With a string of bad reviews and a lack-lustre sales record to its name, the Need For Speed franchise was assumed dead when its developer Black Box was shut down by parent company Electronic Arts. And it seemed most gamers with a modicum of taste weren’t shedding any tears over its demise.

Not so, says EA.  The Need For Speed brand is indeed alive and well, and the next title in the series – Need For Speed: World Online – is due for release around Hong Kong and Taiwan in March, before going global later in the year.

The official word is that NFS:WO will have the largest free-roaming environment (think Grand Theft Auto or World of Warcraft) the Need For Speed series has seen yet, and will offer players the ability to form teams and alliances before taking on other players, the police, and so forth.

What would be really cool, of course, is the ability to actually get out of the car and walk around.  Wouldn’t it be great if you were racing along with a mate, pulled over, swapped cars, and continued racing?

What would be even better is the ability to race, pull over, and beat the stink out of your opponent for cutting that corner back there and kicking up a rock into my windscreen, jerk.

And of course, let’s not forget that Need For Speed: Undecover features the Nissan 370Z.