Project Gotham Racing 2 Q&A

The original Project Gotham Racing was one of the strongest titles available for the Xbox at launch last year. The game was developed by Bizarre Creations, a UK-based developer whose portfolio includes Metropolis Street Racer for the Dreamcast and the multiplatform action game Fur Fighters. The follow-up to Project Gotham Racing, Project Gotham Racing 2, was officially announced at this year's X02 event and is targeted for a holiday 2003 release. The game aims to top its predecessor with more cars, more cities, and more features--the most notable of which is Xbox Live support. Over the course of the next year, we'll be checking in with Bizarre Creations and talking about the development of the game. This month, we have Brian Woodhouse, executive producer of the game, look back on the original Project Gotham Racing and give us some hints on what to expect in the sequel.

GameSpot: What was it like developing Project Gotham Racing?

Brian Woodhouse: Developing Project Gotham Racing was a real challenge after Metropolis Street Racer. Microsoft's approach to developing games was totally new to us after our previous experiences. It was similar in some senses, and very different in others, to what we expected. Overall, the major difference between expectation and reality was that the Microsoft guys were really affable and "human," which was very different from the "corporate monster " we expected to encounter.

GS: What were the challenges that you faced?

BW: The biggest challenge was to develop Project Gotham Racing in 10 months. That was tough. We spruced up our existing cities, made significant adjustments to the game design, modified the whole kudos system, and added new cars and New York. That tough art demands, plus the myriad programming rewrites and specific Xbox adjustments, made the project a true challenge. We felt that both Microsoft and Bizarre managed the project smartly overall and made difficult decisions quickly. Granted, we had a bit of luck along the way, but overall, we stuck to a tight game plan and as a team (although 5,000 miles apart) we felt we delivered.

GS: What did you feel that you did really well in the game?

BW: We really felt that Project Gotham Racing was more balanced than some of the other stuff we had done. We always knew that the balancing was a problem (it's hard to get the balancing time with big-release pressure), and that, linked with us not intrinsically understanding the US market, was a big area for improvement. Microsoft really helped out and gave us some very big, cool feedback.

GS: What were the areas of improvement and how do you plan to take those elements and apply them to Project Gotham Racing 2?

BW: As far as Project Gotham Racing 2 goes, we're trying to improve in every area. I don't want to give too much away just yet, but we're looking at everything we do and seeing where we can improve the process. I'm enjoying the builds right now.

GS: Looking back, a year after its US release, how do you feel about Project Gotham Racing's reception? What sort of motivation does it provide you with in developing Project Gotham Racing 2?

BW: In a word or two--very proud. As I said, it was a really hard project that really stretched our team to the limits. At the time of release, we felt that we delivered a good game and helped launch the Xbox. Right now, we feel great about Project Gotham Racing. It completely outperformed our expectations both commercially and in terms of critical prestige. It's very close to our hearts. It actually makes the development of Project Gotham Racing 2 more difficult! Project Gotham Racing's success has increased expectation in all quarters and makes us think harder about what the customer really wants. Nobody wants Project Gotham Racing 2 to be "the business" more than us, and we're doing our best to deliver. We're not the type of people to get comfortable because Project Gotham Racing was a success. We really do want to deliver the world's best racing game, and that's always been our aim. Whether that happens remains to be seen, but we're focused and our intentions and goals are not cloudy. They're absolutely crystal clear. We just need time and that little bit of luck.

GS: Can you tell us how the development process is going for Project Gotham Racing 2? What are you working on currently? What are the biggest challenges that you face in its development? What specific areas are going to be the most time-intensive?

BW: Development is going well so far. It's still full of peaks and troughs as usual, but we're in pretty good shape. We have a big team working on Project Gotham Racing 2, and as you'd expect, it's really art-intensive. We have some new challenges too, both technically and creatively. But they are difficult and enjoyable challenges. Our relationship with Microsoft Game Studios is really healthy and that's an enormous help. Good support from your publisher essentially gives your team the ability to "fight on one front"--the game front. As far as burning time is concerned, the city builds eat art time like Godzilla, so having smart people is the key here.

GS: Thanks for your time.