Cypher's NFS Undercover Online MP Roadmap and Tips

[CypherNova139]

*** Platinum Unobtainable, Servers Have Shutdown. ***
https://www.reddit.com/r/needforspeed/comments/np6uig/sun_is_setting_on_some_older_nfs_titles_its_not/

As of today, 5:30pm PST August 31st, the servers were shutdown. How did it go? I was unceremoniously kicked out of beginning of round 1 of the only C&R lobby operating at all today. Match started at 5:31 which means I think the server shut at 5:30 sharp and just didn't kick us out of lobby until in-game.

I'll keep the thread tips the same for posterity, however note that all trophies mentioned in this thread are now unobtainable.
I am checking Photo mode trophy on an alt but it appears to require a sign-in to do anything.

 

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After years of boosting NFS Undercover's Online trophies I've found a few various tips over the years that aren't immediately obvious to new players that can help out the boosting experience, so here is a short guide and list of tips and tricks. This is a compilation / remix of posts I've made around Discord over the years so apologies if same info is mentioned more than once.

Online Introduction:

Undercover has 2 online gameplay modes: Races, and Cops and Robbers.
Both modes can be played with up to 8 players.

Races are as the title says. Race other players, win or lose the race, etc.

(*DNF finishes may cause the race to not count for anyone)

Cops and Robbers is a 4 player or more match with what amounts to "Capture the Flag" gameplay if you are used to more FPS style games.
Each round lasts 3 minutes, and a match lasts 2 rounds.

How to play Cops and Robbers (C&R):
"Money" (a floating "$" sign) randomly spawns in the map.
- Robbers drive to the money and then with the money icon active drive back to their base (a randomly spawned "Home" icon in the map) within ~30 seconds to capture the money.
- Cops must bust the Robber with the money by being nearby the robber for a few seconds.
The team is awarded 150 points per money capture, 50 points per bust.
Point scores are split between the players who participated in the action; for purposes of who wins the match this is irrelevant as only the total team score at the end matters.

On each new round the Cops and Robbers roles switch teams.
To win your team's final point score must be higher than the opposing team's score. (Both round scores are added together to form the team's final score.)

Please remember a round win does not count for 25 wins, you need to win the match, so don't trade round wins! Just trade match wins.

Please note that the wording of the trophy descriptions as seen in your trophy list have some misspoken points.
I've addressed a lot of this in the sections below!
In general when the trophy list mentions a ranked match it just means a match that isn't in private mode, both Races and C&R counts here.
(Personally I think C&R mode was an afterthought after watching how the game plays the mode (i.e. initial HUD when C&R match loads displays race position data instead), which explains some of the trophy descriptions favoring races in their wording)

Online Trophies and Trophy Notes:

The list of trophies that require online play and certain notes about obtaining each trophy are as follows:

The following trophies can be obtained in both Races and/or Cops and Robbers:

 

•  Active Community Member ( Participated in any Community Day. Visit NeedforSpeed.com for more info. )
  The description might sound like you needed to be online during the game's heyday and have attended a special "Community Day" event.
  Don't fret!! Every day is a "Community Day" now as EA patched the servers; this trophy will unlock after completing your first MP event.
   
•  First! ( Won a Multiplayer Ranked Game )
  Simple, either come in 1st in a race, or be on the winning C&R team.
   
•   First of Many ( Win a Ranked Multiplayer event against 7 human players  )
  You might notice the description says win an "Event" with 8 players, not a race. The trophy is doable in Races (obviously you'll need to win the race) and Cops and Robbers.
  You can get the trophy in C&R mode or a race, but in C&R the entire winning team gets the trophy, useful when many session players need the trophy.
   
•   Notorious ( Finish 119 Multiplayer Races in any position )
  The trophy description says "Finish 119 races". The trophy does count matches played in Cops and Robbers. Races are NOT required.
  A better trophy description would be "Play 119 matches".
   
