed on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and TikTok for the latest news.

Also don’t forget to check out community-run subreddit or Discord channel to join the Need for Speed community.

*Requires NFS Unbound (sold separately) and all game updates.

**P​​remium Speed Pass Content requires Premium Speed Pass and Need for Speed Unbound (sold separately) and all game updates. Requires gameplay to unlock. You must log in before the end of Volume 9 to claim your reward. Failure to log in and claim during this period will result in forfeiting the reward.