XCL recently had a chance to chat with Ben Ward, Community & Web lead over at Bizzare Creations, about the recently released Project Gotham Racing 4. Not content with resting on their laurels after the critically acclaimed PGR3, Bizzare seems set to once again innovate and deliver a knock out punch to the racing genre. With the introduction of super bikes, along with dynamic weather and more cities than ever before, there is plenty of racing goodness to satisfy. Take it away Ben.

PGR2 innovated in the online racing space on the original Xbox. PGR3 launched the Xbox 360 and continued the innovation with an integrated online career mode and Gotham TV. How is PGR4 set to innovate and leave its mark on the genre once again?

I think it’s going to be a combination of features which allow PGR4 to leave its mark. We haven’t really got one single super-killer feature which we’re putting all our eggs into – we’ve got several. Motorbikes, dynamic weather, new online modes, a stats web site, an iconic vehicle set, a brand new career mode, photo mode enhancements, etc. etc. We’re hoping there’ll be something for everyone to like in PGR4, regardless of whatever “your thing” is.

Can you talk a little about the dynamic weather and how it affects gameplay? What are the different types of weather we can expect?

So you might start a race in overcast conditions, with plenty of clouds brooding in the sky. Half way through the race you might see the rain start to fall, and after 2 or 3 laps it’ll be a full blown thunderstorm. Of course this affects your vehicle dynamics, meaning that you’ll have to adjust your driving style on the fly. The types of weather are pretty varied – we have rain, fog, snow, storms, ice, etc.

PGR4 is introducing bikes into the mix this year. How have you balanced the bike vs. car mechanic to ensure a fair game experience for all?

It takes a lot of time to balance the two vehicle types. We’ve got a dedicated dynamics team, and a dedicated test team. Both of these are in-house, and they’ve both been working on car to bike collisions for many months now. The process is one of iteration, just balancing them again and again until they feel perfect to race with.

How many different types of events will we find in career mode?

Errmm… lots! There are championships (a series of events one after the other), invitationals (special one-off invites to unlock vehicles), and majors (huge end of season events which you face off against the rest of the racing world). Each of these types contains different game modes, like Hot Lap, Street Race, Superstar, etc.

In PGR3 driving for Kudos typically resulted in worse times. How will this be balanced with the new focus on Kudos?

We’ve played with the Kudos system a little to allow different styles of gameplay to shine through. Getting Clean Line Kudos now helps people rack up scores for getting the perfect racing line through corners. However, the game still encourages the player to find that balance between speed and style… that’s a focus in PGR and one which gamers tell us they love.

Gotham TV was a big hit in PGR3? How has that concept evolved in PGR4 and what community sharing features can we look forward to?

It’s evolved into PGR On Demand – a brand new service which allows you to upload and download a variety of content including ghosts, replays, and photos. You access it directly through the main menu of the game (just pick “PGR On Demand”), but it also pops up from time to time in other places too.

The service itself is run by a new technology called the “Content Server”. PGR4 is the first and only game to use it so far, but considering the tech is now part of the overall Xbox Live spec you can bet that other titles will follow our lead in the future (just like you saw with Photo Mode uploads, Gotham TV, online tournaments, etc.). The content server itself allows players to upload and sort various pieces of content, and then recall them in a way they see fit. For example, want to see a replay of Enzo Ferraris racing in Macau? No problem? Want to see a photo of a Kawasaki in a snowstorm? Just search for it.

Can we save and share replays with friends?

Sure can – that’s the beauty of PGR On Demand!

Will you be able to race with guest(s) online?

Yep!

Thanks for your time and see you on the track! Any final words for all of the Project Gotham Racing fans around the world?

Thanks for listening! If you’ve got any more questions, pop over to www.bizarrecreations.com . Several of our dev team regularly haunt the community forum there, and are happy to be chatted to.