•   Among the Best ( Won 25 Ranked Multiplayer events )
  - The PST.org guide is poorly written for this trophy and seems to insinuate just 5 wins are needed. That guide is written badly. 25 match wins are required for the trophy.
  - Certain languages translation (if I remember right it was Spanish or Portugese) have stated "equal races" in the trophy description. That is a mistranslation, for a match to count for this trophy the player count and/or team size or inequality (meaning 2v3, 3v4, etc) does not matter. What matters is who wins the race (Races) or which team wins the match (Cops and Robbers).
  - C&R Ties may count as a win for both teams if both teams total scores at the end are tied and are not 0.

Next, these following trophies requires play in Cops and Robbers mode only:

 

•  Cat and Mouse Virus ( Infected with the Cops N' Robbers virus by another player in a Cops and Robbers event. )
  Viral trophy. All you need is someone with the trophy to hit you in a C&R match! Nearly everyone who still plays online has this trophy, but if you can't find anyone I'm sure this fine forum has kind souls that can hop on and help. Remember: you need 4 players to start a C&R match.
   
•  Crossing the Line ( Win a Ranked Multiplayer Cops N' Robbers event )
  Simply be on the winning C&R team.

Additionally these following trophies require online access but do not involve playing online with others:

 

• Community Member ( Create or use an existing account to sign into EA Nation )
  Obtained by logging into EA account in-game, required to login to access online play.
• Freeze! Hold it right there! ( Take a Photo and upload it to NeedforSpeed.com )
  One of the first incarnations of a photo mode trophy on PSN, This trophy is all up to you to complete it.
  Photo mode is inaccessible during online play. Asking for this trophy to be done in a boosting session might provide you with some weird looks from the other boosters.
  In single player, press Start, Photo Mode, take a photo. You won't be able to access your uploaded photo as 1) NFS website has been redesigned since this game's heyday, 2) photo does not save to the PS3. Somehow the upload still works and you should get the trophy.

 

You should only need to concentrate on these 3 main trophies:
 First of Many (Win a 8 player match)  Among the Best (Have 25 wins)  Notorious (Play 119 matches)

On average once you have achieved Notorious, you should have all the online trophies.

General Notes and Various Tips

• - Most trophies unlock at the match end screen, don't fret if a trophy does not unlock immediately.
• - There is NO match joining in progress and once there is enough players in lobby to start the match, it auto starts within 2 minutes.
  To find a lobby please only search when current match players indicate to do so as they are waiting in lobby.  (The point at which a match can now be found is when the "You Win" / "You Lost!" / "You Tied!" scoreboard screen appears; and lobby locks 10 seconds before the map for the next match loads.)
• - in the Lobby, Press Square to vote to "Race now". If a majority successfully votes the normal 2 minutes match start countdown is skipped to lobby locking processes at "T-" 18 seconds of countdown.
• - The MP code (meh the whole game...) is buggy. If the screen is stuck on "Loading..." a player's PS3 has frozen and has locked the lobby from progressing into the match.The fix is the affected player must shutdown their PS3 and then rejoin next time the group is in the lobby..
  
  Races:
• - A completed Race may not count for anyone if there is a DNF by any player.  Do not idle or DNF races as you will likely waste time.
  
  Cops and Robbers:
• - ALL trophies count in Cops and Robbers game mode even though a trophy description clearly says "races".
• - Unlike Races, Disconnected players do not matter in C&R as the player's score is kept for the match and all matches/wins count regardless of how many players actually make it through the match. I've even had someone disconnect on an eight player C&R match and the remaining winning team successfully got First of Many. Only time disconnects would matter is if an entire team disconnects, in which case the game will immediately end the match.
• - In C&R wins count for the entire team. This is useful for mass boosting First of Many as an entire team can get the titular 8p win trophy at once, rather than 4 separate race wins.
• - It does not matter which player personally scored more points, just that your team has more points than the other team. Again, the entire team wins if said team has more points than the other team at the match end.
• - Your team's round scores are added together for your final score, To win your team's final score must be higher than the opposing team's score. If one team totally idles the other just has to win 1 round to win the match.
• - C&R teams are determined purely by lobby join order.
• - A round win does not count for the 25 wins (Among the Best), you need to win the match. So if both teams need wins don't trade round wins! Just trade match wins.
• - Resetting Cops and Robbers Teams is helpful sometimes depending on randoms and where trophy earners are currently situated. Top 4 players in lobby = Team 1. Bottom 4 players = Team 2. If you need to move players from Team 1 to Team 2 just have the affected Team 1 player(s) reconnect to the lobby. If you need to move a player from Team 2 to Team 1... all of Team 2 will need to reconnect.
   

