16 Essential Open-World Video Games Coming In 2017 & 2018

9. Need For Speed Payback

Let's call it like it is: NFS Payback is the next Burnout.

From the lightspeed races, crumpling car models, a way more OTT tone and especially the side-swiping takedowns themselves, this looks set to be the solid injection of arcade racing we've been sorely missing for nine years (since Burnout Paradise).

Yes, Forza Horizon attempted to wave the flag for hyper-fast twitch-racing, but nothing compares to the balls-out ridiculousness of Burnout at its peak. For NFS Payback we've got a ton of guys from Burnout developers Criterion helping form Ghost Games, the budgetary clout of EA and the sheer breadth of licenses to mash all your favourite supercars into mush.

Lastly, Payback will also come with a twin-protagonist story, the E3 demo showing the pair steal a car from a truck, only to switch control and make the getaway, a fleet of law enforcement in tow.

A mixture of Burnout and old-school PS2-era Hot Pursuit? Payback should be exactly what the open-world racing genre needs.