Need for Speed: Shift has a brilliant subtitle. After all, the game is a dramatic move away from bling culture and over-the top storylines toward a deep, involving, yet accessible racing sim. And it sure was time for a rebirth: last year’s NFS Undercover was the first entry in years that failed to top the multiplatform sales chart. That spurred EA to turn to UK-based developer Slightly Mad Studios, which enjoys a cult following for its team members’ past work on PC racing sims, to make the next Need for Speed.

Shift producer Suzy Wallace acknowledges the torch-passing, saying: “Our earlier games were very hardcore; it’s a very niche kind of market. So to be able to bring our next game to lots of new people is something we’re really excited about.

“[And Shift is] a big change for the series,” she adds. “We want to let people know at this stage so they don’t go into it expecting police chases and the typically arcade experience.”

Many fans have been calling for a complete revamp, and Slightly Mad represents a radical change. But the franchise will keep some of its core features. The game will boast more than 70 cars* and they’ll all be fully customizable, catering to fans of the modding scene.

“Every car has been picked because it’s interesting to drive,” Wallace explains to us. “They’re all high-performance cars — everything from hot hatches to classic import tuners, and even some exotics. There’s something to suit everyone, with lots of different driving styles and handling.”

Shift also has plenty going on at trackside, where tons of lifelike detail gives it an upbeat, race-day atmosphere. “We’re going to have a full career experience,” promises Wallace. “We’re very much based in real life, so don’t expect a big, intricate storyline. That’s not what we’re about; we’re about racing real cars on real tracks.”

Our early hands-on session was extremely promising. The car handling is pleasingly realistic, but not to the point where it becomes too difficult and thus too frustrating. Of course, much depends on the combination of car and circuit. Trying to squeeze a Zonda around the narrow streets of London is a lot more fiendish than breezing an Audi RS4 around Brands Hatch. Did we mention that it also looks absolutely fantastic?

But really, the game’s first-person view is its most impressive innovation. Yes, you’ve heard it before, but Shift does raise the bar by fixing the camera to the driver’s head. That means you get a proper driver’s-eye view that’s affected by g-forces. The camera rocks back and forth as you pick up speed and put on the brakes, and after a heavy collision, there’s a startling concussion effect that makes the view go blurry. It’s really dramatic and engaging — and as Wallace puts it, it gives the game “a completely unique feel that really captures the sensation of driving a real car.”