Q. Do Ties count as Wins?
A.   If the team score is 0, No. If the total team scores tied and both are not 0, apparently Yes.
-- In nearly every session I've held ties has been very much debated. I've personally seen ties not count - most of these being 0 - 0 scores; however several other boosters report that their ties counted. Some digging around shows a nugget in the TA guide listing in the FoM trophy. They say the entire match could win FoM if the team scores matched at the end and are not 0. Some other boosters have confirmed wins counted on a "You Tied" with 150 - 150 score. Wish I figured this out sooner but most boosters would just tell me "nah ties count" and nothing else...

Q. Can I check how many wins and matches I have or someone else has completed?
A.   There is profile stats but it is buggy and likely will grossly overstate how many matches played / wins achieved. Some players may even experience "0" in all stats. 
Please do not rely on or announce said stats in your boosting session as you will only cause confusion. Those who finish Notorious (119 matches complete) usually see "500+" matches complete in their profile stats. The trophy counter does track properly and Notorious unlocks after match #119 / Among the Best unlocks after win #25.
 If playing C&R the entire time, Notorious will take 18 hours, and Among The Best should unlock around the 4th or 5th hour - depending on win trading / your specific team setup this may take longer to unlock.

Q. Can I idle?
A.  The game has no idle kick function. However, you can only safely completely idle in Cops and Robbers, Races may not count if there is a DNF.

Q. How do I connect online? Do I have to complete a tutorial to go online?
A. - To access Online go into the Pause menu, Online, Find Match. If you are being chased by cops you cannot access online.
    - If this is the first time loading the game Undercover will install ~800MB of data to the HDD which takes a few minutes, then the tutorial is literally a scripted 2 mile driving sequence followed by a unskippable 2 minute cutscene. As soon as you gain control of the blue Nissan 240SX car the tutorial is complete and you can now play online.
If you have not loaded the game yet and are joining a boost session, please do your boosters a favor and have the game ready to connect a day before your session so your boost team isn't waiting on your tutorial session.

Q. This !$#%&*# game! My PS3 freezes every time I either log into EA Nation, or freezes after completing Round 1 of a C&R match! I can't play online!!! Help!!
A. This seems to be a weird account issue that popped up after server shutdown notice saw player counts jump up. Wish I figured this out sooner but it seemed to be a randomly happening issue.
It seems to be related to a new player trying to get through EA's old account linking system that only half works now. The best fix I've heard so far is to login to your EA account on a PC web browser on EA's website, then try logging into game.

 

Recommended Strategy:
 

All Multiplayer trophies are obtainable in Cops and Robbers mode (C&R) even though some of the trophy descriptions state "races".
C&R matches operates on a timer so no one has to actually compete in the match as the match will end on its own after 6 or so minutes. 4 players are required to start a C&R match.  In C&R wins count for the entire team!
 While it takes longer than races, idle on a Cops and Robbers match and let the matches and wins come to you :smile:
Remember each C&R match consist of 2 rounds, so don't confuse a round win with a match win. It only matters who wins the match.
Note that Notorious when done start to finish via C&R matches takes 18 hours (about 9.5 minutes per match+lobby wait time)

Now if idling in C&R for hours is not your thing races work just as well and is faster to complete than C&R (~4-5 minutes a race+lobby time), just all players must finish the race to ensure the finish counted.

Also, keep an eye on your the status of each of your boosters. Some ISPs have been more unstable at this game than others: some boosters have been able to stay for only a handful of matches before disconnecting, others make it through a entire session idling without issue, others still have their PS3s reliably crash after a hour or two which holds up the session until they turn off their PS3 or finally get dropped.

