Free Roam

Free Roam in Need for Speed: Unbound is a segment of the multiplayer Lakeshore Online mode and is the open alternative to the PvP segment.

It allows up to 16 players to freely drive across Lakeshore within a single session.

All players in a free roam session can setup playlists at meetup locations, participate in active Linkups, take on the Lakeshore Police Department, complete activities, find collectibles, and interact with other players.

Game Modes

League

The League is a ladder tournament introduced to Lakeshore Online free roam as part of Volume 7.

The player can take on a serious of rivals through a multi-round ladder with each rival having a set of objectives the player has to beat before they can be challenged to a one-on-one drag playlist. Defeating a rival in a 1V1 playlist progresses the player to the next rival in the ladder.

As players climb the ladder, they will be rewarded for beating certain rivals, and completing a community goal unlocks the chance to take on "Racer X" for their unique reward.

Linkups

Linkups are co-operative stunt-based free roam events open to all players within a multiplayer session, and were introduced as part of Volume 3.

A Linkup event requires players to complete 4 successive rounds of challenge phases escalating in difficulty within an establish location boundary and a limited amount of time. Events can appear at any of 7 possible locations across Lakeshore between every four to eight minutes.

The challenges objectives set during a Linkup scale to the number of players participating and can accommodate up to all 16 players within a free roam session.

Players will also gain heat as they participate in a Linkup, which will persist after the Linkup has concluded. As more players gain more heat, the Lakeshore Police Department will deploy a greater number of units as well as escalating the effectiveness of their response.

Players are rewarded with bank and XP after completing all rounds but, although XP is rewarded upon completion, bank is only rewarded after successfully evading any pursuing LPD units.

Playlist

Playlists are multiplayer championships in Lakeshore Online.

They can be initiated by players at meetup locations or by joining an "Open Playlist" initiated by the server.

Participating in a playlist offers players a chance to earn bank towards their vehicles and experience points (XP) towards their rank.

Between two to eight players can compete against each other in a playlist and they'll earn points based on their finishing position for each event of their current playlist. Competing in playlists with higher numbers of players will earn more bank and experience points than those with fewer players.

Each playlist has a unique name to differentiate the included selection of events, as well as the sequence they are ran and their performance tier.

Pursuit

The Lakeshore Police Department (LPD) was introduced to multiplayer with the release of Volume 2.

They can be found patrolling the streets of Lakeshore and can engage in pursuits with multiple suspects within a single free roam session. Players can also assist other players in escaping their pursuits.

Taking down LPD units and evading pursuits rewards players with bank depending on the amount quantified as "At Risk".

Lakeshore

In free roam, players can access safehouses, gas stations, and meetups across Lakeshore. As well as complete activities and find collectibles.

Time of Day

The time of day in a free roam session can be set by each player at their garage or at any meetup, but their choice in time of day is only shown to them and does not influence the selection of other players.

In playlists, the player's choice in time of day is not taken into account and is set to the time of day associated with the event.

Teleport

In a free roam session, any player can fast travel using teleport to any available meetups or safehouses as long as they are not in a pursuit or event.