This release really snuck up on us.
Need for Speed Unbound screenshot

Electronic Arts just posted some important information about the upcoming release of Need for Speed Unbound. With its December 2nd launch rapidly approaching, it's probably a good idea to know what sort of PC hardware you will need to run the new racing title and when exactly on the 2nd you will get to play.

First off, the release timing is all over the place for this one. There are apparently different unlock dates and times based on different versions. Nothing can ever just be simple. With that in mind, here are the release times as provided by EA. Let's start first with the preload timing.

PRELOAD TIMINGS
  • PC - Nov 24, 2022 8AM PT / 4PM UTC / 5PM CET
    • Steam - Nov 28, 2022 8AM PT / 4PM UTC / 5PM CET
  • Xbox Series X|S - Nov 24, 2022 8AM PT / 4PM UTC / 5PM CET
  • PlayStation
    • Palace Edition: Nov 26, 2022 11PM PT / Nov 27, 2022 0700 UTC / 0800 CET
    • Standard Edition - Nov 29, 2022 11PM PT / Nov 30th 0700 UTC / 0800 CET
​RELEASE DATES
  • Need for Speed™ Unbound Palace Edition launches on Nov 28, 2022 11PM PT / Nov 29 7AM UTC / 8AM CET
  • Need for Speed™ Unbound Standard Edition launches Dec 1, 2022 11PM PT / Nov 29 7AM UTC / 8AM CET
  • EA Play/EA Play Pro launches Nov 28, 2022 11PM PT / Nov 29 7AM UTC / 8AM CET
    • EA Play - Play the 10 hour trial of Need for Speed™ Unbound Standard Edition (and keep your progress when you buy the game)
    • EA Play Pro - Get the full Palace Edition of Need for Speed™ Unbound with your EA Play Pro subscription.
The PC system requirements come next. I'm also going to throw in the expected resolutions and framerates that the game should run at on the consoles. Keep in mind that this is a next-gen only release, so there are no details for PlayStation 4 or Xbox One.

PC MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS
  • OS: Windows 10 64-bit
  • Processor (AMD): Ryzen 5 2600 or equivalent
  • Processor (Intel): Core i5-8600 or equivalent
  • Memory: 8 GB
  • Graphics card (AMD): RX 570 or equivalent
  • Graphics card (NVIDIA): GTX 1050 Ti or equivalent
  • DirectX: 12 Compatible video card
  • Online Connection Requirements: 1 Mbps or faster Internet connection
  • Hard-drive space: 50GB+
PC RECOMMENDED REQUIREMENTS
  • OS: Windows 10 64-bit
  • Processor (AMD): Ryzen 5 3600 or equivalent
  • Processor (Intel): Core i7-8700 or equivalent
  • Memory: 16 GB
  • Graphics card (AMD): Radeon RX5700 or Equivalent
  • Graphics card (NVIDIA): GeForce RTX 2070 or Equivalent
  • DirectX: 12 Compatible video card
  • Online Connection Requirements: 1 Mbps or faster Internet connection
  • Hard-drive space: 50GB+
GAME SPECS (PC & CONSOLE)
  • PS5: 4K @ 60 FPS
  • XBox Series X: 4K @ 60 FPS
  • XBox Series S: 1280p @ 60 FPS
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EA goes on to say that there will be crossplay enabled for online multiplayer. This will allow those on PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S to all play together via the Lakeshore Online mode. You can optionally disable crossplay, which will limit your matchmaking to those on your own platform.

Those of you hardcore race fans out there will also be happy to hear that a handful of steering wheel peripherals have been tested to work just fine with Need for Speed Unbound. Those wheels include the following, but others that have not been tested may also work.

  • Thrustmaster T300RS (PS5, PC)
  • Thrustmaster TX (Xbox, PC)
  • Thrustmaster T150 (PS5, PC)
  • Thrustmaster TMX (Xbox, PC)
  • Logitech G29 (PS5, PC)
  • Logitech G920 (Xbox, PC)
  • Fanatec CSL Elite Racing Wheel (PS5, PC, Xbox)​