A write up from Next Generation, about the future of racing games. And some additional thoughts of my own.

It does mention Burnout, but does talk about racing games in general.

http://www.next-gen.biz/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=9150&Itemid=59&limit=1&limitstart=0

The interview is interesting, but does not seem to say, hey this is what we need for you racers out there, they all seem lost, to see where they will go next. And that’s not a negative statement, it just seems that the developers seem to want to add more to a genre, that is just about cars, going fast and competing in racing environments, and of course winning.

IMO: As a Burnout fan

Racing games need players/AI (if the room hold 8’s, the host starts the race and if only 4 players are in the room, AI fills in the gaps), to compete against each other. Even when cruising. The taking down of a ‘won’ car in Paradise was a great idea.

Decent handling, I prefer Burnout type handling, but Sims need to have to option to be Realistic and Arcady, so you can choose how to play, serious or just for fun, and still compete in the same room/environment, just the guys who have it on realistic get more point bonuses.

Decent environments to race in. Race tracks, circuits, point to points, streets etc. Could Burnout use real race tracks with the type of handling that is used in game, yes I think so. Well with the old style yes, the new one needs some tweaks, but still possible as it stands, or maybe I need Tweaking?

Environmental physical effects, like Sega Rally, the ruts stay there for the race. Damage to the area stays for the race.

And the view you see the environment. A car has windows, those windows are glass/plastic (safety type either way), or in the case of other racing games, nets NASCAR. That view needs to be worked on, and be reactive, me saying, it can be broken, shattered, smeared with mud, rain, and other elements from the track and weather. Lighting, day and night etc.

We do have a lot of buttons on a controller, so options of lights, windshield wipers, horn etc, similar to real cars could be implemented. Hi-beam option to blind an oncoming rival could be funny. I mean in this day and age, real cars have those options as automatic, rain sensors, light sensors etc, so if you don't want manual, you could have the option to have it set on automatic too.

Also the use of a real car type of dash board/HUD, Speedo, trip, rev-counter etc. You need to know you are in a car and a driver of that car! Even if you don’t use the in car view.

Manual Gears, some people like that option in a game, cool, should be an option.

More types of vehicle to drive, trucks, bikes, cabs, Tuk-Tuks etc. And environments to make them work, dirt tracks for 4x4’s etc.

I know people like modding, the cars decals, body work, engine etc, cool option and should be a standard with in a racing game, maybe, if it is, the option for people who don't like it, have an automatic modding button.

Damage, now this is the point of where Arcade and Sim sort of part ways.

With the windshield option not really a problem, some slow down of the car, due to drag if it has been shattered out, but how about tires, blow outs, slow punctures etc. It is assumed that most tires on racing Sims and Arcade for that matter are the best racing tires out there some, so not much damage is applied, Forza 2 uses it, for wear and tear, and new tyres do need to be run in, so they grip the track when they warm up. Damage does affect handling, even in Paradise, but how far should it be taken with a Sim or even Arcade?

Game play, you need it to be fun, but you need some hardcoreness to it too. But where is that line, should there be an option similar to Forza 2, damage effects on etc. Should tracks be all speed demons, or have some braking and slow down to do some nasty turns? And this is where I too get lost.

What is good/great game play, I can play most race games, have tried most money allowing. Some are too simulator, some too arcade, so a balance is needed or a distinction higher than the wording on the box. Project Gotham went that way from 3 to 4, simulator to arcadeish.

If we look at just the Burnout series for racing:

Burnout (1) had some of the hardest check points to get to within a racing circuit/track, so within a single player game that was the sense of competition to beat those check point timers. AI was also good to race against.

Burnout 2 Point of Impact, had some of the best racing circuit/tracks and a definite improvement to the flow of racing, plus the boost chain element was the sense of competition. Again AI was good to race against but you also had a two player mode, which was awesome.

Burnout 3 Takedown, now this game with on-line play, brought a whole new ball game. Single player was great, with tracks/circuits/point to points and the added competition of taking down someone else and getting boost for that. And the best physics for those said takedowns, ever! It had the best online arcade racing bar none. And ranking was important for some, but the game play on-line was perfect bar some little bugs and glitches, some abused but did not bother to many people due to game play.

Burnout (4) Revenge (both incarnations for the Xbox, sorry keeping it Xbox, but the games across the platforms are similar), now this game just looked gorgeous, when compared to BO3 TD. Speed was the element of this game, single player was great, competitive, AI was strong and did their job, takedown physics seemed off, especially when going on-line. So people just raced, and took it to a new level with the Bug, boost jumping, and the sense of competition was getting lap times and ranking. And the tracks/circuits were great. Also Short Cuts were added or alternate routes, and jumps and the Vertical Takedown!

The PSP/PS of Burnout, Dominator and Legends, had great elements taken from the above games plus some new stuff thrown in too. The tracks were great, and the game play elements worked really well, and seem to follow the formula of going fast, and coming first in the races and earning boost. Only played these games on friend’s consoles/handhelds, so I can’t say too much, but from what I played, great games.

All the above games, were not open world, but did have tracks that crossed each other, or used parts of other tracks, or were used to link a long point to point etc. But definite areas that you raced in then moved to the next area etc. Also most kept stats of what you were doing, takedowns, lap time etc.

