I got home with my copy of Need For Speed Hot Pursuit this morning, and as is par for the course for EA games now, it comes with a code for “Online Pass” which enables the online content. So when the game boots up for the first time you’re prompted to enter your code or start your 2 day trial.

Sadly, when I try to enter my code:

I know the image is blurry, it says “Unable to Process Online Pass Please try again later”…

For a game that is basically built around Autolog and online competition, this should work on launch day… I’m thoroughly disappointed by this.

UPDATE: In the interest of fairness it would appear that EA is working on it… and issued this notice http://forum.ea.com/eaforum/posts/list/3834779.page

To our North American Playstation 3 customers: our apologies, but there is a delay in the activation of PSN Online Pass codes for Need for Speed Hot Pursuit. We have been working with Sony to resolve this issue, and you should be able to enter your Online Pass codes shortly. In the meantime, you can still jump online immediately by activating the free two day trial.