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No story in NFS: Hot Pursuit

Criterion keeps things simple.

Unlike EA's recent Need For Speed outings, the forthcoming Hot Pursuit will feature no narrative in the single player mode, developer Criterion has revealed.

"We didn't really think it was necessary to include a story," senior producer Matt Webster told VG247. "If you're a cop, the aim is to go up the ranks, while a racer's aim is to get to the highest rank they can."

However, Webster promised that there was still plenty there for solo racers. "There is a full Career of events. As a racer, you have Time Trials, Races and Hot Pursuits, whereas as a cop you have Rapid Responses, Hot Pursuits and Interceptors. So yeah, there is a chunk of gameplay for the solo player."

Instead of story, Criterion is focusing on social play and a huge open world environment, which it recently estimated was four times larger than in Burnout Paradise, the studio's last title.

Last time we checked, Criterion's franchise makeover was looking impressive. It races onto PC, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 on 19th November.