I like playing games with asynchronous multiplayer, but outside of Facebook, there aren't many ways to compete against gaming friends in a non-simultaneous way. Thankfully, Criterion includes that sort of thing in their racing games.
The video here shows the asynchronous multiplayer feature in the next Need For Speed, the first from Criterion. It was demonstrated, as you see here, at publisher EA's Gamescom press conference in Germany.
Criterion's Need For Speed: Hot Pursuit includes simultaneous multiplayer, of course. It would be nuts if a game about police chases didn't.
But I'm all for some long-distance one-upping type of asynchronous multiplayer, too. Criterion used systems like that in their previous racing game, Burnout: Paradise, and it's nice to see they're still exploring the concept.
Need For Speed: Hot Pursuit ships this fall on the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3.