Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit was released in 2010 as a cops-versus-racers game in which both sides could use equipment such as EMPs to slow or disable an opponent. This clip is labelled as coming from a September 2010 Xbox 360 beta build associated with GamesCom, and it preserves the brief lock-on cue heard when that weapon targets another vehicle. Because the sound is so short and distinctive, it has survived on soundboards long after the game itself, where racing fans reuse it to recreate the tension of a pursuit without needing any gameplay footage.
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The EMP lock-on sound from Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit (2010), heard when a cop or racer targets another car with an EMP. Used in chase edits and racing clips.
This short clip captures the moment an EMP weapon locks onto another vehicle in Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit, with a series of quick, high-pitched electronic beeps that tighten and rise as the target is acquired. It sounds tense and mechanical, like a radar system zeroing in, rather than a full explosion or impact, which makes it instantly recognisable to racing game fans. In a video it builds a split second of suspense before a chase turns, signalling that something is about to be disabled and the driver ahead is in trouble.