PCGame

Need for Speed™ Payback

Open-world arcade racing with car classes, chases, and revenge

Ghost Games · Published by Electronic Arts · Released Jun 18, 2020

ActionAdventureRacingSportsStrategy

Third-party account required DRM declared on Steam

Reviews
Very Positive
85% of 30K
Recent reviews
Very Positive
85% of 163 in 30 days
Players
119
daily peak, Nov 7, 2026
Steam Deck
Unsupported
Last update on Steam
3 years ago
Jan 30, 2023
Minimum PC
GTX 750 Ti
6 GB RAM · 30 GB disk
Full requirements

Metacritic: 62/100 (critic reviews)

What is Need for Speed™ Payback?

An open-world arcade racing game set in Fortune Valley, with first- and third-person driving views. You race, drift, drive off-road, evade police, and customize cars across five vehicle classes. The campaign follows three drivers seeking revenge against The House, with competitive and cooperative online modes alongside solo play.

For you if...

  • +you enjoy police chases and action-focused driving missions
  • +you want a revenge story with three playable drivers
  • +you want solo, competitive, and cooperative racing modes

Not for you if...

  • −you prefer simulation-style racing without action missions
  • −you want a racing game without a story campaign

What players say

85% of 29,953 reviews are positive · 85% of 163 in the last 30 days

Players praise the car selection, visual customization, and mix of event types. Their main complaint is the randomized card-based upgrade system, which they say makes progression grindy. Recent players also report EA app updates delaying or preventing the game from launching.

Players over time

▼ -45% vs a month ago

Players online on Steam, one sample a day.

Highest since Sep 2026: 466 players on Sep 21, 2026.

Show the data
DayPlayers
Nov 7, 2026119
Nov 6, 202698
Nov 5, 2026101
Nov 4, 202695
Nov 3, 202678
Nov 2, 202694
Nov 1, 2026130
Oct 31, 2026130
Oct 30, 202698
Oct 29, 202695
Oct 28, 202699
Oct 27, 2026110
Oct 26, 2026123
Oct 25, 2026151
Oct 24, 2026152
Oct 23, 2026137
Oct 22, 2026136
Oct 21, 2026118
Oct 20, 2026129
Oct 18, 2026187
Oct 17, 2026191
Oct 16, 2026166
Oct 15, 2026160
Oct 14, 2026142
Oct 13, 2026168
Oct 11, 2026223
Oct 10, 2026215
Oct 9, 2026173
Oct 8, 2026175
Oct 7, 2026164
Oct 6, 2026190
Oct 4, 2026227
Oct 3, 2026197
Oct 2, 2026164
Oct 1, 2026175
Sep 30, 2026175
Sep 29, 2026220
Sep 27, 2026260
Sep 26, 2026242
Sep 25, 2026225
Sep 24, 2026224
Sep 23, 2026262
Sep 23, 2026238
Sep 22, 2026257
Sep 21, 2026466

How many players finish Need for Speed™ Payback?

19% of Steam players have unlocked «Against All Odds», the achievement for finishing the main story.

Share of everyone who owns the game on Steam, including those who barely played it. Updated weekly.

Screenshots and trailer

Need for Speed™ Payback screenshot 1

Need for Speed™ Payback system requirements

Minimum: GTX 750 Ti, 6 GB RAM, 30 GB of disk space.

As published by the developer.

Can my PC run Need for Speed™ Payback?

Tell us your graphics card once and every game page will answer this for you.

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Minimum

OS
64-bit Windows 7 or later
Processor
Intel i3 6300 @ 3.8GHz or AMD FX 8150 @ 3.6GHz with 4 hardware threads
Graphics
NVIDIA GeForce® GTX 750 Ti or AMD Radeon™ HD 7850 or equivalent DX11 compatible GPU with 2GB of memory
Memory
6 GB RAM
Storage
30 GB available space
DirectX
Version 11

Recommended

OS
64-bit Windows 10 or later
Processor
Intel i5 4690K @ 3.5GHz or AMD FX 8350 @ 4.0GHz with 4 hardware threads
Graphics
AMD Radeon™ RX 480 4GB, NVIDIA GeForce® GTX 1060 6GB or equivalent DX11 compatible GPU with 4GB of memory
Memory
8 GB RAM
Storage
30 GB available space
DirectX
Version 11

Does Need for Speed™ Payback have co-op or multiplayer?

Yes: co-op online; PvP online. It also has a single-player mode.

Does Need for Speed™ Payback run on Steam Deck?

Unsupported No: Valve rates it Unsupported on Steam Deck.

  • Not supported on SteamOS

PC version details

DRM
EA on-line activation and Origin client software installation and background use required.
Third-party account
EA Account (Supports Linking to Steam Account) (Supports Linking to Steam Account)
Controller
Keyboard and mouse
Platforms
Windows
Achievements
57
Age rating
13+
Languages
Full audio: English, French, Spanish - Spain, Italian, German, Japanese, Polish, Russian. Text only: Portuguese - Brazil, Simplified Chinese, Traditional Chinese.

Does Need for Speed™ Payback use AI-generated content?

No AI-generated content is disclosed on the game's Steam page.

Self-reported by the developer under Steam rules: it covers AI content that ships in the game, not tools used to make it. Steam page checked on Nov 6, 2026. How to filter AI games on Steam

Tags

4 DLC available.

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