Final Note:
THIS IS NOT a boosting thread. To setup a boosting session please use this site's "Gaming Sessions" feature to organize a session of your own or find an existing session who still needs players to join them..

Edited September 1, 2021 by CypherNova139
version 1.7: Farewell older NFS titles!

[greenkaos1226]

50 minutes ago, CypherNova139 said:

After years of boosting NFS Undercover's Online trophies I've found a few various tips over the years that aren't immediately obvious to new players that can help out the boosting experience, so here is a short guide and list of tips and tricks. This is a compilation of posts I've made around Discord over the years so apologies if same info is mentioned more than once.

 

Online Trophies Roadmap:

The list of trophies that require online play are as follows:

Community Member

Active Community Member

First!

Cat and Mouse Virus

Crossing the Line

First of Many

Notorious

Among the Best

 

You should only need to concentrate on these 3 main trophies:
First of Many (Win a 8 player match) Among the Best (Have 25 wins) Notorious (Play 119 matches)

On average once you have achieved Notorious, you should have all the online trophies.

General Notes and FAQ
- There is NO match joining in progress and once there is enough players in lobby to start the match, it auto starts within 2 minutes.
To find a lobby please only search when current match players indicate to do so as they are waiting in lobby.  (The point at which a match can now be found is when the "You Win" / "You Lost!" / "You Tied!" scoreboard screen appears; and lobby locks 10 seconds before the map for the next match loads.)
- in the Lobby, Press Square to vote to "Race now". If a majority successfully votes the normal 2 minutes match start countdown is skipped to lobby locking processes at "T-" 18 seconds of countdown.
- The MP code (meh the whole game...) is buggy. If the screen is stuck on "Loading..." a player's PS3 has frozen and has locked the lobby from progressing into the match.The fix is the affected player must shutdown their PS3 and then rejoin next time the group is in the lobby..
Races:

- Races seem to require ALL players to finish for the match to count for anyone.
Cops and Robbers:

- ALL trophies count in Cops and Robbers game mode even though a trophy clearly say "races" in the description.
- In C&R wins count for the entire team. This is useful for mass boosting First of Many as an entire team can get the titular 8p win trophy at once, rather than 4 separate race wins.

- C&R teams are determined purely by lobby join order.
- Resetting Cops and Robbers Teams is helpful sometimes depending on randoms and where trophy earners are currently situated. Top 4 players in lobby = Team 1. Bottom 4 players = Team 2. If you need to move players from Team 1 to Team 2 just have the affected Team 1 player(s) reconnect to the lobby. If you need to move a player from Team 2 to Team 1... all of Team 2 will need to reconnect.

Q. Do Ties count as Wins?
A.   As I see it, NO. However in nearly every session I've held this has been very much debated. I've personally seen ties not count; however other boosters report that their ties counted. To be sure make sure to win.

Q. Can I check how many wins and matches completed?
A.   There is profile stats but it is buggy and likely won't display the correct stats. Please don't rely on or announce said stats in your boosting session as you will only cause confusion. Those who finish Notorious (119 matches complete) usually see "500+" matches complete in their profile stats. The trophy counter does track properly and Notorious unlocks after match #119 / Among the Best unlocks after win #25.
 If playing C&R the entire time, Notorious will take 18 hours.

Q. Can I idle?
A.  The game has no idle kick function. However, you can only safely completely idle in Cops and Robbers, Races may not count if there is a DNF.

 

Favorite Strategy:
 

All Multiplayer trophies are obtainable in Cops and Robbers mode (C&R) even though some of the trophy descriptions state "races".
C&R matches operates on a timer so no one has to actually compete in the match as the match will end on its own after 6 or so minutes. 4 players are required to start a C&R match.  In C&R wins count for the entire team!
 While it takes longer than races, idle on a Cops and Robbers match and let the matches and wins come to you :smile:
Remember each C&R match consist of 2 rounds, so don't confuse a round win with a match win. It only matters who wins the match.
Note that Notorious when done start to finish via C&R matches takes 18 hours (about 9.5 minutes per match+lobby wait time)

Now if idling in C&R for hours is not your thing races work just as well and is faster to complete than C&R (~4-5 minutes a race+lobby time), just all players must finish the race to ensure the finish counted.

