This is Rola. Born of mixed Japanese, Russian, and Bengali heritage, Rola is one of Japan's most popular fashion models. It isn't only on the runway that Rola straps on dangerously high heels.

With a cinematic slant, a Gumball Rally premise and the in-game assets of Mad Men star Christina Hendricks, Need for Speed: The Run is EA's latest and in many ways most interesting attempt at keeping the ageing racing brand relevant.

In their constant quest to turn the Need for Speed franchise into something more than just a racing game, EA tapped it's Black Box studio to create The Run, a game driven by equal parts speed and narrative. How'd that turn out? See for yourself.

Black Box's Frostbite 2-powered racer puts the pedal to the metal today and EA's released a trailer that'll take you from 0-60 as far as Need for Speed The Run's story and gameplay features. You get glimpses of the characters played by Christina Hendricks and supermodel Chrissy Teigen. Of course, there's Sean Faris…

This new trailer for Need for Speed: The Run was directed by none other than Mr. Bad Boys himself, Michael Bay. It's got cars, and racing, and quickquickquick cuts!

The newest video for EA Black Box's cross-country racer shuns all that out-of-car stuff for some good ol' online drafting-and-passing action. The ability to create playlists of the various race types gets shown off, as well as some apparently new Autolog functionality.

We already knew that Mad Men's Christina Hendricks will be voicing the female lead in the upcoming Need For Speed: The Run. Electronic Arts is now saying that Sean Faris, star of The Vampire Diaries, will be assuming the role of the male lead, Jack Rourke.

Mad Men star Christina Hendricks' latest role? Need for Speed: The Run.

Over the course of EA's upcoming racing game, you'll be tearing across the country in an underground competition for big ol' gobs of money. But, there's going be another single-player mode for Need for Speed The Run that parcels out the game's environments into bite-size chunks.

I've owned a few pairs of video game-themed sneakers over the years. But the ones I've actually worn out IRL? Only one pair—the Pumas tied into True Crime: New York— have won that honor. The colorway and city-street grid worked with an understated branding that was surprisingly subtle and with what I already had in…

With so many highly anticipated titles coming out in November, the next entry in the Need for Speed franchise isn't getting nearly as much attention as it should, so EA plays its T&A card.

Despite living in Colorado for ten years I never drove through Independence Pass. Not in bad weather. Certainly not with snow on the mountain pass.

Upcoming racer Need for Speed barrels down Independence Pass in Colorado and puts a big decision in front of the player: Do you race against the tumbling avalanche or simply wait for the *next* Need for Speed game to come out?

Don't care about Need for Speed: The Run's cross-country racing story? Then perhaps you care about the Lamborghini Aventador, Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 and the all-new Porsche 911 Carrera S, all three of which make a special appearance in the game's limited edition.

If you go hunting for new 3DS games you don't have to worry about running out of bullets. This is one scarce safari.

Mirror's Edge meets Need for Speed: That's what I was expecting, hoping for as I stood in line last week to see Electronic Art's new racing game.

Yesterday we posted the leaked trailer for the next installment of Need for Speed, The Run. Today EA makes it official and tells us what's so special about this round of illicit, high stakes racing.

Looks like we're getting a peek at the next Need For Speed a little earlier than publisher EA planned. Details on Need For Speed: The Run appeared on UK retailer ShopTo.net earlier today, a title heretofore unannounced by Electronic Arts. So... what's The Run?