EA apologises for ‘rude’ tweets

EA has deleted a series of “rude” tweets and apologised to fans for “crossing the line”, after the company sparked outrage over a paid perk

EA’s official Need for Speed Twitter account got a little carried away with its tweets recently, leading to an apology from the company over “rude” tweets.

The Need for Speed Twitter account posted a series of tweets aimed at followers who expressed discontent about the upcoming Need for Speed Unbound. Fans who were upset with the game’s three-day Early Access policy, which allows people who preorder certain editions of the game earlier than the release date, were met with a tirade of tweets that many have called “rude”.

In one particularly sharp response, a fan who complained about the early access scheme was met with a response calling them a “milkshake brain”. When the fan responded in kind, the Need for Speed account told them to “cry about it bro or buy regular price idc” (thanks Eurogamer!).

While the account has built up a little bit of a following for its edgier-than-normal tweets in the lead-up to Need for Speed Unbound, somebody at EA clearly thought the account had gone just a little bit too far. The account posted an apology tweet, saying that it got “a bit caught up in the hype”, and promised to do better in the future.

We admit we got a bit caught up in the hype for launch and some of our recent social media replies crossed the line. To those fans we upset, we apologize. We will do better. See you here next week.

— Need for Speed (@NeedforSpeed) November 23, 2022

While the tweets were clearly a bit too far for some, it’s reasonably on-brand for Need for Speed Unbound, which is an edgier take on the racing genre focused on illegal street-racing. It features a graffiti-inspired art style and various forms of customisation for vehicles such as body kits. The game also features the returning “Heat System” from previous game Need for Speed Heat, which has players attempting to gain notoriety among the police.

Need for Speed Unbound is being developed by Criterion Games, a wholly-owned subsidiary of EA which has previously worked on the fan-favourite Burnout series, as well as 2010’s Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit. The company also helped develop Need for Speed: Most Wanted and Need for Speed Rivals, but has not been involved with the series in almost a decade.

Need for Speed Unbound features an all-new graffiti-inspired art style. Picture: EA

EA recently revealed that they were cancelling the Project CARS series, after acquiring the series alongside publisher Codemasters in 2021. The company said that it cancelled the series to focus on its strengths, which it says is “licensed IP and open-world experiences”.

EA also announced that they would develop three new Marvel games, starting with the upcoming single-player Iron Man game from EA Motive. The company has a long history of working with Disney IPs, having worked on half a dozen Star Wars titles over the past decade, with another, Star Wars Jedi Survivor, due to arrive sometime in 2023.

Written by Oliver Brandt on behalf of GLHF.