Also, keep an eye on your the status of each of your boosters. Some ISPs have been more unstable at this game than others: some boosters have been able to stay for only a handful of matches before disconnecting, others make it through a entire session idling without issue, others still have their PS3s reliably crash after a hour or two which holds up the session until they turn off their PS3 or finally get dropped.

 

Other Trophy Notes:

 

First of Many:
 You might notice the description says win an "Event" with 8 players, not a race. The trophy is doable in Races (obviously you'll need to win the race) and Cops and Robbers.
You can get the trophy in C&R mode or a race, but in C&R the entire winning team gets the trophy, useful when many session players need the trophy.

 

Cat and Mouse Virus:
 Yes, this is a viral trophy. All you need is someone with the trophy to hit you in a C&R match! Nearly everyone who still plays online has this trophy, but if you can't find anyone I'm sure this fine forum has kind souls that can hop on and help. Remember though you need 4 players to start a C&R match.

 

Active Community Member:
 The description might sound like you needed to be online during the game's heyday and have attended a special "Community Day" event.
Don't fret!! Every day is a "Community Day" now as EA patched the servers; this trophy will unlock after completing your first MP event.

 

Among the Best:
 Certain languages translation (if I remember right it was Spanish or Portugese) have stated "equal races" in the trophy description. This is a mistranslation. For a match to count for this trophy the player count and/or team size or inequality (meaning 2v3, 3v4, etc) does not matter, only who wins the race (Races) or which team wins the match (Cops and Robbers).

 

Notorious:
The trophy description says "Finish 119 races". The trophy does count matches played in Cops and Robbers. Races are NOT required.

 

Freeze! Hold it right there!

One of the first incarnations of a photo mode trophy on PSN, this is technically a online trophy but is all up to you to complete it and said mode is inaccessible during online play. Asking for this trophy to be done in a boosting session might provide you with some weird looks from the other boosters.
The trophy just requires you to use photo mode in single player, press Start, Photo Mode, take a photo. You won't be able to access your uploaded photo nor does the photo save to the PS3, but the upload still works and you should get the trophy.

Thank you for this excellent write up. This is in my backlog and I was trying to think of a good way to approach this. I have multiple consoles and copies (4) just not enough to get the 8 player trophy alone. 

[temp-714775]

Hi thanks for this.

I am playing the game and just one question.

My stats are staying at zero. I played a few campaign races and played online with a partner to boost but after playing about 50 private races I checked and i see all my stats are saying zero everywhere.There was a site you could check you stats but the site is not here anymore.

I just need 25 ranked wins and 119 race trophy but with the stats at zero everytime am i just playing for nothing?
Should i delete all my data and try again ?

[CypherNova139]

1 hour ago, Lapin2paq said:

Hi thanks for this.

I am playing the game and just one question.

My stats are staying at zero. I played a few campaign races and played online with a partner to boost but after playing about 50 private races I checked and i see all my stats are saying zero everywhere. ....
Should i delete all my data and try again ?

As I said these profile stats as shown are really buggy and please do not rely on those stats. you got 69 races to go.

 

1 hour ago, greenkaos1226 said:

Thank you for this excellent write up. ... I have multiple consoles and copies (4) ...

   if you have four systems & copies of the game you are pretty dedicated for a crappy MP lol. although I can one up you and say I have 7 consoles with the game lol. If you need extras let me know.

Also could you not quote a huge OP just to say thanks? Idk why but huge quotes for a comment drive me nuts.

[CypherNova139]

Get those online trophies done now!
Server Shutdown has just been announced for August 31st.
https://www.reddit.com/r/needforspeed/comments/np6uig/sun_is_setting_on_some_older_nfs_titles_its_not/