Need for Speed: Shift

2009 Slightly Mad Studios Racing

Windows 11With a fix

MacNot sold

LinuxGold

Steam DeckPlayable

Gamicality score

Metacritic 834

OpenCritic Not rated

Steam players 751

How it’s combined

Playability today

Runs today4/5

Design today3.5/5

Steam user reviews

Mostly Positive

78%

2,827 reviews1

Watch the trailer

Facts checked November 1, 2026

Does Need for Speed: Shift run on Windows 11, Apple Silicon Macs, Linux and Steam Deck?

Windows 11With a fix

Runs with a fix. See the steps below.1

Mac (Apple Silicon)Not sold

No Mac version is sold.

LinuxGold

Through Proton. ProtonDB: Gold, runs perfectly after tweaks.3

Steam DeckPlayable

Playable, as rated by Valve. May need some setup.1

Played Need for Speed: Shift lately?

One click, no account, so the next player knows. How we check where it runs

How to get Need for Speed: Shift running today

If loading screens take very long on Windows 10 or 11, run the game in compatibility mode for Windows Vista (SP2) (PCGamingWiki).
Set the in-game refresh rate below 144 Hz (120 Hz can also fail), or the game resets its graphics settings at every launch (PCGamingWiki).

Synopsis

Need for Speed: Shift is a circuit racing game from Slightly Mad Studios that trades the series' police chases and street races for licensed race cars on real and fictional tracks. Players work through four tiers of career events plus a final world tour, earning money and stars to buy and upgrade cars, with a detailed in-car view at the center of the experience.

Developer: Slightly Mad Studios
Released: 2009
Genre: Racing

Reception

Critics in 2009 welcomed the move toward serious motorsport, praising the in-car view, lively AI opponents and constant rewards, and the PC version holds a Metascore of 83. Several reviews found the handling twitchy and prone to sudden oversteer, and called the web of badges and unlock systems overdone. Steam players rate it Mostly Positive, with many recent reviews calling it a favorite track racer while regretting that EA pulled it from sale in 2021. Some players today question the career structure, since many events assign fixed cars rather than the ones bought.

Trailer from Steam

Playability today

The average of two parts, each from 1 to 5. Tap a check to see why. How it works

Runs today

4/5

?Not confirmed yetSold or given away today by an official source
No source covers the current version yet, so this check counts as open, not passed. Played it lately? Tell us
Needs fan patches to run well on Windows 11
?Not confirmed yetSingle-player works without an internet connection
No source covers the current version yet, so this check counts as open, not passed. Played it lately? Tell us
Some content no longer works (servers, DLC, unlocks)
Online multiplayer shut down on August 31, 2021, and the game was delisted from online stores on May 31, 2021 (PCGamingWiki).
Supports modern resolutions and widescreen
Widescreen, ultrawide, multi-monitor and 4K are supported natively (PCGamingWiki).
Full controller support or remappable controls
Full XInput controller support with remapping, though Xbox button icons need a mod (PCGamingWiki).
Steam Deck Verified or Playable
?Not confirmed yetNo intrusive DRM or required third-party launcher account
No source covers the current version yet, so this check counts as open, not passed. Played it lately? Tell us
No pay-to-win or pushy microtransactions
No known game-breaking bugs in the current version
PCGamingWiki lists only slow loading and a settings reset at high refresh rates, both with simple workarounds (PCGamingWiki).

Design today

3.5/5

Controls feel awkward on a modern controller or mouse and keyboard
The steering is twitchy and prone to sudden oversteer even with stability aids on, though GamesRadar found it manageable, and players report input lag that a fan community patch later set out to reduce. Source: eurogamer.net, virtualr.racesimcentral.net, steamcommunity.com.
Menus, text and interface are clear on today's screens
The game supports widescreen, ultrawide and 4K resolutions natively with gold ratings from the Widescreen Gaming Forum, and the menus accept mouse input on PC. Source: pcgamingwiki.com.
Saving is fair: free saves or frequent checkpoints, little lost progress
The profile autosaves after each finished event, with an autosave toggle in the Save/Load menu, and events are short races that restart at once, so a crash costs a few minutes at most. On newer Windows the profile can fail to save unless the folder in Documents is writable or the game runs as administrator. Source: steamcommunity.com, eurogamer.net.
It teaches itself: no guide needed to make progress
Steering sensitivity, AI difficulty and driving aids can be tuned freely with no penalty to rewards, and the career unlocks its tiers in a clear, predictable order. Source: eurogamer.net, gamesradar.com.
Pacing holds up: little grind, filler or forced backtracking
Stars from podiums and in-race objectives move the career along steadily from hatchbacks to supercars, while the grindier badges are optional extras. Source: gamesradar.com, eurogamer.net.
Camera or movement fights the player
Heavy camera shake and a blur effect that hides the dashboard and mirrors at high speed make the default in-car view harder to drive by. Source: eurogamer.net.