E3 2017: Need for Speed Payback Gameplay Reveals The Fast and Furious Similarities.A heist mission gameplay demo looks inspired by Dom Toretto's adventures.

EA showed off a new gameplay demo of Need for Speed Payback during its E3-adjacent EA Play showcase, giving off serious The Fast and the Furious vibes as part of the reveal.

In the gameplay preview, EA demoed a Need for Speed Payback mission called "Highway Heist," which showcased the player driver chasing down a truck along a desert highway. After knocking out other drivers pursuing them, the player caught up to the truck, as Jess, riding along in the car, jumped onto the truck. Though the truck was already damaged, she hopped inside the main cabin of the truck and drove a high-end car out the back, planning to escape before a helicopter comes to confront her.

The heist sequence failed to include an absurd number of harpoons, but the entire mission feels reminiscent of more than a few notable moments from the blockbuster Universal Pictures Fast and Furious franchise. The truck heist harkens back all the way to the original The Fast and the Furious, as Dom, Letty, and their crew robbed a truck full of DVD players in the franchise's opening sequence, as well as the subsequent heists in that first film. The Payback demo also blended elements from the train robbery sequence in Fast Five, as Dom, Brian, Mia, and their friend Vince are involved with the stealing of three cars.

Smartly, the sequence doesn't offer an exact 1:1 recreation of any moment, but the inspiration clearly comes through in the blend of Need for Speed driving action and more personal, character-focused moments. The demo didn't quite deliver cars dropping out the back of a plane like in Furious 7, but the camaraderie and blockbuster nature of the heist sequence certainly hint at the game's willingness to pull inspiration from one of the biggest worldwide film franchises.

Need for Speed Payback is now available for preorder.