The Arcade Racer Grows Up

"We're always thinking of new concepts for racing games, but we'd been working on Project Gotham Racing for a long time. So we'd always wanted to do a game kind of like this. Like, 'Let's release the shackles and go crazy with something that's really, really exciting,'" says Wilson. "It's something that's been kicking around for a while. We always wanted to make a game where there's constant overtaking and constant action. And that's really when we got acquired by Activision. They said, 'Make whatever you want, guys. If you want to make another PGR-style game, go for it.' But we really wanted to make a game that was exciting all of the time."

While Blur strongly embraces the "action" end of the action-racing tag, with its powerful weapon attacks and even a demolition derby-like multiplayer mode, it's clear that the game doesn't completely abandon the realistic driving models seen in the studio's previous racing franchise. However, adapting that approach for 20-player online battles with wicked firepower proved an interesting process.

"The main difference that you'll see is in track design," explains Talbot. "We've retained the realistic-looking locations [...] but we made the decision to do 20-car racing, and 20-car racing means that you can't have 90-degree corners. You can't have a lot of the things that would make a normal racer skillful -- it would get in the way of a game where you've got to think about power-ups and shooting other people. We wanted track designs which were fun, where you could explore the tracks, and which would challenge you to a point, but wouldn't get in the way of powered-up racing. So by making changes to the circuits to open them up, that allowed us to keep the same dynamics and handling."

"I forget that people see us as a simulation studio, because we really don?t see ourselves as that," asserts Wilson. "We thought PGR was closer to Tony Hawk than Gran Turismo, because we thought it was all about being cool, [earning] Kudos and points, and showing off in your car. For us, Blur wasn't as big a stretch as other people thought."

But even if Bizarre doesn't see the game as a night-and-day transformation, many of the studio's longtime fans are likely to do so, at least at first glance. And while Blur does include a weapons-free online playlist, Wilson hopes the multiplayer beta test convinces any doubters, and makes it clear that this it the game Bizarre truly wanted to make.

"I think that's why the multiplayer beta is so important for us. I want to reassure the hardcore gamers that this game isn't a toy, and dispel the rumor that Activision forced us to make this game. They absolutely have not forced us to make this game. They would've been absolutely fine with us making a simulation game," asserts Wilson. "We wanted to make this game because we think it addresses some of the issues with some of the games in the racing genre; the fact that after the start of the race, it can get really boring when you can't see anyone in front of you or behind you."

Wilson believes the emphasis on action and the fact that a last-place lingerer can fight his/her way back into the race with skillful use of pick-ups sets Blur apart from the pack. "That's the difference between Blur and a more traditional racing game," explains Wilson. "And this isn't a problem with racing games -- this is a problem with racing. Even Formula 1 can be quite boring, unless you're a car geek like me."

Hitting the Brakes

But when Blur appeared at E3 and GamesCom last summer, it was clear to many who played it that this combination of high-speed racing and powerful attacks wasn?t quite ready to be a primetime player. Wilson says the need to create a new, multiplatform game engine from scratch set the project back from the start, and admits the version displayed last summer, "was OK -- it was functional." But when the decision came to push the essentially completed game from its original fall release date, even the designers were shocked.

"At first we were quite surprised that they decided to do that, because it's a very unusual thing. In fact, I don't think it's ever been done with an Activision title before," says Talbot. "It was unprecedented and we were really taken aback, but the way management sold it to us was, 'Everybody at Bizarre believes in it, everybody at Activision believes in it, but it's not quite there yet. It's a new franchise. We need to make a franchise that's going to last forever, or at least last for many years to come, and you can't do that with a false start. You have to make the best of what you've got, and you have to make what you've got the best that it can be.' So it was very late in development, but we're very happy with the decision, and Activision is very happy with the results."

And while Blur escaped the typical holiday release glut, its May 25 release date in North America puts it within days of anticipated titles like Super Mario Galaxy 2 and another action-oriented racer, Disney Interactive's Split/Second. According to Wilson, it's just a symptom of the industry focusing on better titles throughout the year.

"It's difficult, isn't it? There's never a good time to release a game -- because if we'd released it at Christmas, we would've been battered by Call of Duty. If we'd released it in January, then that's sort of like the graveyard for games, right? And even then, you've got games like Mass Effect 2 coming out," explains Wilson. "I think what's happening now is that there's so many games coming out that your game needs to be awesome. It needs to be really good. You can't put a crap game out or you'll just not sell anything." And in a last poke at Activision's biggest franchise, he adds, "There's never a good time to do it, unless you're Call of Duty, I suppose. [Laughs] Then people run away from you."

As for what we might expect from Bizarre after Blur ships this May, the aforementioned discussion of launching it as a franchise indicates that future iterations are certainly a consideration, but Wilson says the studio is also intrigued by the possibility of developing games for the iPhone. "The iPhone has become the third handheld console, hasn't it? It's fantastic," he admits. "I know it's something Bizarre is interested in doing in the future, and Activision is definitely starting to get into it as well. So yeah, maybe we'll do something like that in the future, but right now we haven't got any definite plans."

And what about the status of Bizarre's fiendishly addictive Geometry Wars franchise? Unfortunately, the lead designer is currently occupied with less thrilling ventures, but a revival remains probable. Just don't count on a set timeframe.

"Steven Cakebread, the lord of Geometry Wars, is currently locked away in the core tech room, doing core tech tools so we can build games. He's working on something so boring -- he's working on the database that handles all the game data, basically. He's making tools for me," says Wilson with a laugh. "It's funny, the thing with Geometry Wars development -- it's a prime example of a game which, when left alone, is just done when it's done. So he's got loads of stuff he's mucking around with, and then one day he'll just go, 'Hmm, what do you think of this?' It'll be finished, but we have no idea when it'll be. Could be next week, could be next year."