Burnout Paradise rebuilt for the next generation consoles. Keeping most of the elements from the last games (takedowns/boosting/stats (though not lap times) etc), but the races are Point to Points, within the open world so a freedom to go what way you want. With the option to make up routes/tracks/circuits within the multiplayer, as well as race most of the routes from the single player, if not all, have not really checked that, so assuming, but probably. The single player does not reflect this area specified racing from the previous games, it’s all open, cool, but no area specific racing/circuits/routes, like the others, seems to stray(stray, lol, got lost and eaten by someone more like) from lap orientated game play. (But the added element of Stunt Run and Marked Man, and the open area of Paradise reflect their use.) The AI in the game is fantastic for this type of game, yes they have some situations at times but overall they do their job, racing you, taking you down and each other and trying to win the race too, they also know where to go, most of the time, lol.

Paradise is different, from the old formula, of going really, really fast; to putting in the X button hand brake and using it to almost stop to get around a corner, seems like a natural progression and a new element to game play, but does mean that you do have to slow down! Slowing downing in an Arcade racer and Burnout to boot, seems a very bold move, but does seem to upset quite a few racers. And it does need it for what Paradise City has on offer, with its tight turns etc. We have different types of cars, different types of boost, all new elements, well not new but different or taken from the other games in the cannon.

You can still race similar to the older versions of the game, but due to the racers spread throughout the map, it seems hard to be competitive, until everyone knows the route placed before them. There is no consistency compared to the other games, there can be tight finishes via other routes and we all start together, but after that it’s a free for all, fine for a FPS, but racing I just don’t know. Being able to see a competitor within your field of view, front, rear or beside you adds to the sense of competition, and it can be that way with most player built races, but some races you see them start, then at the next start of the next round. If tracks can be built to finish within the same area, I think it will improve game play for this game; people can see the route within the map and see competitors around the next corner etc.

Sorry I’m Paradise bashing again!

Yes, Paradise has racing but the bar has been raised compared to the linear racing of the other Burnouts. It is not so easy to just win a race, different types of cars, boost, routes, (drop outs), and trying to get to grips with how the physics work in this game, from car handling, takedowns and being able to see what is really in front of you.

The sense of Competition seems to be the Dailies, ShowTime/Road Rules and Stunt Run (and scores are recorded for these events), the racing seems to be taking second place, even to the point of being nonexistent, unless it’s driven by the community, for the community, and made by the community.

There are no real scores for on-line racing except rank, no times are stored, total or lap. It may change with DLC, and I hope it does. Just because I have created a route does not mean I am the best at that route, but the only people to compare against it with are friends or whomever jumps in my room, but only if they win, and not due to how good they are, more due to luck of going the right way and not getting fouled up along the way? The real test is if they got a good time on that route and being able to compare it against others who have raced the same route, and repeating that performance.

Open World is not a new thing, the way Criterion handle it, seems to work for most of the time, and the tech they use seems to be great too, but I think it’s killing my DVD drive, I can hear it, trying to keep up, with its whirs and grinds but, I know it going to kill my 360, eventually.

Having a no loading world is all very well, but if they did not go that way, what would we have gotten?

Will the formula “that is just about cars, going fast and competing in racing environments, and of course winning against someone, anyone and having a record of that (times)” will be forgotten? With Burnout the added element of Takedowns and great crash physics!

If the physics for driving works, it looks graphically pretty, its competitive, it has external elements, like lighting, weather, some damage while playing, and crash physics, for the FUBAR crash, all that is needed is more players (how many is too much, 8, 12, 24 more, less not really sure) and more tracks/routes to race on.

And the DLC should be a graphic upgrade (TDU), cars and more tracks/routes etc. And that’s it, players would be happy.

That was what people wanted after BO3TD and Revenge, more tracks to play on, and maybe the odd new car. And a graphic upgrade.

With Burnout Paradise the same, but with the other elements within the game expanded, more challenges, Road Rage, Marked Man, multiplayer Stunt Run etc etc.

I had an idea with Drunknnumpty, that with all the information being built/stored from real car GPS’s, why can’t races for computer games be taken from that information. That people could race in a computer game, but use the street and town/cities that they live in, the road is the most important thing, the buildings and road side stuff, are just window dressing, which just zips by your view, but still looks pretty mind. I know TDU is there, with a whole island from the real world, but why not My Town, Manhattan, the whole of Great Britain, the USA, then the World.

People talk about GTA IV (another open world game type), but will ROCKSTAR use their car handling and driving from the Midnight Club series and use that within this game or will it be less and use the thumb sticks to drive, like the games of yore? I hope not.

To tell the truth when some game has a driving element in the game, but is not a driving game, e.g. a FPS, the controls that do get set up seem very poor, why do they not use what has been establish from other driving games. I sort of agree that the thumb sticks (one for each track) option used for tanks seems to work, I just need another player in there with me, using the turret and firing it, lol.

I think that racing games are not dead, but they do need to sort out what they are going to do in the future; GT is a simulator, driving game, so top of the racing, driving spectrum, while we have an XNA game like Jelly Car, which is a Puzzle racing game at the other end of the spectrum, by the way, the spectrum is not a rule of good and bad, just a look across the racing genre and just going by new driving games out or coming out.

What happens with the genre is up to developers; I know I want Car Wars to come to Next Gen, but that would require, sorry, probably need 20 g of hard drive space just for the customisation part of the game, then even more for the driving areas, and better networking and the internet to be universal for the amount of players per virtual driving space that the game requires, as it is also an MMO with RTS and FPS elements and of course driving, so it would raise the bar for our generation of consoles, maybe to high?

If someone built a Racing game that could let you take it serious with Simulation but tone it down to Arcade if the player wants, play online with many anyone’s, looks great and can have more downloadable tracks at regular intervals, and has pretty crash graphics, they will have a great game on their hands.

It is just a racing game after all, what more can be done that has not been done before?

Put it all in, right, and then let the player sort it out?