How Did Mirror's Edge Influence Need For Speed: Shift?

Kotaku: You wouldn't think Mirror's Edge would have much in common with EA's upcoming "authentic" racing sim Need For Speed: Shift. But it does, and here's how.

When chatting with Need For Speed producer Jesse Abney recently, as he showed me the PS3 version of Shift, I was struck by how effectively the virtual cockpit view portrayed a genuine sense - not just of speed - but of immersion in the body of the driver.

Shift has a fully articulated driver model in the cockpit view. You can, as you might expect, look all around with a nudge on the analogue stick. More than that though, the camera is actually mounted on the driver's head and coded to react to the physics system. When you accelerate, the force pins the driver model back in its seat, and thus the camera too pushes back; it's the opposite when you brake, as you'll feel the camera slam forward. When you crash, you'll feel the disorienting effects of your head bouncing around in the cockpit. Everything is calibrated to reflect what a real driver's head would be doing while racing at top speed.